Dardanup Shire president Mick Bennett retires from council after nearly three decades of community service

For those who attended last week’s Shire of Dardanup council meeting, there was a shared sense of an end of an era. The last meeting before elections always bring a variety of emotions as recontesting councillors face uncertainty over their future and those who know they will not be returning reflect on their service. But the feeling was heightened as a titan of local government in the South West bowed out. At 5.35pm last Wednesday, Mick Bennett officially closed the meeting for the last time as shire president, bringing to an end nearly three decades of public service. Speaking after the meeting, Mr Bennett admitted it would take a while for his new reality to sink in. “I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “I’m pretty good at turning the corner and not looking back. There is obviously stuff that I’m disappointed I won’t be around for, like the opening of the (new council) building and stuff like that, but that’s the way it goes.” Mr Bennett spent a combined 28 years on the Dardanup council, starting when he was first elected in 1991. He left council in 2005 but returned four years later and served continuously until the weekend. During his tenure, he spent five years as a councillor, three years as deputy shire president and two 10-year stints as shire president. After such a long time serving the community, Mr Bennett has seen plenty of changes. He started when the council chambers were still located in Dardanup and the current chambers were a swamp. Mr Bennett noted the growth and investment the area was now experiencing. “When you look back at the last six months, we’ve ticked off on $100 million worth of work in our shire ... so there’s been a lot of action around the place,” he said. Mr Bennett paid tribute to the other councillors who did not recontest their positions in Saturday’s vote, with long-serving former deputy shire president Peter Robinson stepping down after 12 years and Patricia Perks leaving following eight years of service. As a result of his long service, Mr Bennett was named a honourary freeman of the Shire at a farewell event held on Friday.