Gastonia discusses the process it will use to fill Kellogg's seat

Chloe Collins, Gaston Gazette
·2 min read
Gastonia City Council decides process to fill soon-to-be empty seat.
Gastonia City Council decides process to fill soon-to-be empty seat.

The city of Gastonia made official the process it will use to fill the seat left vacant by councilman Robert Kellogg, who announced last week that he is stepping down effective April 30.

The council approved a process and timeline at its April 16 meeting, at which several Gastonia residents spoke about the issue during public input, some even taking the opportunity to throw their hats in the ring.

Timeline

In 2009 when councilman James Watson passed away while in office, the city had to fill a vacant seat.

At that time, the process took four months due to the fact that the city had to create documents for the process from scratch, city attorney Ashley Smith said at the meeting.

This year, the process will be somewhat expedited since the city has the appropriate documents for the approved process.

The council set dates for the application window, interviews and the announcement.

Those dates include:

  • May 22, the application window will close.

  • June 4, at a regular meeting, the City Council will decide which candidates will be selected for interviews

  • June 17, interviews will be conducted, likely in a special meeting that is open to the public

  • June 18, at a regular meeting, the council will vote on who will fill the seat and likely swear them in at the same meeting

Next steps

City Council is now working on questions for the interviewees.

It is currently unclear whether those questions will be available to applicants prior to interviews, but a general job description will be available with the application, which will be posted on the city’s website.

Applicants interested in the position must be:

  • A registered voter.

  • A resident of Ward One who has lived there for at least 30 days.

Residents can check if they live in Ward One by visiting the ward map on the city's website.

The new councilperson will serve from June 18 through Election Day on Nov. 2025.

Robert Kellogg is running for the mayor's seat in Gastonia.
Robert Kellogg is running for the mayor's seat in Gastonia.

This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: Gastonia discusses the process it will use to fill Kellogg's seat