The official filing window to run for a seat on your city or town council is now open. The clerks in Park City, Henefer, Coalville, Kamas, Oakley and Francis are standing by to guide you through the process. But, if you are considering taking a more active role in guiding your community’s future, you must take the plunge before their offices close on Wednesday, June 7.

Admittedly, it is not a decision to be taken lightly. While there is no time card to punch for those who serve, the quality of each council member’s and mayor’s leadership will certainly depend on how much time they are willing to spend studying documents, conferring with constituents and crafting thoughtful decisions.

Two council seats and the mayors’ posts are open in each of Summit County’s municipalities, and since there are no state or federal offices on November’s ballot, these vitally important local races won’t be overshadowed by any state or federal brouhaha.

The lack of partisan rhetoric, though, is both a relief and a concern in an off election year. Despite the fact that town council members may be asked to make decisions that directly affect their constituents’ neighborhoods, voters don’t turnout in the same numbers that they do when the president is on the ballot.

We hope that wont be the case this year and that after the last divisive election citizens are planning to pay closer attention to the democratic process.

But first, each of our growing towns needs to find a few good candidates willing to run.

In Park City, two strong candidates have officially filed to run for mayor and that race is shaping up to offer a vigorous debate about the future. But only one person has filed to run for a seat on the city council.

In Coalville, one person has filed to run for mayor, but none for council. Oakley’s town council race has two candidates and the incumbent mayor has unofficially declared that he intends to run. But in Francis, Kamas and Henefer, the slates, so far, are empty.

The clock is ticking.

This weekend we hope there will be many serious conversations among local residents about the value of community service and that, with the support of friends and neighbors, they will find the courage to run for local office.

For more information, contact the election official in your town:

Park City: Michelle Kellogg, election official, 615-5007

Coalville: Nachele Sargent, recorder, 435-336-5981

Kamas: Kim Peacock, recorder, 435-783-4630

Francis: Suzanne Gillett, recorder, 435-783-6236

Henefer: Earlee Paskett, clerk, 435-336-5365 or 435-336-2044

Oakley: Konni Thompson, recorder, 435-783-5734

Please note that some of the offices are only open a couple of days a week. Call for specific days and hours.