Toronto Board of Control


The Board of Control of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, was a part of its municipal government until it was abolished in 1969. It served as the executive committee of the Toronto City Council, consisting of four "controllers" elected citywide and presided over by the Mayor. Beginning in 1904, the Board of Control was directly elected by the city's electorate. Each voter could vote for up to four candidates, and the four with the most votes were elected. By tradition the controller who received the most votes would get the powerful budget chief position.

Functions

Under the Municipal Act, the Board of Control had the following duties and powers:
  1. the preparation and certification of all estimates for expenditures
  2. the preparation of specifications for tenders, and making awards thereon
  3. the nomination to council of all heads of departments and related staff, and the recommendation of appropriate salaries
  4. the inspection and reporting on all municipal works carried on or in progress
  5. the submission of by-laws to the council
  6. the authority to amalgamate departments and sub-departments
  7. other powers as the council has delegated by-law or resolution
With respect to the first three items, the board's actions could only be overturned by a two-thirds vote of the council.

History

From 1896 until 1904, the Toronto Board of Control was an executive branch of Council, chaired by the Mayor. It handled all daily business of Council and reported to Council.
In the early 20th century, elected Boards of Control were introduced as a reform measure for all cities in Ontario. The board was designed to be the equivalent of a cabinet for municipal governments. It had certain specific duties such as issuing tenders and appointing department heads. In Toronto it often did not function as such. Since the controllers were elected separately from the mayor, there was no guarantee they would be allied. Moreover, since controllers contested citywide elections they were often seen as the natural contenders for the mayoralty and as challengers to the incumbent mayor. Many controllers thus had a self-interest in blocking the mayor from succeeding. Relations between the Board of Control and council were also sometimes difficult, with the Board often acting as an independent council at odds with the larger body.
In 1961 the provincial government allowed cities with more than 100,000 people to abolish the Board of Control. Toronto City Council voted to do so in December 1968 after a long debate. The move was opposed by Mayor William Dennison along with three of the sitting controllers, but it was passed by a significant majority of council. The Board of Control was replaced with a new executive committee that would be composed of and elected by city council members. The size of city council was expanded by four to retain the same overall number of councillors.

City of Toronto Controllers

Names in boldface indicate Controllers that became Mayor of Toronto in other years.
X = elected as Controller

M = sitting as Mayor

From 1904 to 1929

Originally, the Board of Control was appointed by the city council. In 1903, the Ontario legislature passed a law requiring municipal boards of control to be chosen through direct election by the municipality's voters. This requirement became effective in Toronto with the 1904 municipal election.
Controller19041905190619071908190919101911191219131914191519161917191819191920192119221923192419251926192719281929
R.H. CameronXXXXX
Tommy ChurchXXXXXMMMMMMM
Thomas FosterXXXXXXXXXMMM
George Reginald GearyXMMM
Joseph GibbonsXXXXXXXXXX
Albert HackerXXXXXX
William Spence HarrisonXXX
Wesley HiltzXXXM
Horatio Clarence HockenXXXXXMM
William Peyton HubbardXXXX
S. Alfred JonesX
John F. LoudonX
Charles A. MaguireXXXXMM
Sam McBrideXXXMM
J.O. McCarthyXXX
D.C. MacGregorXXX
John O'NeillXXXXXX
A.R. NesbittXX
J. George RamsdenX
Fred H. RichardsonX
William D. RobbinsXXXX
John ShawXX
William Henry ShawX
James SimpsonX
Joseph SingerX
Frank S. SpenceXXXXXX
W.A. SummervilleX
Joseph Elijah ThompsonXX
J.J. WardXXXXXXX
Bert WempXXX

1930s and 1940s

From 1950 to abolition

Election results

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Suburban Boards of Control

Several other municipalities in Metropolitan Toronto also created Boards of Control. Etobicoke created its Board of Control in the 1962 municipal election and North York first elected its Board of Control in the 1964 municipal election. Scarborough and York launched their boards at the 1966 election. North York, and Scarborough had 5 person boards consisting of their respective mayors and four controllers elected at large while York's board consisted of a mayor and two Controllers. East York never created a Board of Control. Etobicoke's board consisted of the reeve and two Controllers until the 1966 election when it expanded to four Controllers and the mayor.
All Controllers, from both the Toronto and suburban Boards of Control along with mayors, sat concurrently as Metro Toronto Councillors. With the 1988 municipal election, the suburban Boards of Control were abolished and Metro Councillors were instead directly elected from special Metro Wards.

