MidCoast Council will have a new look after the September 14 local government elections as five out of 11 councillors are not running, including one who fell victim to the Liberal nomination fiasco.
MidCoast is a sprawling, 10-square kilometre electorate formed by the amalgamation of Great Lakes, Taree and Gloucester councils in 2016.
Councillors David West, Kathryn Bell, Katheryn Stinson and Peter Epov have chosen not to seek re-election, while the state Liberal party failed to lodge a nomination in time for Troy Fowler.
Labor mayor Claire Pontin, a long-time former public servant, is among the six councillors seeking re-election and has also committed to running again for the top job.
As in the majority of NSW council areas, the MidCoast mayor is chosen by other councillors after the election and not by popular vote.
Cr Epov has been a provocative figure on the council as recently as July, when the Supreme Court finalised proceedings he had brought in relation to a conduct complaint against him.
The council has been on the receiving end of two less-than-flattering appraisals in the past year, including a NSW Auditor-General's report which found it had "not met all legislative and policy requirements for long-term financial planning".
The council has predicted 10 years of deficits.
The Auditor-General's June 2023 report said MidCoast had taken "early steps" to address its "financial sustainability issues" but had not yet established effective ways to analyse the cost of services and "address its unreliable asset condition data".
Cr Pontin and general manager Adrian Panuccio have said the council is working towards addressing the issues raised in the audit report.
Meanwhile, the council has been awarded the Development and Environmental Professionals Association's "Golden Turd Award" for "the worst HR in local government" two years in a row.
On a brighter note, the council last year opened a new library, visitor information centre and customer service shopfront at Forster as part of an at-times controversial public-private partnership involving the federal government and a property developer.
The council attracted media coverage in Australia and overseas in December for its "ugly" Christmas tree decorations, having seven months earlier admitted it did not have the budget for festive lights and handed over responsibility to local community and business groups from this year.
As in many regional councils, roads, public transport, development and environmental issues are key concerns for the MidCoast community.
In March, the council approved a controversial 65-lot residential subdivision in the coastal retreat of Blueys Beach.
