Council CEO Peter Tegart has paid tribute to retiring Mayor Tim Overall, who has announced that he will not contest the next local government election on 4 December.
"Cr Overall has been a stalwart of local government and community, guiding Council through a period of great change as the Queanbeyan City and Palerang Councils were merged," Mr Tegart said.
"Tim has shown great leadership since his election as Mayor of the former Queanbeyan City Council in 2008, through the period when he was appointed as the administrator of the newly formed QPRC and then bringing the merged communities together as QPRC's first elected Mayor.
"Tim has been a vital part of many improvements that Council has made, from the award-winning Queen Elizabeth II Park, the ongoing Queanbeyan CBD transformation, negotiating grants for Old Cooma Road and Nerriga Road, working through the Googong planning agreements and facilitating the Ellerton Drive Extension. He leaves with the planning in place for the proposed memorial park, the Queanbeyan sewer plant upgrade, the comprehensive LEP and Bungendore Structure Plan, and construction underway of the Queanbeyan Civic and Cultural Precinct and South Jerra Innovation Precinct.
"He has been an advocate for the region, working hard to serve the whole community from Queanbeyan to Braidwood to Bungendore to our rural villages and towns. He was a keen advocator on the Canberra Region Joint Organisation and Regional Cities NSW, and regularly met with the ACT Chief Minister and Deputy Premier to resolve cross border and regional issues. He will be sorely missed to our community and the local government sector in NSW, and particularly to the staff of QPRC."
