DELTA — Scott Hamilton has stepped down from his seat on Delta council.
The four-term councillor and Liberal MLA for Delta North had been on an unpaid leave of absence since his provincial election victory last May. The move was designed to eliminate the requirement for the municipality to hold a costly by-election.
However, with less than six months until the next civic election, Hamilton has decided to resign his council seat.
"It's more a formality than anything," he said from Victoria Tuesday morning.
Hamilton said he has been in Victoria the majority of the time since February.
"Council seems to be functioning just fine without me," he said.
At Monday night's meeting, Hamilton's council colleagues accepted his resignation letter. It states his final day as a member of Delta council is Friday, June 6. "As the current council term draws to a close, I would like to thank you, council members and staff for the many years of support and encouragement that I have received during my four terms on Delta council," Hamilton wrote.
"It's a sad day but it's a day we knew was coming," said Mayor Lois Jackson.
Hamilton was one of several civic politicians in the province to win a seat in the legislature last year, and although they could have remained on their respective councils, Premier Christy Clark indicated she wasn't in favour of that, so Hamilton and the others chose to take leaves of absence.
The four-term councillor, however, didn't disappear entirely, attending a few meetings as well as keeping himself updated by watching meetings on video. "I'm going to miss it, I really am," he said.