Etobicoke

Names in boldface indicate Controllers that were or became Reeve or Mayor of Etobicoke in other years.
X = elected as Controller

A = appointed Controller to fill a vacancy

M = sitting as Reeve or Mayor
Controller19621964196619691972197419761978198019821985
John Palmer MacBeth MM
Murray JohnsonXX
John CarrollXXXX
Edward A. HortonMM
Donald RussellXX
David LaceyXXX
W. Kenneth RobinsonX
John AllenXXX
Dennis Flynn*MMMMMM
Bruce Sinclair*XXXXXXM
Winfield StockwellXXXXX
E. H. FarrowXXX
Nora PownallXXX
Morley KellsXX
Dick O'BrienXXX
Leonard BraithwaiteXX
Christopher StockwellX
Lois Griffin*AX

*Dennis Flynn resigned as mayor as a result of his appointment as Metro Chairman in August 1984. On September 4, 1984, Etobicoke City Council appointed Controller Bruce Sinclair to replace Flynn as mayor and appointed Lois Griffin to fill the Controller position vacated by Sinclair.

North York

Names in boldface indicate Controllers that were or became Mayor of North York in other years.
X = elected as Controller

A = appointed Controller to fill a vacancy

M = sitting as Reeve or Mayor
Controller1964196619691972197419761978198019821985
James Ditson ServiceMM
G. Gordon HurlburtXX
Irving PaisleyXXX
Frank WatsonXX
Basil H. HallXXM
Paul HuntXX
Mel LastmanXMMMMMMM
John Booth*X
Paul Godfrey*AX
John WilliamsX
Alex McGivernXX
Barbara GreeneXXXXX
William Sutherland*AXXX
Joseph MarkinX
Esther Shiner**XXXXX
Ron SummersX
Robert YuillXXXXX
Norm GardnerXX
Howard MoscoeX
Mario GentileA

* Booth died in 1970 and was replaced by Paul Godfrey who served out the balance of his term. Godfrey was reelected in 1972, but resigned when he was elected Metro Chairman in 1973 following the death of Metro Chairman Albert Campbell. North York Council elected Alderman William Sutherland to replace Godfrey on the Board of Control on July 23, 1973.
**Shiner died on December 19, 1987. Councillor Mario Gentile was appointed to the Board of Control in February 1988 to fill Shiner's seat.

Scarborough

X = elected as Controller

A = appointed Controller to fill a vacancy

M = sitting as Mayor
Controller196619691972197419761978198019821985
Albert Campbell*M
Robert W. White*XM
Gus HarrisXXXXXMMMM
Brian HarrisonXXXXXXXX
Karl MalletteXXX
Ken Morrish* **AXXXX/MXX
Paul Cosgrove**MMM
Joyce Trimmer***XXXXXX
Frank Faubert** ***AXXX
Carol RuddellXXX
Bill BelfontaineX

*Albert Campbell resigned as mayor after being elected Metro Chairman on October 1, 1969. Scarborough Council appointed Robert W. White to fill the vacancy as mayor and, on October 6, 1969, appointed Alderman Ken Morrish to the Board of Control to fill White's vacant position as Controller.
**Paul Cosgrove resigned as mayor after being elected to the House of Commons of Canada in an October 16, 1978 by-election. Ken Morrish was appointed acting mayor in Cosgrove's place and Frank Faubert was appointed to the Board of Control to fill Morrish's vacated Controller position. Morrish was defeated by Gus Harris in the mayoral election a month later.
***Trimmer served as mayor from 1988 to 1993; Faubert was mayor from 1994 to 1997

York

Names in boldface indicate Controllers that were or became Mayor of York in other years.
X = elected as Controller

A = appointed Controller to fill a vacancy

M = sitting as Reeve or Mayor
Controller19691972197419761978198019821985
Philip WhiteMMMMXXX
James TrimbeeXXX
Doug SaundersXXXX
Alan TonksXXMM
Gayle ChristieMM
Fergy Brown*XXXX

*Brown served as mayor from 1988 to 1994