After nearly five and a half years serving as Langley’s mayor, Tim Callison is resigning from his role with the city at the end of June.

Although he won’t be moving far, Callison and his wife will be moving just far enough — seven minutes away, to be exact — to put them outside of Langley’s city limits and its voting precinct.

Callison announced his pending departure at the beginning of a city council meeting Monday night.

City council members will be appointing a new mayor. Candidates will be interviewed and the new mayor will be selected during a council meeting June 21.

The new mayor will finish Callison’s term, which runs until 2023.

Applicants must reside within the city limits of Langley and must be at least 18 years of age.

Callison was first elected as mayor in 2015. He was re-elected again in 2019.

He decided to run for the position in large part thanks to neighbors, who came knocking at his door and asked him to throw his hat into the ring.

“I’ve never been in politics ever before, except for when I ran for ninth grade student council and got defeated,” Callison joked.

His two terms in office have been punctuated with controversy, including disagreements about sanctuary city status, billing a reporter for time spent speaking with the city attorney, discussions on defunding the police and most recently, the decision on whether or not to make anti-racist staff training mandatory.

However, his incumbency has also been marked by a series of colorful appearances at several Langley events in his trademark white tux, a ceremonial garb which will likely be retired alongside Callison.

He is moving to a new house outside of Langley but still on South Whidbey, which includes a large shop where he is looking forward to spending his newfound spare time fixing up “hot rods and Harleys.”

“The property we’re getting, I would have to consider it to be a dream parcel,” he said.

The transition started about three weeks ago, when Callison and his wife found out about the property that they couldn’t pass up.

“COVID times were very trying times and really tiring times for me,” he said. “It really wore me out. The worry about the city, having to see all the dreadful news go across my desk every day, it was very tiring.”

He is looking forward to attending several Langley events in the future as a regular Whidbey resident.

As one of his parting gestures as mayor, he is helping to organize the July Street Dance and possibly, the Soup Box Derby the same day.

“My experience of mayor has been wonderful and you are all part of it,” Callison told the council. “I know I will see you again but it’s going to be a period of my life that I’ll cherish and remember forever and I appreciate all that you have contributed to it. You’re all dear to me, every single one of you.”