Seaside staff and council reviewed and largely approved the process and timeline for appointing a replacement for the Ward 4 council seat.

Staff said the application deadline will be Dec. 31 at 3 p.m.; candidates must submit 20 valid signatures from within Ward 4 and be available for a public forum on Jan. 7 and a council interview on Jan. 12. Staff recommended giving candidates some questions in advance for the forum so they can prepare answers and leaving other questions to be asked live during the Jan. 12 council interviews. The mayor recommended moderating the forum; some councilors suggested the mayor or another designee could handle the role for continuity.

Council discussed time limits for the forum (introductory remarks, timed answers and a short closing statement), the possibility of a wrap-up period to allow one-on-one interactions with candidates after the formal forum, and sequestering candidates between interviews so subsequent applicants do not hear earlier answers. Several councilors supported using the previous year's forum questions as the basis for the Jan. 7 forum and reserving interview questions for the Jan. 12 council meeting.

Staff will finalize the public-comment method for the forum (online form and paper cards compiled by staff) and set a public-comment cutoff for materials submitted to the council (suggested Jan. 12 at noon). The council asked staff to circulate last year’s question list and to finalize forum logistics and time allotments depending on the number of applicants.