CATHEDRAL CITY – Fourteen candidates have submitted applications to fill the vacancy on the City Council, which could make the decision on whom to appoint challenging.

The vacancy on the five-member City Council was created when Mayor Gregory S. Pettis died in January.

The City Council made the decision earlier this month to seek applications and appoint someone to fill the vacancy thereby foregoing a cost-prohibitive special election. Councilors also agreed appointing someone from the city at large to fill the seat would be more expedient.

The candidates submitting the required information by the deadline are:

  1. Laura Ahmed – District 5 (candidate in District 5 in the November 2018 election)
  2. Jamie Lynn Birch – District 1
  3. Ricky Castillo – District 5
  4. Elmer Diaz – District 1
  5. Jesus Fonseca – District 5
  6. Stanley E. Henry – District 3 (former Cathedral City Police Chief, former Mayor)
  7. Shelley Kaplan – District 1 (former City Councilmember)
  8. Rita Lamb – District 1
  9. James McDonnell – District 2
  10. Paul Spencer Marchand – District 2 (former City Councilmember)
  11. Rebecca Sameroff Robinson – District 1
  12. Enrique Saldivar – District 4 (candidate in the November 2018 election)
  13. Jonathan Patrick Wynne – District 1
  14. Louie “Chip” Walter Yarborough – District 5

You may read all of their applications and responses to questions by clicking here.

To help the City Council make its decision, each applicant was asked to answer a series of six questions:

  1. Why do you want to be on the City Council? How does your background complement the backgrounds of existing Councilmembers?
  2. How long have you lived in Cathedral City and in what neighborhood do you currently reside?
  3. What will be your top two priorities for action if you become a member of the City Council?
  4. What is your role of the City Council in relation to the roles of the city manager and staff?
  5. How will you handle policy disagreements with other members of the Council while still maintaining the ability to work together respectfully for the good of the community?
  6. How do you view the diversity of Cathedral City and how will that influence the positions you take as a member of the City Council?

Council is scheduled to hear testimony from the public, discuss the candidates, and make a decision on whom to appointment at the meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 27. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. in City Hall.

 

 

 

 

 

Image Sources

  • Decision Making: Shutterstock