Councillor Scott Denton, Blayney Shire Council's only party aligned councillor, has confirmed that he will not be running again for council in the December poll.
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Cr Denton was elected as Blayney's Labor Party candidate in the 2017 election and has said that current work commitments mean that he's unable to continue as a councillor.
"My life has taken a different direction and I'm now lecturing in medicine and health at Sydney University," he said.
It really is a dog's breakfast in Orange.
- Scott Denton
"It's unfortunate because I've really enjoyed the four years I've been on council and I've learnt a lot of the processes of local government in that time.
"It's disappointing because I can't get to use that experience and knowledge that I gained in the first term."
Cr Denton added that being the only party affiliated councillor made no difference to how he voted.
"There was a fair bit of hoo-ha when I ran, but the Labor Party never tried to influence me in any way," he said.
"Throughout my time on council I voted with both the councillor who is a member of the National Party and all the independents. It made no difference to me."
As the candidates in Orange line up by the dozens, Cr Denton sees that as a sign of how cohesive it is in Blayney.
"It really is a dog's breakfast in Orange," he said.
"Here in Blayney we could put our political biases aside and we all worked extremely well together."
One of Cr Denton's first issues that he had to deal with was the construction of the bridge between Carcoar and Millthorpe, and he sees the villages as important parts of the Blayney community.
"Blayney is nothing without its villages and I'd like to see a proper tourist route connecting the villages," he said.
Cr Denton will still reside in Blayney although his work will mean he'll need to commute between Newtown and Blayney, and there's one major project that he's keen to see completed.
"CentrePoint is the jewel in the crown here in Blayney and the final version will be fantastic," he said.
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Mark Logan
Started working in newspapers in the 1990's in the darkroom of the Pastoral Times in Deniliquin before moving to Millthorpe in 2003. Soon after arriving I started as a photographer at the CWD. Now a journalist at the Blayney Chronicle.
Started working in newspapers in the 1990's in the darkroom of the Pastoral Times in Deniliquin before moving to Millthorpe in 2003. Soon after arriving I started as a photographer at the CWD. Now a journalist at the Blayney Chronicle.
