The Roanoke Times | File

Old buildings along Peak Creek in downtown Pulaski reflect the town's once industrial presence. "We need fresh ideas and most of the time that means new people that can come up with new ideas and new solutions," said Pulaski resident Jim Babb.

PULASKI -- Members of a loosely organized residents' group have collected 300 signatures on a petition urging town council to fill its vacant seat with the man who came up 84 votes short of being elected to council in May.

But the newly sworn-in council members gave no indication Tuesday evening whether that person, H.M. Kidd, had an edge or even how they would select from the seven other residents who submitted letters of interest in the open council seat last week.

The vacancy was created Tuesday night, when four-term council member Jeff Worrell was sworn in as mayor. Voters in May elected Worrell as mayor and Joel Burchett, Robert Bopp and Morgan Welker as town council members.

The council now has 45 days to appoint a town resident who is eligible to vote to Worrell's former council seat, according to the town charter. The town opened a call for letters of interest in late May.

Jeff Worrell

Worrell said after the meeting that the council would likely decide how to select its new member at its July 15 work session. He indicated he favored a public interview process.

Some residents, who say they see the election of young political novices Bopp and Welker as promising catalysts for change in Pulaski, have voiced concern that the council could appoint a member more interested in preserving the status quo.

Kidd, Bopp and Welker had been active in the residents' group Citizens for the Betterment of Pulaski.

"We need fresh ideas and most of the time that means new people that can come up with new ideas and new solutions," said Jim Babb, a resident who attends the group's meetings and helped collect signatures. He added that residents who didn't campaign but put their names forward for consideration for the open seat raised questions about why they hadn't run for council in the first place.

But as two council members acknowledged, qualifications -- and not just the May campaign -- will play a key role in the selection process. That could complicate the chances of Kidd or Glenn Baublitz Jr., who also ran in May but came in fifth.

Both will compete against E.G. Black and Nick Glenn, two former councilmen who submitted letters. Neither has served on the council in at least eight years.

The four other names are Mike Aamodt, Marilyn Hitesman, Robert Wallace and Chastity Stevens, according to Town Clerk Trish Cruise.

Town Manager John Hawley said despite keeping their letters of interest private, the town probably doesn't need to keep the interview process closed. Laws covering employees paid with taxpayer dollars seem to allow a scenario in which the council would call a special meeting to interview contenders in public followed by a closed session for council members to discuss the interviews.

Councilman Joel Burchett said he understands residents might raise suspicions about the process if it is conducted totally in private, saying, "The last thing I want to see is have a closed session with no rhyme or reason as to how we came to a decision."

But Councilman David Clarke, who said he has not formed an opinion about how the council should conduct the process, said that a closed discussion session would allow for a more frank discussion.

Welker has said he would only support Kidd, citing Kidd's performance in the May election. Clarke said he would wait to examine the letters. Burchett said the campaign seemed to give an edge to candidates who made the effort to run.

Burchett hadn't seen how many signatures had been collected but said, "300 or 400 signatures -- that's a pretty strong statement."