CLEARLAKE, Calif. – On Thursday the Clearlake City Council will consider selecting one of several applicants to fill a council seat vacated in March.

On Monday,  the city issued an amended agenda for the meeting, which will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 12, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.

In March, Denise Loustalot, the city's former mayor, left the council after she and her family moved just outside the city limits, as Lake County News has reported.

On April 14, the council directed City Clerk Melissa Swanson to advertise the vacancy and accept applications through May 4, according to a report from Swanson.

Swanson said she received a total of nine applications, which were reviewed by an ad hoc committee that included Mayor Russ Perdock, Vice Mayor Gina Fortino Dickson and Planning Commission Chair Nathalie Antus.

That ad hoc committee reviewed the applicants and recommended the council consider four of them: doctoral candidate Aqeela El-Amin Bakheit; Nick Bennett, a retired law enforcement officer who worked for nearly 20 years with the Clearlake Police Department; local businessman Phil Harris; and former mayor, Joey Luiz.

Swanson's report said staff is recommending that the council interview the four candidates and then appoint the most qualified on a majority vote.

Loustalot's term runs out at the end of this year.

Also on the agenda is the proposed award of a $62,234 contract to Wahlberg Inc. for the demolition of two structures located at 14061 Lakeshore Drive, the old Austin Resort; a memorandum of understanding with the Konocti Unified School District for two school resources officers; and presentations of proclamations declaring May 15 to 21 as Peace Officers' Appreciation Week and May 2016 as Military Appreciation Month.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.