Paul Christie
Encyclopedia
Paul Christie is a municipal politician and administrator in Ontario
, Canada
. He served as a Toronto and Metro Councillor for the Metro ward of East Toronto from 1985–1997 and as supervisor of the Toronto District School Board
for the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 school years.
Christie was born in Toronto, Ontario, the son of noted community activist and advocate, Alex Christie and his wife Eleanor. He was educated at Waterloo Lutheran University and the University of Toronto
, where he studied under Dr. Marshall McLuhan
. He worked as a ministerial assistant at the Ontario Secretariat for Social Development during the Bill Davis
government. He ran for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
in the 1981 provincial election
as a Progressive Conservative
candidate in Beaches—Woodbine
, and lost to New Democrat Marion Bryden
by 324 votes. Christie campaigned against Bryden again in the 1985 election
, and lost by an increased margin.
In November 1985, Christie was elected to the Toronto City Council
as an alderman for Ward 9, in a section of Toronto then known as The Beaches
. He served as chair of the City Services (Works) Committee, the Neighbourhoods Committee, and the Daycare Grants Committee. In 1988, he was elected to the Metropolitan Toronto Council. He served as chair of the Works Committee, and was a member of the Greater Toronto Area
Solid Waste Interim Steering Committee. Christie helped manage the introduction of the blue box and subjected the Ashbridge's Bay Main Treatment Plant to a full environmental assessment.
Christie was returned to the Metro Council without opposition in 1991 and handily re-elected in 1994, receiving more votes than any Metro candidate that year. From 1991, he served as a Toronto Transit Commission
er, becoming its chair in 1994. Mr. Christie opened the extension of the Spadina Subway to Downsview and led the TTC effort that resulted in the construction of the Sheppard Avenue subway line. He served as a Board Member of Toronto East General Hospital
, The Riverdale Hospital, O'Keefe/Hummingbird now the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts, the Toronto Zoo
, the City of Toronto Non-Profit Housing Corporation (Cityhome) and a variety of community agencies.
Christie sought election to the newly amalgamated City of Toronto Council in November 1997, and was narrowly defeated by Tom Jakobek
and Sandra Bussin
in the two-member ward. He then became the chief executive of the Ontario Charity Gaming Operators' Association which achieved approvals for several small casinos. Mr. Christie also operated an independent government relations consulting business.
In 2001-2002 Christie chaired the campaign of Ontario Labour Minister Chris Stockwell who sought to be Leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservatives and Premier of Ontario.
In August 2002, Paul Christie was appointed by the government of Ontario of Ernie Eves
to serve as supervisor of the Toronto District School Board
, with authority for all financial and administrative functions of the Board. The school system is Canada's largest with over 550 schools and 300,000 full and part-time students. His appointment allowed Christie to supersede the authority of elected school trustees. The provincial government argued that the appointment was necessary, as the TDSB had not submitted a budget to the Ontario Minister of Education as legally required. Representatives of the TDSB claimed that they could not find the necessary operating expenses for the year, given provincial regulations which prohibited deficit spending. TDSB chair Donna Cansfield
was perceived to be supportive of Christie's initiatives, so trustee Shelley Carroll
waged a campaign to replace Cansfield. Unable to generate majority support, Carroll then served with Cansfield as TDSB co-chair.
Christie balanced the TDSB's budget through a dramatic spending reduction of $90 million. Under his watch, the TDSB eliminated many secretarial positions, phased out school-community advisors, reduced the number of vice-principals, cut outdoor education and adult education, and re-evaluated the position of social workers in the system. Christie's staff reports were not made public, and some critics argued that there were no adequate checks or balances on his authority. Christie argued that his reductions had no implications for classroom education.
His tenure as supervisor ended with the election of Dalton McGuinty
's Liberal Party
in the 2003 provincial election
. The McGuinty government retained most of Christie's initiatives including the staff reductions.
Mr. Christie subsequently returned to his business, M.L. Christie Consulting Ltd., specializing in municipal and provincial government relations. He is been registered with the City of Toronto Lobbyist registry. Mr. Christie is known to as have represented Bombardier Transportation, URS Cole Sherman, Thales Group, Cubic Transportation Systems, Pattison Outdoor Advertising
, Astral Media Outdoor, Out-of-Home Marketing Association of Canada, Greenwin Property Management Inc., Toronto Airport Limousine Association, Cinespace Studios, STV Inc., ACS-A Xerox Company and several other large entities. He also served as a Director of Grey Island Systems International Inc., (and its subsidiary, NextBus) a GPS services company (TSX V: GIS). Subsequent to the acquisition of Grey Island by Webtech Wireless Inc. (TSX: WEW), Mr. Christie joined the Board of that company.
