The decision to stand again as a Hawke's Bay regional councillor for the Ngaruroro ward was not an easy one for incumbent Peter Beaven.
Because he would be turning 70 in three years, Mr Beaven said, he questioned whether he would still have the energy to be a councillor, also citing the pay, and workload.
"You're responsible for 155,000 people here, not just the people in your town or your city," he said, "I've actually been pondering this for quite some time and talking with friends and family about whether I should stand."
But he will stand, because of the job's rewarding nature, and what he felt to be "unfinished business". This included the TANK process, the development of a coastal erosion strategy, in which he chaired the committee, and the Ruataniwha Dam.
"There's a lot of balls being juggled, and I just think having some continuity is really in the council's interest," he said.