Longtime Cumberland Councillor Paul Garrard has celebrated a whopping 50 years in local government.
It’s not often Councillors last more than a couple terms on Council, but the Our Local Community (OLC) party leader has defied the odds to rack up five decades of service under his belt.
Speaking at the latest Council meeting, Cumberland Mayor Ola Hamed said Garrard has worked tirelessly advocating for the needs of residents over the past five decades.
“50 years is an amazing achievement and one that speaks volumes about your passion, values and love of the community,” she said.
“On behalf of Cumberland City Council and the community, I would like to extend my congratulations to Councillor Garrard on reaching this incredible milestone of 50 years of dedicated service.
“Your unwavering commitment has made our community a better place and touched many people’s lives.”
On September 21, 1974, Garrard was first elected to represent the then Parramatta City Council in the Granville Ward, which would later be renamed to the Woodville Ward in 1995.
He would go on to be re-elected on ten continuous occasions to Parramatta City Council until Council amalgamations in May 2016. During his 42 years on the Council, he also served many terms as Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor.
In 2016, parts of the southern portion of Auburn City Council, the Woodville Ward of Parramatta City Council, Granville south of the Western Railway Line and Holroyd, excluding most of Mays Hill, merged to form Cumberland Council.
On September 7, 2017, Garrard was elected to Cumberland City Council, where he has continued to be re-elected.
Garrard, a former Labor Councillor, left the party in 2004 when he wasn’t preselected to run for the state seat of Granville. He went on to form the Woodville Independents in 2012 before creating his current party, OLC, in 2013.
Garrard is joined by fellow OLC Councillor Helen Hughes on the local Council. Until recently, Councillor Steve Christou was also a part of the party, announcing his resignation from OLC to become an Independent on October 29.
Despite the recent change of political alliances, Christou congratulated Garrard on his achievement.
“I have known Councillor Garrard for a longtime, on a personal level we’ve been friends for a longtime,” he said.
“Our politics at times have aligned and have been different, but anyone who can survive 50 years as a Councillor and do the job that Councillor Garrard does needs to be acknowledged.”
Garrard thanked his fellow Councillors for their congratulations.
Cumberland Council is set to mark the milestone with a civic function, expected to be held in early 2025.
Ellie Busby is a news reporter for Western Sydney Publishing Group. A graduate of the University of Hertfordshire and Western Sydney University, she is a journalism Major. Ellie has worked with Universal Media, The Cova Project and for a range of other organisations. In 2024, Ellie was named Young Writer of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.