The following is a press release issued by Paul Anderson, the City Manager of Point Arena:
At their January 11 Special meeting, the Point Arena City Council appointed two new members to the City Council to fill vacancies resulting from resignation – Jim Koogle and Richey Wasserman. Both are long-time residents of Point Arena and have served on the City Council and numerous boards and commissions before.
In early September 2021, two members of the City Council resigned. At the September 28 City Council meeting, it was decided to call a Special Election for February 22, 2022. The nomination period for candidates for the two seats was November 1 to November 29. At the end of the filing period, only one candidate turned in nomination papers that were validated by the Registrar of Voters – Jim Koogle.
Because no more than one candidate ran for the two open seats and the City of Point Arena had no other items on the ballot, the County Elections Official determined that there would not need a Special Election to be held on February 22, 2022. Under this circumstance, State law allows an appointment “in lieu of election” as there were fewer candidates than open seats. The appointee will serve the remainder of the term which expires November 5, 2024.
At the December 14, 2021 meeting, the Council decided to open an application period for an appointment to the remaining vacant seat, with applications due by January 6, 2022. The only person to apply was Richey Wasserman. This Council seat would be up for election on November 8, 2022.
With the addition of Koogle and Wasserman, the Point Arena City Council roster is:
- Mayor Scott Ignacio (scott.ignacio@pointarena.ca.gov)
- Vice Mayor Barbara Burkey (barbara.burkey@pointarena.ca.gov)
- Councilmember Anna Dobbins (anna.dobbins@pointarena.ca.gov)
- Councilmember Jim Koogle (jim.koogle@pointarena.ca.gov)
- Councilmember Richey Wasserman (richey.wasserman@pointarena.ca.gov)
