First elected to council in 1991, Cr Turner was also elected as the state member for Orange for the Nationals in 1996. He served simultaneously as councillor and state member for seven years until 2004. Finding himself "a little bored" on his retirement from state politics in 2011, he successfully stood for re-election to council in 2012.

He says it's been a "privilege and an honour" to have served so long on council.

"Big multi-million-dollar decisions such as the construction of the Macquarie pipeline and the Northern Distributor Road do not always meet with unanimous approval from everyone, or how we upgrade the CBD, which footpath is constructed or how much we should charge our rating system.

"The old saying "you can't please all the people all the time" certainly applies to council decisions. However, I am very proud of what our council has achieved over the terms in which I have represented the ratepayers of Orange."

Of those achievements, he names the new $20 million Conservatorium and planetarium in the civic precinct as the one he is most proud of, and is confident the new council will see the project through.

"It's got to the stage where the engineering plans are in hopefully we'll put it out to tender and even start it next year. It's my baby somewhat, so I'm looking forward to seeing work start on that."

While he has no regrets about stepping down, Cr Turner will miss playing a part in the development of Orange.

"Whether it's recommending and approving a new business, or opening a subdivision for new homes - we're going through a very strong growth period at the moment in Orange and I'm going to miss being involved in that.

"When we, as a young family moved our poultry business from Sydney in 1973 Orange was a regional city almost entirely reliant on Email and the apple industry.

"Today we are a growing, diversified exciting city that will continue to grow and continue to provide employment opportunities for young families, professionals, tradies and everyone who wants to be part of our growth."

As for his retirement, Cr Turner says he'll have plenty to keep him busy.

"We (he and wife Diane) have a pretty big garden that we open for fundraising from time to time, so that takes most of my spare time.

"We'll be keeping up a little more often with our friends and going away on holidays. We've been overseas quite a few times and we want to continue to do that while we can," he said.

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