FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                           July 19, 2006

CARY COUNCIL MEMBER RESIGNS

Town Council Now Charged with Appointing Replacement

Cary , NC – Cary Town Council member Michael Joyce has officially resigned his At-Large Council seat.  He delivered his three-page letter of resignation to Cary Town Clerk Sue Rowland just before noon today.  Joyce was elected to his first four-year term on the Cary Town Council in the fall of 2003.

According to Town ordinances, the Town Charter, and NC law, the Cary Town Council is responsible for appointing a Cary citizen to fill Joyce’s unexpired term until citizens have the opportunity to elect a successor in the 2007 Cary municipal elections.  A majority of the Council—four members—must vote in favor of Joyce’s replacement at a public meeting, the time and date of which have not yet been determined.

The last time a Council vacancy occurred in Cary was in November 1999 when then At-Large Council member Glen Lang was elected Mayor, causing his At-Large seat to be vacated.  In the weeks after the election and prior to the December 9, 1999 swearing in of the newly elected Council members, the Town Council took candidate suggestions from the community before voting unanimously to appoint Jennifer Robinson to Lang’s At-Large seat.  Since then, Robinson successfully ran for and remains the Cary District A Council member

While the current Cary Council has not yet met to discuss the specific process they will use to fill Joyce’s seat, criteria that might be considered when selecting a candidate to fill Council vacancies include:

• Residency

• Community involvement, connectedness

• Previous government experience

• Other previous relevant experience

• Education

• Occupation

• Financial solvency

• Other personal qualities

To read more about the last Cary Council vacancy, see the November 30, 1999 news release at:

http://www.townofcary.org/news/news99/robinson.htm.  To read more about Michael Joyce, see http://www.townofcary.org/council/mjoyce.htm.

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