The City Council on Monday night officially announced a City Council vacancy and opened up the application process to fill the seat, as prescribed by city policy.

The council set a deadline of noon on Dec. 1 for all letters of intent and qualifications to be filed with the City Clerk. The council will select a candidate from the applicants.

The vacancy was created by the Nov. 9 death of Councilwoman Terri Briere.

The chosen applicant will serve until the next general election in November 2015. If elected at that time by the people, the new councilmemebr will serve the remainder of Briere’s term and will have to run for re-election in 2017.

The seat is open to all registered voters int he City of Renton who have residency within the city limits for at least one year prior to consideration.

All interested and qualified persons are encouraged to submit a letter of interest to the City Clerk. Additional materials outlining a candidate’s interests and qualifications may also be submitted.

Once the Dec. 1 deadline for submissions passes, the Council will meet and review the applicants in an open session. The Council will have the choice of selecting a new member at the time or choose a slate of candidates to be interviewed at the following Committee of the Whole meeting.

Should the council elect to interview candidates, each candidate will have a formal interview of up to 30 minutes in which they will be asked to present their credentials and respond to a slate of pre-determined questions approved by the Council. Each candidate will have the same questions.

There will follow an informal question and answer period with the council.

The council will then vote on candidates until a nominee receives a majority of four votes.