Veteran Liberal Councillor Ross Fowler has announced his intentions to recontest his spot on Council at the upcoming Local Government Election.
Penrith City Council will hold an election in September for residents to vote for representatives of the community and Fowler intends to go again.
“I believe I still have a lot to offer to the community and I have a good track record in representing the city and representing the people of Penrith,” Fowler told the Weekender.
“I’ve taken a great interest in the financial wellbeing of the organisation, and I’ve still got plenty left in me.”
Fowler has now been a staple on Council for over three decades.
“At the moment, I’ve been on Council for 33 consecutive years, I think,” Fowler said.
“Someone thinks it’s the most consecutive terms, [but] I haven’t gone through the records.”
At the election there will be at least three new Councillors elected as former Mayor Tricia Hitchen announced earlier this year her intention to retire from Council; Karen McKeown will not be rerunning as she is now the State Member for Penrith; and Jim Aitken resigned from Council in July of last year after battling ill health. His spot was not filled after his resignation at the time.
Fowler expects the incoming Councillors to be active members of the Council and to put their affection for Penrith and its people above all else.
“I expect them to be fairly attentive and willing to learn and most importantly willing to participate and represent the people who elect them in person,” Fowler said.
“It will depend on the individual how they approach it.
“Some will be gung-ho, [and] some will sit back and just see how it works but I hope they take [it all] on board…
“Hopefully they listen to their fellow colleagues and take direction, and hopefully ask questions about what goes on and what the process is, how to go about things and how to achieve [what they] want to achieve through their term on Council.”
There is just over nine weeks remaining until the Penrith City Council election, which will be held on Saturday, September 14.
Emily Chate
Emily Chate joined The Western Weekender in 2024, and covers local news - primarily courts and politics. A graduate of the University of Wollongong, Emily has contributed to The Daily Telegraph and worked as a freelance journalist.