Paul Lake calling it the way he sees it to the very end

The vote counting continues, but no matter how it finishes, one person who won’t be in the Campbelltown Council chamber anymore is Paul Lake.

“I’m just Average Joe now,’’ he says when we talk on the phone this week to discuss how the vote counting is going.

That may be so, but Paul Lake retiring represents the end of an era on council.

He’s the last of that breed of councillors who after being elected felt their main duty was to look after the ordinary people of Campbelltown.

There’s this image of Paul Lake etched in my memory which captures the spirit of the times and the era he represents.

It was late, almost fully dark, and there he was with a resident of Old Leumeah Road about 13 years ago.

As I walked towards them, Cr Lake said to him: Let’s ask Mr Kontos if there’s a need for more street lighting along here.

Good luck trying to get a councillor answer their council issued phone these days, let alone come out to your home to discuss your problem.

When Cr Lake entered council in 2004, he sat among some of the giants of Campbelltown, people like Russell Matheson, Aaron Rule, Anoulack Chanthivong and the late Brenton Banfield.

They may have had more experience than him, but Cr Lake shared their passion for the Campbelltown community.

“I tried to help people get things done, small things, a tree problem, a pothole, barking dogs, sporting groups wanting things done,’’ he recalls.

“The big problems, big developments, normally take care of themselves.

“But it’s the small ones that are important, because that’s who you’re representing.

“You’re not representing big business, you’re representing the community and the individuals who put you there,’’ he says.

Funnily, he ended up on council because instead of a hobby, Paul Lake has always liked talking to people.

“No, no hobby, I’m not a golfer or anything,’’ he says.

“I like to talk to people, so I’d come down to the club and talk to people, find out what’s going on.

“It keeps me happy.

“One of the things that motivated me was I knew people involved in junior league and that, saying to me, council won’t do this or that for our sports club,’’ he says.

“So it made it personal for me to get on council and do something for sporting groups.’’

In a 17 year career, Paul Lake served two terms as mayor of Campbelltown, in 2011-12 and 2014-15, and several times as the deputy for other mayors.

Like most mayors, he tried too hard the first time around and the year was basically a blur.

“I was flat chat, going to everything; I kind of wore myself out a little bit because I wasn’t sure what not to go to,’’ he says.

“Second time around I knew the ropes, it was much better.’’

Paul Lake was born in Sydney, and grew up in Burwood, where met his wife Vicky in the next suburb of Croydon.

They married in 1974 and three months later they moved to a brand new home they built at Ruse.

“We paid $7,500 for the block of land and $22,000 for the house,’’ he says.

Later on they moved twice: first to Leumeah where they became neighbours – and good friends – with Labor legend Chris Hayes and his wife Bernadette, and then to Kearns, where they are living now.

Life was different in Campbelltown back in ’74, a few years before the big housing commission estates were built at Airds, Claymore, Macquarie Fields and Rosemeadow.

“Campbelltown was a big country town then,’’ he says.

“The Fisher’s Ghost parade was very popular, we’d all go to that, say hello, life was great.’’

Lake got on council roughly the same time as he became director at Wests Leagues, where he is still on the board of what is a much bigger entity now known as Wests Group Macarthur. It includes Camden Lakeside, the Country Club at Gledswood Hills and the tennis club at Leumeah.

Last year he retired from work – he’d been in sales and marketing all his life – and now council, too.

But he’s certain the Wests directorship, grandchildren and some travel around Australia will keep him busy in the next few years.

Right now though he’s just happy Josh Cotter, the young man who took over the reins of Community First has been elected to council.

And while Paul Lake doesn’t seem comfortable giving unsolicited advice to newly elected councillors and mayors, he was happy to reflect on some of the insights he gained from 17 years on council.

“It was a mix of people on council when I got on, not just one major party in control, and council worked quite well,’’ he says.

“That’s changed now and that’s a problem.

“I don’t believe there should be politics in council, everyone should stand on their own digs and get on for their own reasons and serve the local people.

“There was an excellent general manager, Paul Tosi.

“We didn’t always agree, but always worked for the betterment of the area.

“When you first get elected try to deliver on your promises.

“Settle in, learn the ropes, ask questions, and don’t always take no for an answer.

“Push because you’re there to represent the community, not the staff of council,’’ he says.

As for being mayor, he says Paul Tosi used to say to him, stick to the script, Lakey.

“I said to him, I’ll try but I don’t think so, I’m a person who decides to say things how I see them, and I don’t like any BS.

“If we made a mistake admit we made a mistake and that’s the end of the conversation.

“If you try to cover it up or spin it, it will come back and bite you.

“The other thing to remember is the mayor’s the figurehead, the spokesperson.

“Some mayors think they’re running the whole show, they’re the MD [managing director].

“A mayor who comes in and says we’re doing this and that creates a lot of problems.’’

As for Paul Lake, after faithfully serving the people of Campbelltown from 2004 to 2021, he knows he can walk away holding his head high.