When Bruce MacKenzie walked away from Port Stephens Council in 2017 after 42 years in local government he promised he wouldn't stay quiet.
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True to his word, the past eight years have been eventful.
Now the area's longest-serving councillor, who turns 86 next month, says he's at a point where he is "seriously considering" returning to what he knows best.
"People aren't happy with the place," he said.
"I'm getting pestered everywhere I go. When I go to the shopping centre people come up to me and say 'get back in there'."
If he does run for mayor and wins a council majority, he says there won't be any rate rises for four years.
Roadworks across the local government area will increase and the council's overall productivity will come under close scrutiny.
Mr MacKenzie is also no fan of the Hunter Offshore Wind project, which has driven a wedge through parts of the Port Stephens community.
"At the present time the place could do with someone like me," he said.
"A lot of people are complaining about DA approvals. I've had my own experience in the past six months with DA approvals. They're not what they were like when I was there."
First elected to Port Stephens Council in 1968, Mr MacKenzie served as Shire President and became the first popularly elected mayor in 2012.
He's still up early every morning to work out on his punching bag, bike and treadmill.
"I'm outside at 6am and back for breakfast before I do some more," he said.
"I'm off to weigh cattle today."
He recently acquired a scrapbook of 790 newspaper clippings that chronicle his local government career.
"It's got the good, the bad and ugly," he said.
In 2016 the council, which Mr MacKenzie led, he was forced to back away from naming a domestic violence shelter after him.
The council initially resolved to establish a centre in Raymond Terrace and to name it the "Bruce MacKenzie Centre for Victims of Domestic Violence".
But the decision sparked a backlash after it was revealed Mr MacKenzie had been involved in a domestic incident almost 20 years earlier.
Mr MacKenzie was charged over the 1997 incident involving his former partner, but no conviction was recorded. An Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) was issued.
Mr MacKenzie agreed to disassociate his name from the refuge saying that he did not want anything to overshadow its establishment. He said it would be more appropriate to name the refuge after an individual who had made a significant contribution to women's issues in Port Stephens.
Incumbent Port Stephens mayor Ryan Palmer, who has led the council for the past eight years, does not plan to recontest the council election.
Also, former Paterson MP Bob Baldwin, has confirmed he will not contest the mayoral race.
Matthew Kelly
Matthew Kelly has worked as a journalist for more than 25 years. He has been working as a general reporter at the Newcastle Herald since 2018. In recent years he has reported on subjects including environment, energy, water security, manufacturing and higher education. He has previously covered issues including the health and environmental impacts of uncovered coal wagons in the Hunter Valley, the pollution of legacy of former industrial sites and freedom of information issues.
Matthew Kelly has worked as a journalist for more than 25 years. He has been working as a general reporter at the Newcastle Herald since 2018. In recent years he has reported on subjects including environment, energy, water security, manufacturing and higher education. He has previously covered issues including the health and environmental impacts of uncovered coal wagons in the Hunter Valley, the pollution of legacy of former industrial sites and freedom of information issues.
