Bell pursues seamless resignation from post

House District 20 Del.-elect Dickie Bell expects to resign his Staunton City Council seat by the end of the year, which will give the remaining council members 45 days to appoint a successor.

Bell said Dec. 31 is his tentative date to resign.

“I want to make sure that was the best date for the council and the city to work with. I want this to be as seamless as possible,’’ he said.

Staunton Mayor Lacy King said Bell’s successor would then run in a special May 2010 election to fulfill Bell’s term. The term expires June 30, 2012.

King said the Staunton City Council will discuss the appointment process when it meets next week.

“There are people out there more than capable of serving on council and who want to step forward,’’ King said.

Erik Curren, the Democrat who lost to Bell in Tuesday’s House 20 election, said he has been asked by a number of people to seek Bell’s council seat. Curren said he would consider a bid.

“I ran for delegate because I wanted to serve the area. Council would be a way to serve the city,’’ Curren said. “But this has been a grueling race. I need to spend time with my family and carefully consider it.”

King said filling Bell’s shoes on council would be difficult.

“Dickie has a wealth of institutional knowledge of the budgeting and appointments process and just serving the citizens,’’ King said. “It’s a lot of experience we will be losing.”

The last time the Staunton City Council had to fill a vacancy was in January 1992, when Rita Wilson was appointed to replace George Miller, said Deborah Lane, the clerk to the council.