Council to name Pam Albers’ successor at next meeting. New member would hold position until March 2020 election
Editor’s note: This article was updated on Monday, June 17, to correct a factual error concerning the cost of a special election.
The Avalon City Council will select the person to fill the seat vacated by the recent passing of Pam Albers at the next meeting, which is scheduled for June 18.
Prospective council members have until 3 p.m., Wednesday, June 12, to submit their applications to the City Clerk’s Office.
The consensus among council members was that they didn’t want to decide what form the application would take. In a post-meeting interview, Mayor Anni Marshall compared the submission to a candidate’s statement.
The council came to the decision at the end of a nearly five-hour meeting Tuesday, June 4, which was long largely due to the fact that the council was working on the equivelent of two agendas because of Albers’ recent death. (The council did no business at the previous meeting, preferring instead to pay tirbute to their colleague.)
The issue before the council this week was whether to call an election to fill the seat or appoint someone to fill the vacancy, according to City Attorney Scott Campbell.
According to City Manager/City Clerk Denise Radde, state law requires that the council will within 60 days of a vacancy fill that vacancy by appointment or call a special election. According to Radde, there was no specific process required to make an appiontment. However, she also explained that if the council appointed someone to fill the vacant council seat, that person could only hold the office until the next council election.
The next election will be held in March 2020. Two council seats will be up for election in any case for four year terms. However, the appointee to fill Albers’ seat would only be for two years.
Marshall askied if the council couldn’t appoint someone for a full term. Campbell said no, because the vacancy occurred early in the term.
According to Radde, if the council called a special election, it could cost an estimated $50,000.
If the council had gone with the special election option, Albers’ successor would still serve until 2022.
“Well, I don’t velieve we want to keep the seat open for that time,” Marshall said.
“I don’t think we can,” said Council Member Cinde MacGugan-Cassidy. “I mean, we don’t want to, but I don’t think we can.”
Campbell said there was no requirement as to how the council appointed an Albers successor. However, he said that if the council decided to interview applicants, the council would have to do it in accordance with the Brown Act. That’s the California public meeting law.
However, MacGugan-Cassidy wanted the public to participate in the selection process.
“The citizens of Avalon need to be involved in this decision,” she said.
“We’re all elected,” she said.
“That is the democratic process.”
That said, MacGugan-Cassidy said she was not in favor of a special election, citing the expense as a concern.
“They told us in the election,” said Council Member Oley Olsen, apparently referring to the 2018 election in which Albers won her office.
City Attorney Campbell said he had been through this six times, apparently referring to communities he has represented on the mainland.
In most of those instances, Campbell said, the councils interrviewed applicants and took public comments. He said state law requires a council to either appoint someone or to have a special election.
Michael Ponce, a former council member, said the first time he was elected to council, they had to deal with this issue. He pointed out that former City Manager Steve Hoefs “just came behind” Albers in the last election by a small number of votes.
In the April 2018 election, Pam Albers received 187 votes. Hoefs received 179.
According to Ponce, the city has historically apointed the person who received the next highest number of votes.
He said there was precedent for selecting the next highest vote-getter.
However, MacGugan-Cassidy wanted to know how the community would be involved in the seleciton process.
MacGugan-Cassidy later indicated she would prefer a special election to appointing a council member without community participation in the process.
Campbell pointed out that the council had until July 18 to make a decision.
“Do you really want to drag this out until July?” Ponce asked.
He pointed out that the city budget was coming up.
“I think the community should make the decision,” MacGugan-Cassidy said.
Olsen made a motion to appoint a new council member at the next meeting.
In other business, Olsen and MacGugan-Cassidy were appointed to serve on a harbor committee. MacGugan-Cassidy pointed out that originally she and Albers were going to serve on the committee.
