Chris Friel (politician)
| Chris Friel | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Brantford, Ontario | |
|
In office 1994–2003 |
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| Preceded by | Bob Taylor |
| Succeeded by | Mike Hancock |
|
Assumed office December 1, 2010 |
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| Preceded by | Mike Hancock |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Brantford, Ontario |
Chris Friel is a politician in the Canadian province of Ontario. He was the mayor of Brantford from 1994 to 2003 and was re-elected to the same position in the 2010 municipal election.
Friel was born and raised in Brantford. He has an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Waterloo (1989). Before running for office, he was the executive director of a non-profit government agency.
Both of his parents were active in politics. His father, James Friel, was involved in the labour movement and ran for a trustee position on the Brant County Board of Education in 1976. His mother, Judy Friel, ran for a seat on the Brantford City Council in 2000.
After his loss in 2003, he worked in business and economic development with the Ontario Native Affairs Secretariat.
Friel was first elected as mayor of Brantford in the 1994 municipal election, defeating one-term incumbent Bob Taylor. He was only twenty-seven years old at the time. He was re-elected in 1997, defeating right-wing candidate Andy Woodburn by a significant margin. He initially planned to stand down in 2000, but later changed his mind and was re-elected for a third term.
Friel became mayor during a period of economic difficulties for Brantford; shortly after his election, he described the city as having the worst downtown in Canada. He later presided over a period of economic growth for the city.
Friel initially opposed the Brantford Charity Casino, describing it as a "scam" designed to shift money from the city to the province. He was quoted as saying, "What bothers me is that the government used to do these capital projects to build a country. . . . Now the government is doing work that is building gaming. It's like they've given up, there's no creativity." He later accepted the casino's presence and tried to ensure it would provide some benefits to his community, though he still described it as an economic mistake.
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