The Gray Town Council last night unanimously appointed Matt Sturgis, a former councilor, to fill the open seat vacated by the departure of Deborah Mancini, who resigned June 14.

Sturgis, of Glen Cove Road, who served on the council from 2003-05, was the only resident to submit an application before the July 1 deadline.

He will be sworn in July 15, and serve until the next municipal election, scheduled for June 9, 2009, when a race will be held to fill the seat for the remaining year of the term. Sturgis is currently the tax assessor for Cape Elizabeth.

“I look forward to being sworn in, and occasionally sworn at,” Sturgis joked after the meeting. More seriously, he said the council has a lot of work to do, mostly related to the town’s growth. “I’m excited to help in any way I can.”

Councilors, who interviewed Sturgis July 7, said at a special meeting last night that he was the right man for the job, though one resident at the meeting was not impressed with Sturgis, and was upset at the process in which the seat was filled.

Councilor Mark Grover called Sturgis “qualified and competent,” while Council Tracy Scheckel, who was not at the meeting, submitted written remarks saying Sturgis would bring “another dimension of independent thinking to the council.”

Gray resident Lewis Mancini, husband of Deborah Mancini, also stood to praise Sturgis at the meeting.

“Personally, I’ve been a fan of his for quite a while,” he said. “I think he gets it. He has the right idea.”

Resident Jim Monroe opposed Sturgis’ appointment. He said that during Monday’s interview Sturgis “didn’t have the answers and appeared to not have a clue.”

Then, after confirming that Sturgis was approached by Councilor Peter Gellerson to apply for the open seat, Monroe said it was improper for councilors to solicit candidates in such a manner.

“To call one or two is being selective in my opinion,” Monroe said. “It’s almost like a handpicked replacement.”

The council, he said, should have reached out to more residents, including those who regularly attend council meetings.

“It wouldn’t be very hard to come up with, I think, at least 10 names of people who show an interest in town affairs,” Monroe said.

Gellerson said he called Sturgis and another unnamed resident once to ask if they had any interest in the position. At the time, no other candidates had responded to notices on the town Web site and in local newspapers.

“I did everything I could to try to get people to show some interest,” Gellerson said.

Councilor Mark Grover said he too reached out to an individual who ultimately decided not to submit an application. The process was fair, Grover said, and open to any resident.

“I do wish there had been multiple candidates,” said Grover.

“If they wanted to apply, they could apply,” said Councilor Margaret Hutchins, who said she did not solicit any residents to apply.

Matthew Sturgis is the only person to step forward to replace Gray Town Councilor Deborah Mancini, who resigned June 14. Sturgis will be interviewd by council members July 7 and could be named to the council for a one year term July 10.