Greater Hume's longest-continually-serving councillor, Denise Knight, is resigning from council and starting a new life in Gippsland.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Cr Knight and husband Peter will move to Paynesville, where they are building a new home, soon after August 20 - her final day.
"We decided last year that this would be my last term ... we've got a new life ahead of us," she said.
"My term was supposed to end at the last meeting in August, and that's always what we've aimed for."
Cr Knight was intending to stand down at the 2020 local government elections, but their postponement by one year means her resignation triggers a by-election.
Greater Hume Council will seek Ministerial approval to skip the by-election and fill her position in 2021, saving approximately $35,000.
Cr Knight's contribution since joining Hume Shire in 1987, which merged with the Holbrook and Culcairn shires to become Greater Hume in 2004, was recognised by mayor Heather Wilton in a mayoral minute.
"[She] is most likely best known for spearheading the successful 'Hands of Hume' campaign in the early 2000s that resulted in a significant area of the former Hume Shire being included in the proclamation of the Greater Hume Shire Council," Cr Wilton said.
"Cr Knight can also can be extraordinarily proud of her achievements in her professional life, providing housing support for some of the most vulnerable in our community ... [she] enabled many great results with homeless clients now living independently, responsibly and safely.
"On behalf of council, I wish Cr Knight and her husband Peter every success and happiness as they enter an exciting phase in their life together."
Cr Knight, who was mayor at the time her former husband Barry Osborne died of cancer in 2012, remains a member of the Jindera Rural Fire Service.
"I've been very lucky; Barry was very supportive, and Pete is too," she said.
IN OTHER NEWS:
"The Jindera community is amazing - I know people say that about anywhere they live, but it's got so much to offer, it's been very, very kind to me and my family."
Cr Knight said the council amalgamation and the Hume Highway bypass were two big issues in her time.
"They were the ones that had impacts that you can look at, and see remnants of, but ... dealing with bushfires, drought, and how you provide services to small communities as well as large communities will always be there," she said.
"[In coming years] I hope to see the same sense of community, I hope it grows."
