The Lawrence city commissioners from left, Stuart Boley, vice mayor Leslie Soden, Mike Amyx and Matthew Herbert hold a special meeting Friday, Aug. 14, to take formal action on the resignation of Mayor Jeremy Farmer and receive public comments on filling the vacancy and filling the position of Mayor.

By Oct. 6, Lawrence may have a new city commissioner to fill the vacant seat left by Jeremy Farmer’s sudden resignation stemming from financial questions surrounding the former mayor.

Commissioners at their Tuesday evening meeting are set to approve a process that would lead to an appointment of a new commissioner by early October. Given the questions surrounding Farmer and unpaid payroll taxes at his former employer, the nonprofit food bank Just Food, commissioners are looking for a process that creates confidence in the new appointee.

“I know commissioners believe it is critical that this be a very open, transparent process,” Mayor Mike Amyx said.

The application process will have a number of steps, including requiring applicants to participate in a public forum and write a pair of essays up to 500 words describing their approach to governing and detailing the largest issues facing the community.

Here’s a look at other details of the application process:

• Candidates would have until 5 p.m. on Sept. 9 to apply for the vacant seat. As part of the process, they would fill out an application form. It includes questions about the person’s education, work history, length of time in Lawrence, community involvement and the essay questions. Candidates also will be required to complete a form detailing any potential conflicts of interest their employment or livelihood may create in the position.

• A 12-member advisory board will be appointed to review all applications and make a recommendation of six candidates to be considered by the City Commission. The remaining four members of the City Commission will each appoint three members to the advisory board.

• The advisory board would hold a meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 17 to review all applicants and select 12 semifinalists. All meetings of the advisory board would abide by the Kansas Open Meetings Act and the Kansas Open Records Act, meaning all candidate applications will be a matter of public record.

• At a 6:30 p.m. meeting on Sept. 24, the advisory board will host a public forum and select six candidates to forward to the City Commission.

• The four remaining Lawrence city commissioners will hold a special meeting at 5:45 p.m. on Oct. 1 to interview applicants and discuss the candidate and vacancy. Amyx said all interviews will be held in open session, in full view of the public.

• City commissioners by a simple majority vote will select a candidate to fill the vacancy at the Oct. 6 City Commission meeting. The new commissioner will be sworn into office at that time. The new commissioner would serve until the end of Farmer’s term, which is January 2018.

Commissioner at their Tuesday evening meeting are expected to discuss additional criteria they want to use to evaluate commission candidates. Amyx is recommending that each candidate come with three letters of recommendation from Lawrence residents.

“The applicant should have an extended history of involvement in community affairs,” Amyx wrote in a memo to commissioners. “They should exhibit a desire to serve the Lawrence voter and be accessible to such. A history of sound decision-making is desirable. The ability to devote the amount of time required of this position is a must.”

Commissioners meet at 5:45 p.m. on Tuesday at City Hall.

Here’s a look at the proposed appointments to the city advisory board that will assist commissioners in reviewing applicants for the vacant City Commission seat. All of the proposed appointees are Lawrence residents and registered voters.

Appointed by Mayor Mike Amyx

• Tom Christie

• Joe Harkins

• Joanne Hurst

Appointed by Commissioner Stuart Boley

• State Rep. Boog Highberger

• Njeri Shomari

• Shirley Martin-Smith

Appointed by Commissioner Matthew Herbert

• Michelle Fales

• Mark Pruett

• Dustin Rimmey

Appointed by Commissioner Leslie Soden

• Dennis Constance

• Brenda Nunez

• Melinda Toumi