8.3 City Commission VacanciesCITY OF SALINA
REQUEST FOR CITY COMMISSION ACTION DATE TIME
11/15/2010 4:00 P.M.
AGENDA SECTION ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT: APPROVED FOR
NO: 8 AGENDA:
CITY MANAGER’S OFFICE
ITEM
NO. 3
BY:
BY: Jason A. Gage, City Manager
Page 1
ITEM:
Discuss process to fill City Commission seat vacancy(ies) to serve until the next general election.
BACKGROUND:
At least one vacancy on the City Commission will exist in January of next year due to Commissioner
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Arpke being selected by the voters to represent the 69 House District at the statehouse. A possible
second opening may occur if Commissioner Angell is se lected to serve as the newest district court
judge by Governor Parkinson. Co mmissioner Arpke’s term of office ex pires in April of 2011, while
Commissioner Angell’s term does not expire until April of 2013. The upcoming April general election
will provide an opportunity for Salina’s voters to select a candidate to fill the vacant seat left by Angell
for the remainder of her term. The other availabl e seat on the City Commissi on (currently held by
Commissioner Arpke) will be filled in a typical fashion. The filing deadline for the April general election
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is January 25, with the election being held on Tuesday, April 5. Those selected by the voters for
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the City Commission will take office on Monday, April 18.
The City Commissioners have significant discretion in determining how they would like to fill one or
potentially both City Commission seat s from January through mid-April. Anyone selected for
appointment must meet the minimum statutory requirements to file for election to the office. The City
Commission may also determine pre-selection criteria you wish. An example would be to require
interested candidates to fill out an Expression of In terest Form in the same way that prospective
board/committee members do. A few examples of general selection approaches might include:
Openly solicit interest from the general public;
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Establish minimum criteria from which to solicit interest; or
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Recruit specific individuals for consideration
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A process used successfully by a past City Commissi on was to solicit interest only from past city
commissioners who were not interested in running for election. The premise was to appoint someone
with experience for a short timeframe without potentially impacting the results of the upcoming general
election by creating an incumbent. Certainly, many other options exist and may be considered.
CONFORMANCE WITH STRATEGIC PLAN
Not applicable
FISCAL NOTE:
Not applicable
ALTERNATIVES AND RECOMMENDED ACTION:
This type of policy action doesn’t lend itself to formal alternatives. Staff and legal counsel are
available as a resource and to answer any questions you may have.