After more than 12 years on Statesboro City Council, District 1 Councilman Phil Boyum confirmed his resignation from it Tuesday evening, giving an effective date of Aug. 1.

So the mayor and remaining council members are waiting until early August to call a Nov. 5 special election to fill the vacancy. It has been nearly a year since Boyum first announced, in August 2023, that he planned to resign. But at that time he said his resignation would be effective at the end of 2023 and asked for a special election to be held along with last November’s regular city election. In fact, the council voted to do that, only to have that action declared “null and void” by City Attorney Cain Smith, after he and City Clerk Leah Harden determined that the council could not call a special election for a seat that wasn’t vacant yet.

“Well, for real this time,” Boyum said near the end of Tuesday evening’s meeting. “I’m officially announcing my resignation from the Statesboro City Council seat for District 1 as of August 1st, and I will be moving out of Statesboro to be closer to my family.”

He said in a previous interview that he has been spending much of his time this year in Florida, where he is helping oversee renovations to his parents’ home.

“Twelve years,” Boyum continued. “It was 12 years ago when former Councilman Blitch (Tommy Blitch, who resigned in 2012 and died in 2014) announced his resignation and I decided to run for the seat. At that time the city’s reserve funds were almost zero, our Police Department was struggling and our top management was frequently in flux.”

Now, “12 years later, the city’s finances and credit rating are in great shape, we have one of the finest police departments in our state, and our management team is rock solid,” Boyum said.

He said he wasn’t taking credit for any of these things, or for various projects, including creation of a dog park, a water park, an art park and a lighted basketball pavilion, the Unified Development Code, South Main beautification, the return of Publix and more, that he listed among the city’s improvements.

“The credit goes to our dedicated staff, and our hardworking and talented people,” he said.

Mayor Jonathan McCollar was away, but Mayor Pro Tem Shari Barr and the other three council members all thanked Boyum for his service.

A citizen, speaking to the council on June 18, had expressed concern that Boyum no longer had a residence in Statesboro. He later cited a post office box as his address and said he has been renting a room from a friend in Council District 1.