The Kaua'i County Council plans to hold a special meeting next month — during the week following Mayor Bryan J. Baptiste's July 6 memorial service — to vote on the appointment of a councilmember to serve as mayor, according to a news release issued today.

The council will post notice of the meeting six days before it is set to be held, to comply with the Sunshine Law.

A team of county officials has been meeting this week to discuss succession issues. The team includes Acting Mayor Gary K. Heu, County Council Chair Bill "Kaipo" Asing, County Attorney Matthew Pyun, County Clerk Peter Nakamura, and staff. Other councilmembers have not been directly involved in the discussions.

Asing said he recognizes that although the county is operating normally under Acting Mayor Heu, there is anxiety in the community about the succession. "The sooner we can get this done, the better for everybody," Asing said.

Heu said the administration will do all it can to support an orderly transfer.

"The county administration and employees are still coping with the sudden loss of the mayor while insuring that services remain available to the public and operations continue as smoothly as possible," Heu said. "We are committed to working with the council to insure an orderly transition and to support the new mayor once he or she assumes the position."

Councilmembers are charged, under the language of the county charter, with selecting one councilmember to serve as mayor. A majority — four of the council's seven members — is required to select the new mayor. The councilmember selected would have all the powers of mayor, and would no longer be a member of the council upon being sworn in as mayor.

After the new mayor is sworn in, the council under guidance of the charter would schedule a special meeting to fill the resulting vacancy on the council. Four of the six remaining council members must agree on the selection. If after 30 days the council is unable to fill the position, the new mayor would make the selection.

The appointed mayor would serve an abbreviated term, until Dec. 1, when an elected mayor will be seated to serve out the final two years of mayor Baptiste's term.

Details regarding the mayoral election are still under discussion, and should be released shortly, according to the release.

Baptiste died at his home Sunday, nine days after heart bypass surgery. He was 52. Baptiste had been Kaua'i mayor since 2002, and before that served six years on the county council. Heu, the mayor's administrative assistant and chief of staff, began serving as acting mayor earlier this month — following the surgery.