Ben Franklin (1942–March 22, 2003) was

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of the city of

Nepean, Ontario Nepean ( ) is a former municipality and now geographic area of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Located west of Ottawa's inner core, it was an independent city until amalgamated with the Regional Municipality of Ottawa–Carleton in 2001 to become the ne ...

from the 1978 municipal election to 1997. Nepean became part of the city of

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

in 2001. He was born in Elgin, Ontario in 1942. He graduated from

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning World ...

with a BA in 1971 and became a high school geography teacher. In 1973, he was elected to Nepean council. In 1975, he ran unsuccessfully as the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

candidate in the riding of Carleton in the

Ontario general election This article provides a summary of results for the general elections to the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario's unicameralism, unicameral Legislature, legislative body, the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. The number ...

. As mayor, Franklin established a "pay as you go" policy which brought the city out of debt. He retired in 1997 due to health problems. His executive assistant, Mary Pitt, succeeded him as mayor of Nepean after running a campaign that promised to simply continue Franklin's vision. He received an

artificial heart An artificial heart is a device that replaces the heart. Artificial hearts are typically used to bridge the time to heart transplantation, or to permanently replace the heart in the case that a heart transplant (from a deceased human or, experi ...

in March 2003 but died of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

later that month at the age of 60.

Ben Franklin Place Ben Franklin Place is a building complex in the Centrepointe area of Ottawa which houses the Centrepointe Branch of the Ottawa Public Library, the Centrepointe Theatre, and a satellite office for the City of Ottawa. It also includes an outdoor s ...

Centrepointe Centrepointe is a neighbourhood in College Ward in the west end of the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was formerly part of the city of Nepean, Ontario, Nepean. It is a newer residential subdivision in the west/central part of Ottawa, develop ...

was named after him. He was the first person to be given an honorary key to the new city of Ottawa.

References

1942 births 2003 deaths Mayors and reeves of Nepean Carleton University alumni Ottawa-Carleton regional councillors Ontario Liberal Party candidates in Ontario provincial elections {{Ontario-mayor-stub