LONG hours have not been enough to convince Buloke mayor Reid Mather to quit local government.
- THE EXPERIENCED COUNCILLOR
This despite the long hours entailing being at the public's beck and call, missing out on time with his children, translating bureaucratic jargon and fending off the occasional stalker.
Cr Mather, who was first elected in 2003 and has been mayor since 2004, said he initially ran for council because he thought he could "do it better".
Now Buloke no longer needs fixing, he has set his sights on addressing the universal challenges faced by local government, including what is known as "the infrastructure gap".
The failure of federal funding to keep pace with inflation means there is a growing shortfall between what council needs to spend on things such as roads and what it can afford to spend.
Cr Mather said it could be frustrating to have to jump through hoops to get things done - things such as the Sea Lake childcare centre, which opened last year after more than four years of plans and submissions to state and federal government departments.
Cr Mather, who also operates a farm at Culgoa, estimates he averages an 80-hour week in his role as mayor.
"As a rule of thumb, a councillor should probably put in 20 hours a week, depending on what they want to give back to their community," he said.
Cr Mather said his family had been very supportive, but he had missed many important milestones in the lives of his three sons, who were now teenagers.
"And they're years you don't get back," he said.
Cr Mather said it was vital to maintain good relationships with fellow councillors, council staff and the community, be able to explain the reasons for a decision in simple terms, and to listen.
