Brenton Lewis farewelled at his last Murray Bridge council meeting

The mayor’s eight years in office are drawing to a close, but not before a bit of thanksgiving and reflection.

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Brenton Lewis speaks at a Murray Bridge council meeting on Monday night, the last of his mayoral term. Photo: Peri Strathearn.

Outgoing Mayor Brenton Lewis has been thanked for eight years of service at his last Murray Bridge council meeting.

Councillor Karen Eckermann led a chorus of thankyous for Mr Lewis’ dedication, consistency, hard work and professionalism.

The council had undergone a serious transformation thanks to his “proud, safe, progressive” mantra, she said.

Outgoing Deputy Mayor Wayne Thorley - who will either succeed Mr Lewis in the top job or be off the council entirely - thanked the council’s staff for the work they had done during the past four years, too.

Mr Lewis said he felt the love in the council chamber.

“I made one request eight years ago: respect each other, respect our staff,” he said.

“You as a group of people, and the previous council, have stuck by that (and) you can see the benefit.

“In the eight years that I’ve been here, we have done a hell of a lot.”

Wayne Thorley hopes to succeed Brenton Lewis as mayor of Murray Bridge. Photo: Peri Strathearn.

The council’s achievements during Mr Lewis’ time in office included:

• the formation of a town pride committee, which in turn pushed for upgrades of Adelaide Road, Swanport Road and Sixth Street, among other projects

• the establishment of Murray Bridge Safe, a cross-agency collaboration which works to address social issues such as domestic violence and drug abuse

• overseeing a rebranding campaign which gave the district its “thriving communities” and “make it yours” slogans

• leading the council through the Thomas Foods International fire and COVID-19 pandemic

A relatively youthful Brenton Lewis, pictured with Tamara Rohrlach, announces his mayoral campaign in 2014. Photo: Peri Strathearn/The Murray Valley Standard.

Mr Lewis had previously been chief executive of Regional Development Australia Murraylands and Riverland, the culmination of a long and successful business career.

He announced his retirement from the mayoralty in April in the face of ongoing health problems.

Seven of Murray Bridge's nine councillors are seeking re-election to the council, though another eight candidates will hope to unseat at least some of them.