Tacoma City Council members voted 7 – 0 tonight to appoint Jonathan Phillips to represent District 2 on the City Council through the end of the current term on Dec. 31, 2005. Phillips will fill the seat that was vacated on July 8, 2005, by former Council Member Kevin Phelps.

Phillips was chosen from a group of 14 candidates who applied to fill the District 2 seat. Phillips has been the chair of the North End Neighborhood Council and chair of the City’s Landmarks Commission. He has also served on the Community Council.

“All 14 candidates were outstanding – any of them could have successfully filled this position. But when the Appointments Committee reviewed and ranked the candidates, we all came up with one name among our top two – and Jonathan Phillips was ranked number one by most of the members,” said Mayor Bill Baarsma. “He stood out as the top candidate in a very strong group overall.”

Phillips is a real estate broker, and he also brings a background working with computers to the Council. According to Mayor Baarsma, Phillips’ qualifications fit well with the criteria used for the selection process. The criteria included that the appointee be familiar with Tacoma government and issues, represent a constituency within the community, not represent a special interest, have demonstrated leadership skills and evidence of decision making under stressful situations, have an understanding of the district, and have enough time to devote to the office.