BEND, OR -- As expected, Bend’s Mayor and one City Councilor stepped down at Wednesday night’s meeting.
Councilor Rita Schenkelberg read a statement thanking supporters and expressing frustration, saying in part, "Many parts of me are things that many community members are not willing to look at, have conversations with or interact in a respectful way. I'm heavily disappointed by that. It was really difficult this evening, to listen to multiple community members degrade my identity, degrade the identities of people that were sitting here having to listen. And I would never ask anyone else to do that. That is why I made the difficult decision to declare my resignation, something that I’ve been thinking about for months." The rest of Council shared their support for Schenkelberg.
Mayor Sally Russell also gave prepared remarks, saying it’s been an experience serving for 9.5 years, but also exhausting. "I have served with five different Councils," she said, "and they've all been different. It's kind of crazy to be elected as the most liberal person on Council. And, I went through three elections, and here I am - now I'm the most conservative, it seems." Both Russell and Schankelberg were applauded by Council as they left the meeting.
Both appointees will serve on the Council for the rest of 2022. Both Council positions will be on the ballot for the general election in November, at which time both seats need to be filled by election. The appointees will serve on the Council until the newly elected Councilors take office on January 4, 2023.
The person elected by voters into Schenkelberg’s seat will serve out the remaining two years of Schenkelberg’s term instead of a typical four-year term.
Community members interested in being appointed can apply at www.bendoregon.gov/council-application found at www.bendoregon.gov/citycouncil between May 19 and June 1. Appointees must be registered to vote in Oregon and must have resided in the city continuously during the twelve months immediately preceding the appointment.
If more than 10 people apply for the vacancies, a subcommittee of councilors (Anthony Broadman, Melanie Kebler and Megan Perkins) will convene to review the applications and suggest candidates for interviews. If fewer than 10 people apply, the whole Council will interview all applicants. Councilors will hold special public meetings in early June to conduct interviews. (Watch www.bendoregon.gov/councilagenda for meeting information.)
The City’s Charter says a vacancy in the council shall be filled within 30 days by appointment by the council but if the council does not fill the vacancy by an appointment within 30 days, then the vacancy gets filled at the next election, which would be in November.
For more detail, section 21 of the Bend Charter and section 9 of the City Council Rules explain the requirements associated with the process to fill vacancies.
