Following the death of Paso Robles Mayor Steve Martin, the city council held a special meeting on Thursday to fill the position.
Martin died on Aug. 16 after a “hard-fought illness,” according to city officials.
In a four to zero decision on Thursday, the city council selected John Hamon to take over the position of mayor.
Hamon was appointed as mayor pro tempore once Martin became ill.
Hamon has served on the Paso Robles City Council for 17 years. He tells KSBY he was good friends with Martin.
“To fill Mayor Martin’s shoes is almost impossible, but I’ve had my own way of doing things for many years and, again, with the help of our colleagues on the council board, it’s going to happen correctly. I think Mayor Martin will be happy with the procedure we’re going to be doing, so looking forward to doing that,” Hamon said.
Now that Hamon is mayor, his District 1 councilmember position will need to be filled.
The Paso Robles City Council will open applications for the role starting on Monday, Sept. 11 and the window will close on Thursday, Sept. 21.
Following the application window, the city council said it will have a deadline to interview candidates by Sept. 26.
A councilmember will then be appointed and sworn in at the city council’s Oct. 3 meeting.
However, the city council said if they make a decision on Sept. 26, the candidate could be sworn in then.
