Mr Bodeker will step down from the role this month after the completion of a five-year contract.
Nine of the 10 councillors took turns praising Mr Bodeker at his last council meeting yesterday.
The notable silence was from Cr Michael Laws, who later declined to comment on his decision not to pay a tribute.
Mr Bodeker said he was confident he left the organisation in a better position than when he started.
''We've worked hard to improve the processes around how we set objectives.''
The council had a ''tremendous'' senior executive team which other councils envied, he said.
Relationships improved with territorial authorities during his tenure, which previously had been described as toxic, he said.
He was also proud of action on river management during his time and the creation of the Environmental Enhancement Fund, which provided grants for community environmental projects.
Council chairman Stephen Woodhead said Mr Bodeker gave five years of ''passion and commitment to the role''.
Mr Woodhead said last month the council decided to not accept Mr Bodeker's application to continue in the role as the council thought the next chief executive ''should come from outside the organisation''.
Cr Doug Brown said the council had a much more hands-on approach to river conservation since Mr Bodeker began.
Cr Sam Neill said the organisation was ''far more approachable'' than it was five years ago.
Cr Bryan Scott said he wanted to thank Mr Bodeker for the hard work he put into the role.
The council has not yet announced a replacement for Mr Bodeker.
