A councillor who has served for nearly twenty years says he has fought too long clearing debt to see the city just borrow even more.

Port Lincoln Councillor Michael Bascombe will not seek another term, saying his decision is based partly on the fear of impending debt for the South Australian local government.

The long-serving Cr Bascombe says it is time for change, and he does not like the looks of Mayor Bruce Green’s borrowing.

“I believe that the Mayor is leading the council into debt for some big ticket items that we can't afford,” Cr Bascombe told the ABC this week.

“I've been down that path before - when I joined council we were riddled with debt and we worked hard to get out of it and I don't want to be part of any council that's involved in big borrowings and big debt again.

“The Mayor's quite easy to get along with and everything but he has this theory that we have to provide all this infrastructure whether we can afford it or not - just borrow money.

“I believe it's a matter of supplying what you can afford progressively rather than splash out and borrow millions of dollars to provide everything all at once.”

But Port Lincoln Mayor Bruce Green said ratepayers need not worry, and that they expect spending on amenities such as a new swimming pool for the city.

“Well firstly I've got a high regard for Mick - as far as the debt goes look we haven't created any debt yet, however, we have inherited a situation where the community will not have a pool in the next couple of years and I think we need to provide a pool,” he said in response.

“If that involves some borrowings then I think that's entirely appropriate.

“We've got prudential controls and we'll have limits on how much we will borrow or how much we think the community will allow us to borrow and those levels of debt will be clearly identified before we take on any debt.”