Ron Searle, former mayor of Mississauga, was an early advocate for affordable housing

Searle, who preceded Hazel McCallion as mayor of the fledgling city, died Aug. 29 at the age of 96.

Thestar.com
Sept. 7, 2015
By Laurent Bastien Corbeil

Ron Searle, the former mayor of Mississauga known for his ardent support of affordable housing and senior homes, died Aug. 29. He was 96.

Searle, who had been admitted to Mississauga Trillium hospital with pneumonia, died surrounded by family.

A veteran of the Second World War, Searle first became involved in local politics after suffering from tuberculosis in 1958. The illness, he would later say, gave him new perspective. And after he came out of hospital later that same year, he successfully ran for president of the Orchard Heights Homeowners Association.

Five years later, he was elected to what was known as the Township of Toronto Council, where he fought for new children’s daycare centres and improved legal aid in Peel County.

But his biggest test at city hall came in 1976. At the time, the newly formed city of Mississauga was engulfed in a corruption scandal. Searle launched a mayoral bid, advocating for integrity at city hall. He defeated the city’s first mayor, Martin Dobkin, in a bitter election.

“I hoped to change the course of the city and the character of city council,” he said at the time.

Searle arrived at the helm of city hall during a crucial time. As the fastest growing city in Canada, Mississauga was in the midst of a real estate boom. Home prices were on the rise, and low-income residents were slowly being squeezed out.

The city found itself in desperate need of affordable housing, and Searle was committed to the issue.

“My concern for [affordable housing] overrides all other concerns,” he told a Star reporter a few months after winning the election.

He argued forcefully for cheaper homes and fought with Ottawa after it slashed Mississauga’s federal housing grants. The cuts, he said at the time, threatened to drive up the city’s home prices even further.

Two years later Hazel McCallion, then 57, defeated Searle at the polls, handing him his first municipal defeat in 16 years. He launched a second mayoral bid in 1982, but it proved unsuccessful.

Following his defeat, Searle continued to serve the community he loved.

“He would always make representations on behalf of homeowners up to city hall. He was always a spokesman for veterans who needed support. He was always a spokesman for veteran affairs,” his son, Mark, said.

The son of a First World War veteran and a seamstress, Searle was born in Southampton, England. His family moved to Canada via New York when he was still an infant.

In 1939, he volunteered with the Toronto Scottish Regime and was deployed to Europe. There, he fought on the beaches of Normandy before being wounded three times in his leg by machine-gun fire near the village of Falaise, France.

For his service, Searle was recently awarded France’s highest decoration, the Legion d'honneur, according to his son. He never had the chance to wear the medal, however.

“He was an honest, loving family man who loved his country and loved his community and would do everything for them,” his son said.