The Cosmopolis City Council filled its vacant fifth seat Wednesday night, as well as electing a mayor pro tempore from among its ranks.

Sue Darcy, who lost to Mark Collett by two votes in last November’s election, joined the council, filling the seat left vacant by Jim Ancich’s departure.

“I’ve lived here for two years. I’ve been pretty involved in city issues. I feel like I can bring a different viewpoint then most people have,” Darcy said in a brief interview after the meeting. “I think there’s a lot more that can be done around the city’s history than there is.”

The city also elected Councilor Kim Skinner as mayor pro tempore, which means that he may call on powers above other council members in the absence of a mayor. Skinner was elected 3-2 over Councilor Justin Spargo, who also submitted his name.

Theft

Police Clerk Kasey Grove urged those experiencing incidents such as vehicle riflings to contact the police, in order to better track activity, instead of just posting about it on social media.

“We really encourage you — please, reach out and call those things in. At that point calling the non-emergency dispatch number is best,” Grove said. “Don’t call the police department because that number is not manned 24/7. We saw all those posts on social media, and no calls to dispatch. We’re not going to respond on social media to you.”

Homeless

Responding to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling aimed at further criminalizing homelessness by making it illegal to sleep in a public place, the council also voted to make a small modification to its own ordinances, adding sleeping bags to the list of items people could not sleep in, alongside tents and RVs.

“We’re worried we’re going to get an influx of people when they get ran out of where they are right now. We want to protect our people,” Skinner said. “We’re going to continue to work to make sure public safety, our police force, are going to be the best we can make them in Cosmopolis.”

Skinner said he expected police to use their discretion in enforcing the ordinance, and that the ordinance was not aimed at visitors passing through, such as people on extended bike trips through Cosmopolis, only those experiencing homelessness and dwelling on public property for an extended period of time. Skinner said he doesn’t expect it to be a major issue.

“Those people are going where there’s services,” Skinner said. “We don’t provide services.”

Contact Senior Reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or michael.lockett@thedailyworld.com.