The Brampton Board of Trade is a business organization founded in

Brampton, Ontario Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a lower-tier municipality within Peel Region. The city has a population of 656,480 as of the 2021 Census, making it th ...

, in 1887. It engages in government lobbying, member discounts, and networking. It previously organized the Brampton Santa Claus Parade (1985-2017).

Joe Spina Joe Spina (born September 21, 1946) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1995 to 2003, representing a Brampton-area riding for the Progressive Conservative Party. Background S ...

served as an Ontario MPP from 1999 to 2003, after his time as BBOT President. The Board's archival ''

fonds In archival science, a fonds is a group of documents that share the same origin and that have occurred naturally as an outgrowth of the daily workings of an agency, individual, or organization. An example of a fonds could be the writings of a poe ...

'' is at the

Region of Peel Archives The Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives (PAMA) is a museum, art gallery, and archives for the Regional Municipality of Peel and are located in Brampton, Ontario, Canada. Previously, it was the Peel Heritage Complex. Its facilities were originally ...

, with records from 1909 to 1919 and 1947 to 1973.

History

* 1887 - founded and lapsed shortly after election of officers * 1890 - founded * 1897 - ceases operations * 1903 - founded * 1921, 1923–1947 - dormant * 1947 - revived as Brampton Chamber of Commerce * 1964 - amends name to Brampton and District Chamber of Commerce *1974 - The Regional Government was formed and re-incorporated as The Brampton Board of Trade. Operated the motor vehicle licensing bureau from 1974-2015. *1985 - Revived the Santa Claus Parade as a nationally acclaimed night parade. *1997 - Won Ontario Chamber of Commerce award for communications. * 1997 - Welcomed Maria Britto as the first female president. *2000 - Assisted with the recruitment of Chrysler, Brampton’s largest employer at the time. *2004 - Successfully advocated for the extension of Highway 410 through Brampton. *2004 - Launched the “Save Our Hospital” campaign and continued healthcare advocacy for Peel Memorial. *2014 - International trade advocacy and market development are supported by the mission to Turkey. *2015 - Launched the Prosperity Roundtable and agenda to boost key economic drivers. *2015 - Became a founding member of Canadian Global Cities Council, a coalition of business communities in Canada’s nine largest markets. *2016 - Recognized as #1 business association and networking organization in Brampton. *2016 - Became a founding member of Canada’s Innovation Corridor Business Council. *2017 - Joined World Trade Centre – Toronto’s first mission to the United Arab Emirates. *2017 - Established Top 40 Under 40 initiative to showcase Brampton’s talented workforce. *2018 - Successfully advocated for reducing city property tax increases (frozen 2018-2020). *2019 - Re-accredited with the standard of excellence by the national accreditation council (with distinction). *2019 - Hosted Chamber Executives of Ontario Conference. *2019 - CEO Todd Letts was named to Governing Council, World Chambers Federation of the International Chamber of Commerce. *2020 - Collaborated with Mayor’s Task Force on Economic Recovery to provide essential business guidance through global pandemic. *2020 - Advocated for Two-Way, All-Day GO train service which led to our CEO’s appointment to the Minister of Transportation’s Business Advisory Council on Transit in the Innovation Corridor. *2021 - The Brampton Board of Trade held the 4th Annual Canada's Innovation Corridor Summit, exploring key issues associated with the theme of Disruption. *2022 - The Brampton Board of Trade was selected to host the Ontario Chamber of Commerce's 2022 AGM & Convention. This event represents one of the most significant opportunities for business leaders from across the province to network with peers, debate Ontario business policy issues, and shape our future advocacy agenda.

Programs

Speakers

The organization has hosted many notable speakers, most recently hosting Party leaders prior to the 2022 Provincial election: Steven Del Duca (Ontario Liberals), Mike Schreiner (Green Party of Ontario) and Andrea Horwath (Ontario NDP). Each February, the Board of Trade hosts the State of the City, where the Mayor of Brampton and Chair of the Board share their priorities for the year ahead. As part of the View from the Top series, Brampton Board of Trade CEO Todd Letts spoke with Dr. Mohamed Lachemi Professor, President and Vice-Chancellor at Ryerson University on October 21, 2021. In April 2021, Todd Letts and Chair Michelle McCollum hosted Joe Jackman and Bob Peacock of Almag Aluminum to speak about succession planning and overcoming adversity and business challenges. The Board also hosts Minister visits, hosting the Honourable Steve Clark Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, who was joined by the Honourable Prabmeet Sarkaria and MPP Amarjot Sandhu, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Infrastructure on October 27. 2021, prior to that they hosted the Honourable Omar Alghabra, Minister of Transport on April 29th, 2021. They have previously hosted federal Small Business Minister

Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott was born in Londo ...

, Chrysler Canada CEO Reid Bigland, Ontario Premier

Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...

Canadian Alliance The Canadian Alliance (french: Alliance canadienne), formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance (french: Alliance réformiste-conservatrice canadienne), was a centre-right to right-wing federal political party in Canada that existed u ...

party leader

Stockwell Day Stockwell Burt Day Jr. (born August 16, 1950) is a Canadian former politician who led the Canadian Alliance from 2000 to 2001, and a member of the Conservative Party of Canada. A provincial cabinet minister from Alberta, Day served as minister ...

(who announced a timetable for merging with Progressive Conservative party), Prime Minister

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

, Ontario Premier

Mike Harris Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a Canadian retired politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. During his time ...

, Chrysler Canada president

Yves Landry Yves Landry (born 13 April 1947) is a former Canadian cyclist. He competed in the individual road race and the team time trial events at the 1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), official ...

