At the Dec. 1 City Council meeting, Councilmember Tana Senn said that she will step down in January.

Senn has served on the Mercer Island City Council, position #4, for almost three years, including after she was appointed to be a state representative. During the 60-day Legislative session earlier this year, she would drive up from Olympia for bimonthly Monday Council meetings.

“With both a heavy heart and a heavy dose of reality, January 5, will be my last meeting on the City Council,” she said. “I’m going to give somebody else a chance at City Council while I work on state issues, but rest assured I will be definitely representing the community continuously.”

Senn was appointed to the Council in January 2012 to fill the remaining term of former Island mayor Jim Pearman, and ran unopposed last November to keep her seat.

While she was running for City Council in September 2013, she was also appointed to be the State Representative of 41st Legislative District by a vote of the King County Council, replacing former State Representative Marcie Maxwell. She was re-elected for that position last month, beating her opponent, Republican Bill Stinson, 63 percent to 37 percent.

Senn’s volunteer involvement in the Mercer Island community has included managing the campaign of fellow Councilmember Debbie Bertlin and serving on the leadership team of the fire station and rescue truck levy campaign.

Prior to her appointment to the City Council, Senn was president-elect of the Mercer Island Youth and Family Services Foundation and on the Giving from the Heart Breakfast committee. She also served on the Island Park Elementary School PTA Executive Committee.

The city is accepting applications from residents of Mercer Island to fill the vacancy on the City Council. The term will commence once a candidate is appointed by a majority vote of the Council, and will expire after the results of the general election, to be held Nov. 3, 2015, have been certified.

The seven-member City Council serves as the legislative body of the City.  The Council is responsible for setting policy, adopting the annual budget, adopting laws, determining the services to be provided and the funding levels for those services, and appointing citizens to its advisory boards and commissions.

The timeline for filling the Council vacancy is as follows:

Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2014: Applications due to City Clerk by 5 p.m.

Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015: Candidate interviews beginning at 6 p.m. (Special Meeting)

Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015: Council vote and swearing in of new Councilmember (Regular Meeting)*

*The appointed candidate will be expected to attend the 2015 Council Planning Session at the Community Center on Jan. 23 and 24, 2015.

Residents interested in applying must have resided within the City of Mercer Island for one year and must be a registered voter.

Applications are available here, at City Hall (9611 SE 36th Street) or by requesting mailing to City Clerk, Ali Spietz at (206) 275-7793 or ali.spietz@mercergov.org.

Additional information is also available on the City’s website at: www.mercergov.org/council.