BENDIGO trader Norm Quin has ended his 42-year stint on the city's Chamber of Commerce.
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Mr Quin, who runs the Mitchell Street fruit and vegetable shop, resigned from the chamber last week.
His resignation comes after a long period of change in the city's CBD, including the introduction of extended trading hours.
Mr Quin joined the chamber in 1963 and was president for about 23 years.
When he first joined, he said between 35 and 40 representatives attended each meeting.
"But then people got into franchise businesses," he said.
"And the extended trading hours campaign began."
Mr Quin said the extended trading debate was one of the most controversial trading issues he had experienced and it caused many people to leave the chamber.
"The chamber was critical of extended trading hours in Bendigo for some time," he said.
'`(Extended trading hours) is a decision that I still don't think is right.
"We have a lot of young sports people who could be better at their sport, but they are working at weekends in supermarkets, he said.
"The family unit has been lost."
During his time with the chamber, Mr Quin has seen a number of other campaigns come and go.
"There have been a lot of projects, including garbage collection in the early days; we needed better service to the CBD," he said.
"Another was better lighting; the chamber and council had a lot of controversy over that."
Through his involvement with the Chamber of Commerce, Mr Quin later became a member and president of the Bendigo Easter Fair committee, and was a Bendigo councillor for three years and city mayor in the mid-1980s.
Mr Quin said he had resigned because of change.
"Things are changing and I believe we should be concentrating on more of the major issues in the city," he said.
