Deputy mayor Keith Hovell and Cr Richard McPhail met with Mr Bell and asked him to resign yesterday, a statement by the council this afternoon said.
Cr McPhail has been acting as an intermediary in the fractious relationship between Mr Bell and council chief executive Stephen Parry.
After Mr Bell refused the request, the councillors requested an extraordinary meeting for Tuesday before the council’s scheduled meeting.
At that meeting the group will seek to pass a vote of no confidence in Mr Bell and remove him from all committees.
Councillors Stewart MacDonell, Neville Phillips, Glenys Dickson, Paul McPhail and Bronwyn Reid supported the resignation request, the statement said.
Cr Hovell said "the actions of the mayor in recent weeks had led to the difficult decision to request his resignation".
The reasons for the request were:
• The majority of councillors had lost confidence in the mayor
• The majority of councillors had lost trust in the mayor acting in the best interests of the community and council as a whole.
In a statement on Thursday night, Mr Bell said it was disappointing to see the councillors call for his resignation.
"I am still uncertain as to why this step has been taken during this time. Despite this, I am hopeful the council can communicate effectively and work through this," Mr Bell said.
"I am very mindful of the impact this is having on the community and wish reassure the Gore District that I remain committed to undertaking the role I was elected to do, I am also grateful for the many messages of support I have received."
He said he would not be commenting further for now.
Mr Bell was 23 when he ousted six-term incumbent Tracy Hicks by just eight votes at October's local elections.
It was understood that since the election Mr Bell and Mr Parry had shared a frosty relationship.
At a behind-closed-doors extraordinary council meeting in March, the council noted the pair had been engaged in mediation since December.
They also noted the breakdown in their relationship and voted to appoint another elected member to act as a go-between.
Bell was also removed from the committee which oversees the performance of the chief executive.
- Additional reporting RNZ
