Chauncey Village Council seeks to fill vacant seat

CHAUNCEY, Ohio – ​Chauncey Village Council has operated with an unfilled seat for approximately four months. After council member Diana Burritt resigned due to work scheduling conflicts, the council began encouraging residents to apply to fill the vacancy. 

Council members put up notices of the open seat in the post office, included it in monthly meeting announcements and talked to their neighbors. But no one has expressed interest in filling the vacant seat yet, mayor Amy Renner said.

Chapter 731 of the Ohio Revised Code states that village councils must have six members. When a council member resigns, the village council has 30 days to fill the vacancy. If the council does not vote in a new member within that period, then the mayor has the power to appoint a new council member.

Although it’s been more than 30 days since the seat opened, Renner said she does not currently anticipate appointing a new council member.

Council member Tammy Hawk said,“We usually like to allow people to come to us if you’re interested and say that you are committed to attending our meetings and giving your effort and attention.”

With fewer than six members, Chauncey Village Council is still able to operate. A majority of council members must be present at each meeting for it to be considered valid. Having a vacant seat on council can make it more challenging to fulfill meeting quorums.

“If we have a council member who’s sick or has another obligation, it’s just important that we have enough members to allow those meetings to still happen,” Renner said. “So for the basic function of council, it’s ideal to have six people there.”

Council vacancies are not unusual in Chauncey. The village has a population of fewer than 1,000 residents, according to the 2020 Census, so the pool of potential council members is limited.

Before she was mayor, Renner served as a council member and remembers there “oftentimes” being a vacancy on council.

“It’s challenging for small governments and for other villages,” Renner said.

To be eligible for a seat on Chauncey’s council, residents must be 18, registered to vote and have resided in the village for the past year, according to the Ohio Revised Code.

Chauncey Village Council currently comprises Connaught Cullen, Tammy Hawk, Evelyn Nagy, Karla Dellinger and Dylan Skees. The legislative body meets at 5:30 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month at Village Hall, 42 Converse Street.

“We have our table set up, there’s some room for community members,” Hawk said. “We just run the meeting like a normal meeting: get called to order, approve the minutes, go through the financials and ask questions about all that.”

Meetings are generally two hours long. During council meetings members enact their responsibilities of introducing legislation for the village and overseeing its finances.

Chauncey’s council members and mayor plan to continue seeking a candidate to fill the vacant seat through the new year.

People interested in filling Chauncey’s vacant council seat should attend the next council meeting on Feb. 8 or email Renner at chaunceymayor@gmail.com. The village also seeks a part-time code enforcement officer; Chauncey adopted its first zoning regulations in June 2022. Applications will be accepted until January 27 at 5 p.m. The job description is posted to the village’s website.