The city of Sumner is accepting applications to  fill its vacant council seat until the November election. Applications are due at noon on Friday, April 8.

An application can be found online at the city of Sumner website.

The key requirements for the applicant are that she or he must be an adult current Sumner resident, who has been a resident for at least one year. The applicant must also be registered to vote.

After applications are turned in, candidates for the position who meet the basic requirements will be interviewed by Council the subsequent Monday, April 11, during the 6 p.m. study session. City Council will vote on the candidates and swear the new member of council in during the regular meeting April 18.

The city is borrowing an application created by the city of Mercer Island.

“When we were doing research (on how to fill the vacancy) we liked the form in the sense that it asked questions like ‘What’s important to you?,'” City Administrator Diane Supler said. “Things that went beyond the basic requirements.

“They also just filled a vacancy in December. The application was there, so we figured why reinvent the wheel?”

The council seat was affirmed vacant March 21, when present councilmembers voted 4-1 to not excuse Matt Richardson for three consecutive absences from regularly scheduled meetings. Curt Brown was excused absent.

Under the section of the state code dictating the mayor-council form of government, a councilmember’s seat becomes vacant if the elected person is absent for three consecutive meetings without being excused.