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. He served as a Toronto and Metro Councillor for the Metro ward of East Toronto from 1985–1997 and as supervisor of the Toronto District School Board
Toronto District School Board
Toronto District School Board, also known by the acronym TDSB, is the English-language public school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
for the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 school years.
Christie was born in Toronto, Ontario, the son of noted community activist and advocate, Alex Christie and his wife Eleanor. He was educated at Waterloo Lutheran University and the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, where he studied under Dr. Marshall McLuhan
Marshall McLuhan
Herbert Marshall McLuhan, CC was a Canadian educator, philosopher, and scholar—a professor of English literature, a literary critic, a rhetorician, and a communication theorist...
. He worked as a ministerial assistant at the Ontario Secretariat for Social Development during the Bill Davis
Bill Davis
William Grenville "Bill" Davis, was the 18th Premier of Ontario, Canada, from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the MPP for Peel in the 1959 provincial election where he was a backbencher in Leslie Frost's government. Under John Robarts, he was a cabinet minister overseeing the education...
government. He ran for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
in the 1981 provincial election
Ontario general election, 1981
The Ontario general election of 1981 was held on March 19, 1981, to elect members of the 32nd Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....
as a Progressive Conservative
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario
The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario , is a right-of-centre political party in Ontario, Canada. The party was known for many years as "Ontario's natural governing party." It has ruled the province for 80 of the years since Confederation, including an uninterrupted run from 1943 to 1985...
candidate in Beaches—Woodbine
Beaches—Woodbine (provincial electoral district)
Beaches—Woodbine was a provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada. It was created in 1967 by merging the former ridings of Woodbine and Beaches....
, and lost to New Democrat Marion Bryden
Marion Bryden
Marion Helen Bryden is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. She was a New Democratic Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1975 to 1990.-Background:...
by 324 votes. Christie campaigned against Bryden again in the 1985 election
Ontario general election, 1985
The Ontario general election of 1985 was held on May 2, 1985, to elect members of the 33rd Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada...
, and lost by an increased margin.
In November 1985, Christie was elected to the Toronto City Council
Toronto City Council
The Toronto City Council is the governing body of the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Members represent wards throughout the city, and are known as councillors....
as an alderman for Ward 9, in a section of Toronto then known as The Beaches
The Beaches
The Beaches is a neighbourhood and popular tourist destination located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the east side of the "Old" City of Toronto. The original boundaries of the neighbourhood are from Fallingbrook Avenue on the east to Kingston Road on the north, to Woodbine Avenue...
. He served as chair of the City Services (Works) Committee, the Neighbourhoods Committee, and the Daycare Grants Committee. In 1988, he was elected to the Metropolitan Toronto Council. He served as chair of the Works Committee, and was a member of the Greater Toronto Area
Greater Toronto Area
The Greater Toronto Area is the largest metropolitan area in Canada, with a 2006 census population of 5.5 million. The Greater Toronto Area is usually defined as the central city of Toronto, along with four regional municipalities surrounding it: Durham, Halton, Peel, and York...
Solid Waste Interim Steering Committee. Christie helped manage the introduction of the blue box and subjected the Ashbridge's Bay Main Treatment Plant to a full environmental assessment.
Christie was returned to the Metro Council without opposition in 1991 and handily re-elected in 1994, receiving more votes than any Metro candidate that year. From 1991, he served as a Toronto Transit Commission
Toronto Transit Commission
-Island Ferry:The ferry service to the Toronto Islands was operated by the TTC from 1927 until 1962, when it was transferred to the Metro Parks and Culture department. Since 1998, the ferry service is run by Toronto Parks and Recreation.-Gray Coach:...
er, becoming its chair in 1994. Mr. Christie opened the extension of the Spadina Subway to Downsview and led the TTC effort that resulted in the construction of the Sheppard Avenue subway line. He served as a Board Member of Toronto East General Hospital
Toronto East General Hospital
-External links:**...
, The Riverdale Hospital, O'Keefe/Hummingbird now the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts, the Toronto Zoo
Toronto Zoo
The Toronto Zoo is a zoo located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It opened August 15, 1974 as the Metropolitan Toronto Zoo and is owned by the City of Toronto; the word "Metropolitan" was dropped from its name when the cities of the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto were amalgamated to form the...
, the City of Toronto Non-Profit Housing Corporation (Cityhome) and a variety of community agencies.
