Top job can take a toll, says Kiama mayor Neil Reilly

In January Cr Reilly was yet to make up his mind about contesting the September local government elections.

However, since then he had to take a month's leave of absence for health reasons following a diagnosis of cancer - caused by melanoma - last year.

He returned to the mayoral job in early April and, while he said his health had improved since the hospital stay and he would soon be able to stop taking some medication, Cr Reilly wondered whether the job was good for his health.

There is no doubt this term has been a difficult one, with the revelations of the council's dire financial straits, the controversy over the sale of parts of the Blue Haven aged care facility and the NSW Local Government Minister issuing a performance improvement order.

"I think with regard to the nature of our council over the last couple of years, you can't say it doesn't have an influence on your life - and possibly your health," Cr Reilly said.

"I think that you'd be foolish to think that it doesn't have any any kind of negative influence at all. It really does and I guess you have to think 'how come?'.

"I've been pretty well all my life. But the last couple of years have been fairly significant with regard to my health."

In terms of the stresses of the role taking some toll on his health, Cr Reilly said he wasn't alone.

"I am lucky in that I get to speak to a lot of other councillors from a lot of other councils, and they're all having the same sort of issues," he said.

As to whether he will run in September, Cr Reilly is still undecided

"It has forced me to think about how quickly good health can turn to poor health when you get to a certain age and you've got some kind of a history," he said.

"So I'm kind of considering my future. I've got a foot in both camps. I'm still tossing up whether it would be beneficial to the community if I stayed on. Or it may be better to the community if I decided not to run again."

Kiama is the only Illawarra council that doesn't have a directly elected mayor; the position is chosen by the councillors. Cr Reilly knows one thing - just serving as a councillor and leaving the mayoral job to someone else wasn't an option.

"I think it would be difficult for anybody after having been the mayor to go back to being a councillor," Cr Reilly said.

"Naturally, whoever it was [in the mayoral position], I would support them. But it gives you a unique perspective that it may be hard to come back from."