Murray Bridge mayor Allan Arbon to retire

There is an anecdote Allan Arbon likes to tell about being a mayor, a position he has held in two councils for 23 of the past 35 years.

Despite the robes, the gavel and the centrally-positioned chair - trappings the retired farmer is happy to shun - councillors hold almost all the voting power in local government, while mayors play a more ceremonial role.

So, during his final meeting at the District Council of Karoonda East Murray, councillors deliberately recorded a tied vote when making a critical decision about whether to break for lunch.

For the only time in his career to that point, Allan had to use his deciding vote to break the deadlock.

His advice to candidates in the upcoming council election - who can lodge their nominations from Monday - was that council service was not about power, but privilege.

"It's not about me, not about you; it's for the benefit of the community," he said.

"It's about connecting with the community, listening to their concerns and getting back to them with an answer so they know they've been listened to.

"If business people and the community haven't got faith in the council, there's not much hope.

"If you can raise the confidence of your people to a level, they're going to follow your lead."

His leadership has made a significant impact on local government in the Murraylands, from the drought years back to the construction of Karoonda's hospital and council chambers and the connection of mains water to the town.

"For years we only had bore water there," he said.

"We tried to get Murray water up through Wynarka and they said no, no, no.

"One year the minister wasn't there and Hugh Hudson, the Minister for Education, said yes."

Allan's electoral history contains a string of similarly surprising victories dating back to 1969, when the then-32-year-old, originally from Balaklava, filled a temporary spot on the Karoonda District Council.

"I was only going to go in for seven months," he said.

"I was just filling a gap for a fella who passed away at the end of his term.

"It got to the end of June and I thought 'this is not too bad, one day a month', so I put my hand up again."

Ten years later he was dobbed in to be chairman, or mayor, of the newly amalgamated council after his predecessor chose not to seek re-election and the then-deputy chair failed to win re-election.

Allan then went back to farming in 1981, but returned for another council stint between 1993 and 2000, before being asked to run for Murray Bridge's mayoralty and bring respect and dignity back to that office.

His initial reaction was disinterest - "I thought 'no, I've had enough of council" - and he did not campaign hard, but his reputation preceded him through lawn bowls, Friendship Force and business.

"I'm very lucky I was accepted by the Murray Bridge community 14 years ago," he said.

"I feel very privileged to be part of it, and fortunate to have (had) the support of elected members, council staff and the community during that time."

His office had allowed him to rub shoulders with leaders at all levels of government, negotiated deals with MPs on both sides of politics and even shaken the hand of Queen Elizabeth II.

He was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for his service in 2010.

"It has been an interesting journey," he said.

"I wouldn't have done this amount of time if it wasn't for my wife Pam, who has supported me.

"It has been a big part of both of our lives."

So what now?

First, a holiday; then he plans to continue his involvement with Murray Bridge's men's shed and lawn bowls, spend more time with his family and perhaps volunteer somewhere else.

"I don't want to walk away from the community altogether; I want to choose places I can still help," he said.

"It has been part of my life for a long time.

"There is going to be a big hole."

Murray Bridge's council chambers, and any follower of local government in the Murraylands, could say the same thing.