Tarentum will accept applications for a soon-to-be vacant seat on borough council until Jan. 4.
Council on Tuesday accepted the resignation of 1st Ward Councilwoman Erika Josefoski. Her resignation is effective Dec. 31.
Josefoski, 36, announced her intention to resign earlier this month. She said she did not have enough time to devote to council duties while also juggling multiple jobs and homeschooling while Highlands students are fully remote because of the covid-19 pandemic.
Josefoski said she also was considering moving closer to her work.
While council voted just Tuesday to advertise for letters of interest for the seat, the borough already has one candidate, former Councilman Raymond Kerr.
Kerr, 70, a Republican, was appointed to council’s at-large seat in 2010, replacing Carl Magnetta who had been appointed mayor. Kerr had been among 10 applicants for two seats that year.
According to Allegheny County election results, Kerr lost the at-large seat to Democrat Michael Gutonski in the 2011 election. He was elected to the 1st Ward seat while running unopposed in 2013, then lost it to Josefoski, a Democrat, in 2015.
Josefoski last was elected in 2019, defeating Republican challenger Thomas Grates Jr.
In a letter dated Dec. 2, Kerr, of East Eighth Avenue, said his prior experience as a councilman “will be beneficial working with the borough manager, the council and the borough of Tarentum.”
Applicants must be residents of the 1st Ward, which encompasses the entire area above the train tracks in East Tarentum, for at least a year.
Council could interview candidates and vote to make an appointment at its Tuesday, Jan. 5, meeting. Interviews will be conducted in public.
The meeting might be held on Zoom. Council discussed the possibility of making it possible for applicants without at-home access to the online meeting platform to participate from the borough building.
How interviews will be conducted will be decided later, in part based on how many applicants there are, borough Manager Michael Nestico said.
The council seat will be up for election in the 2021 municipal election.
