AFTER a year of no confidence votes, complaints to police, motions of censure and rejections from clergy, a town mayor has left office.

Controversial town mayor of Saltney Klaus Armstrong-Braun, 68, has made way for a new as yet unnamed mayor.

He provoked outrage from fellow councillors soon after taking office when he described Saltney as a “backwater” and later termed councillors “wild bison”,

The councillors who had campaigned for his early exit and mounted numerous challenges to his leadership are now heralding a fresh start for their town.

Despite the monthly hostilities that plagued council meetings for the last 12 months, the unheard of Saltney Citizens Network held a presentation evening on Wednesday (April 15) at the council’s home, Oddfellows Hall on High Street, Saltney. The rest of the council was at a meeting in Mold, unaware of the celebrations in their building.

Cllr Armstrong-Braun was given a standing ovation after being honoured for “a dedicated year of service” as mayor.

Tributes were paid to the departing mayor for his “tireless work in care of the Saltney community and for his far reaching campaign work for quality of service, justice and care of the environment”.

Speakers noted his grit and determination to achieve positive results even when the odds are stacked massively against his community and environmental campaign work.

He was presented with a commemorative engraved wooden charger and Barry Johnson, managing director of Solar Twin commended his promotion of the placement of a safe pedestrian crossing at the bus station in Saltney Ferry and his work to put in place business and community plans to secure Saltney’s future.

Rev Carhart gave a Christian blessing of his year as mayor.

But the mayor left his fellow councillors in the dark about the event and cllr Veronica Gay said: “He’s snubbed his councillors. We don’t know anything about it. They’re obviously not a recognised body.

“How on earth can he have a ceremony and not invite the council.”

The move comes after churches refused to hold a civic ceremony for the mayor.

“He can’t call a community a backwater and and then expect them to do a civic ceremony and you can’t call fellow councillors wild bison,” added Cllr Gay.