Atherton cancels council election: Three candidates appointed to council Atherton cancels council election: Three candidates appointed to council (August 28, 2002)

By Andrea Gemmet

Almanac Staff Writer

Atherton officials decided to save themselves the trouble and expense of holding an election in November, choosing instead to simply appoint the three candidates to the three open city council seats.

The four-year council terms of Mayor Alan Carlson and council members Didi Fisher and Bill Conwell will end in November. Ms. Fisher chose not to run again, and Mr. Carlson and Mr. Conwell both filed for reelection.

The third candidate is Charles Marsala, who is active in the community and serves as a member of Atherton's Park and Recreation Commission and Arts Committee.

No other would-be candidates threw their hats into the ring, even though the candidate filing deadline was extended five days to August 14, a standard practice when an incumbent such as Ms. Fisher doesn't file to run for re-election.

After briefly weighing their options at the August 21 meeting, and after receiving assurances from City Attorney Marc Hynes that it was appropriate for Mr. Carlson and Mr. Conwell to vote on the issue, council members voted 4-0 to cancel the election and appoint the three candidates this fall. Councilman Jim Janz was absent.

Although the city has budgeted $5,000 to pay for the fall election, City Clerk Sharon Barker said that new rules for San Mateo County require all election materials to be printed in three languages, a change that would likely double or triple Atherton's election costs.