Christie sought election to the newly amalgamated City of Toronto Council in November 1997, and was narrowly defeated by Tom Jakobek
Tom Jakobek
Tom Jakobek is a former member of the Toronto City Council. He was first elected to council in 1982 after serving as a school trustee, and remained a member until 2000....
and Sandra Bussin
Sandra Bussin
Sandra Bussin was a politician in Toronto, Canada. She was a municipal councillor for Toronto City Council representing Ward 32, an area called the Beaches. From 2006 to 2010 she was Speaker of Toronto City Council.-Background:...
in the two-member ward. He then became the chief executive of the Ontario Charity Gaming Operators' Association which achieved approvals for several small casinos. Mr. Christie also operated an independent government relations consulting business.
In 2001-2002 Christie chaired the campaign of Ontario Labour Minister Chris Stockwell who sought to be Leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservatives and Premier of Ontario.
In August 2002, Paul Christie was appointed by the government of Ontario of Ernie Eves
Ernie Eves
Ernest Lawrence "Ernie" Eves was the 23rd Premier of the province of Ontario, Canada, from April 15, 2002, to October 23, 2003.-Beginnings:...
to serve as supervisor of the Toronto District School Board
Toronto District School Board
Toronto District School Board, also known by the acronym TDSB, is the English-language public school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
, with authority for all financial and administrative functions of the Board. The school system is Canada's largest with over 550 schools and 300,000 full and part-time students. His appointment allowed Christie to supersede the authority of elected school trustees. The provincial government argued that the appointment was necessary, as the TDSB had not submitted a budget to the Ontario Minister of Education as legally required. Representatives of the TDSB claimed that they could not find the necessary operating expenses for the year, given provincial regulations which prohibited deficit spending. TDSB chair Donna Cansfield
Donna Cansfield
Donna H. Cansfield, is a politician in Ontario, Canada, who has represented the riding of Etobicoke Centre in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since 2003...
was perceived to be supportive of Christie's initiatives, so trustee Shelley Carroll
Shelley Carroll
Shelley Carroll is a city councillor in Toronto, Canada. She represents Ward 33 Don Valley East, one of the two Don Valley East municipal wards. She was formerly the Chair of the City's Budget Committee.-Background:...
waged a campaign to replace Cansfield. Unable to generate majority support, Carroll then served with Cansfield as TDSB co-chair.
Christie balanced the TDSB's budget through a dramatic spending reduction of $90 million. Under his watch, the TDSB eliminated many secretarial positions, phased out school-community advisors, reduced the number of vice-principals, cut outdoor education and adult education, and re-evaluated the position of social workers in the system. Christie's staff reports were not made public, and some critics argued that there were no adequate checks or balances on his authority. Christie argued that his reductions had no implications for classroom education.
His tenure as supervisor ended with the election of Dalton McGuinty
Dalton McGuinty
Dalton James Patrick McGuinty, Jr., MPP is a Canadian lawyer, politician and, since October 23, 2003, the 24th and current Premier of the Canadian province of Ontario....
's Liberal Party
Ontario Liberal Party
The Ontario Liberal Party is a provincial political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. It has formed the Government of Ontario since the provincial election of 2003. The party is ideologically aligned with the Liberal Party of Canada but the two parties are organizationally independent and...
in the 2003 provincial election
Ontario general election, 2003
The Ontario general election of 2003 was held on October 2, 2003, to elect the 103 members of the 38th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....
. The McGuinty government retained most of Christie's initiatives including the staff reductions.
Mr. Christie subsequently returned to his business, M.L. Christie Consulting Ltd., specializing in municipal and provincial government relations. He is been registered with the City of Toronto Lobbyist registry. Mr. Christie is known to as have represented Bombardier Transportation, URS Cole Sherman, Thales Group, Cubic Transportation Systems, Pattison Outdoor Advertising
Pattison Outdoor Advertising
Pattison Outdoor Advertising is Canada's largest Out-of-home advertising company, holding a 55% market share of the core out of home advertising product in Canada and a 46% market share of all traditional Out-of-Home media in the country .Pattison Outdoor is a division of the Jim Pattison...
, Astral Media Outdoor, Out-of-Home Marketing Association of Canada, Greenwin Property Management Inc., Toronto Airport Limousine Association, Cinespace Studios, STV Inc., ACS-A Xerox Company and several other large entities. He also served as a Director of Grey Island Systems International Inc., (and its subsidiary, NextBus) a GPS services company (TSX V: GIS). Subsequent to the acquisition of Grey Island by Webtech Wireless Inc. (TSX: WEW), Mr. Christie joined the Board of that company.