, Reform Party leader

Preston Manning Ernest Preston Manning (born June 10, 1942) is a Canadian retired politician. He was the founder and the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance in 2000 which in tur ...

, Ontario Minister of Agriculture William "Bill" Newman, Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion

Mary Ng Mary Ng (born December 16, 1969) is a Canadian politician serving as Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development since 2018. A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, she has been the member of Parl ...

, Ontario Premier

David Peterson David Robert Peterson (born December 28, 1943) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 20th premier of Ontario from 1985 to 1990. He was the first Liberal officeholder in 42 years, ending the so-called Tory dynasty. Backgro ...

, federal Agriculture Minister

Eugene Whelan Eugene Francis "Gene" Whelan, ( ) was a Canadian politician, sitting in the House of Commons from 1962 to 1984, and in the Senate from 1996 to 1999. He was also Minister of Agriculture under Pierre Trudeau from 1972 to 1984, and became one ...

, and Minister of Finance Michael Wilson.

Policy positions

The Board supported the

Charlottetown Accord The Charlottetown Accord (french: Accord de Charlottetown) was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada, proposed by the Canadian federal and provincial governments in 1992. It was submitted to a public referendum on October ...

(1992). The Brampton Board of Trade supports regional public transit infrastructure, including extending the Hazel McCallion (formerly Hurontario) Line north onto Main Street in Brampton and the full implementation of Two-Way, All Day GO (TWADG) Train service. The Brampton Board of Trade supports building the GTA West Transportation Corridor, better known as Highway 413. The Brampton Board of Trade supports increasing the footprint of the post-secondary sector in Brampton. This includes augmenting current offerings (such as those of Algoma University, Sheridan College and Toronto Metropolitan University) as well as pursuing new opportunities (such as the relocation of the University of Guelph-Humber campus). The Brampton Board of Trade supports efforts to increase uptake of COVID-19 vaccines, including on-site vaccination clinics at major industrial employers at the height of the pandemic. The Brampton Board of Trade supports the implementation of affordable childcare. The Brampton Board of Trade supports urgent solutions to the crisis in the housing market, including interventions such as ending exclusionary zoning to build the “missing middle” by increasing the supply of multi-unit complexes in areas not zoned for them. The Brampton Board of Trade supports an engaging municipal budget process that includes proactive stakeholder consultation, as well as disclosure of relevant documents related to capital expenditures and capital planning well in advance. The Board has also taken the position that longer-range capital forecasting will strengthen the city’s hand in competing for capital funding from senior orders of government. The Brampton Board of Trade supports the investment necessary to complete and fully unlock the potential of Riverwalk. The Brampton Board of Trade supports increasing the number of immigrants admitted under given categories based on workforce needs, and has called on government to work together to more quickly recognize international credentials in fields experiencing labour shortages in Ontario. The Brampton Board of Trade has called on the federal and provincial governments to work together to break down barriers to interprovincial trade, and has called on the federal government to redouble efforts to secure free trade agreements with emerging economies such as India.

Brampton Santa Claus Parade

Brampton's

Santa Claus parade Santa Claus parades, also called Christmas parades, are parades held in some countries to celebrate the official opening of the Christmas season with the arrival of Santa Claus who always appears in the last float. The parades usually include them ...

stopped in the mid-1970s. In 1985, the Brampton Board of Trade started planning a

for 1986; simultaneously, the

Jaycees The United States Junior Chamber, also known as the Jaycees, JCs or JCI USA, is a leadership training, service organization and civic organization for people between the ages of 18 and 40. It is a branch of Junior Chamber International (JCI) ...

were intending to start a parade in 1987. With City co-operation, the Board's parade launched in 1986, with Jaycee assistance in marshalling. That year's program was announced to include forty community entrants, sponsored by companies, but ended up with 52 units. In recent years, it has included over 100 units. The parade moved to a "night parade" format in 1995. The parade route has expanded from Vodden to south of Wellington Street (1986) to Sproule to south of Elgin Street. The parade typically happens a week before the

Toronto Santa Claus Parade The Toronto Santa Claus Parade, also branded as ''The Original Santa Claus Parade'', is a Santa Claus parade held annually on the third Sunday of November in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. First held in 1905, it is one of the largest parade productio ...

. The Board claims an in-person attendance of 160,000 (2012). It claims to be the largest single-day event in the

Regional Municipality of Peel The Regional Municipality of Peel (informally Peel Region or Region of Peel, also formerly Peel County) is a regional municipality in the Greater Toronto Area, Southern Ontario, Canada. It consists of three municipalities to the west and northwes ...

, and the largest night parade in Canada. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce has named the parade as the Best Community Lighted Parade in Canada. The program was broadcast on

Rogers TV Rogers TV (stylized as Rogers tv) is a group of English-language community channels owned by Rogers Communications. Many of these channels share common programs. Rogers TV broadcasts in the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick, Newfoundland and ...

Brampton, which claimed viewership of over 250,000 between live and repeat broadcasts. The Board of Trade stopped hosting the parade in 2017, and it is now run by the Lions Club of Brampton.

People

Chairpersons of the BBOT

From 1887 to 2011, Chairs were referred to as Presidents of the BBOT. * 1887, K. Chisholm * 1890–1896, E.O. Runians * 1904–1906, John H. Boulter * 1906–1907, T.W. Duggan, later mayor (from Dale Estates Limited) * 1907, E.S. Anderson * 1907–1911, G.L. Williams * 1911–1914, John H. Boulter * 1914–1917, R.H. Pringle * 1917–1919,

F. W. Wegenast F is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet. F may also refer to: Science and technology Mathematics * F or f, the number 15 in hexadecimal and higher positional systems * ''p'F'q'', the hypergeometric function * F-distribution, a cont ...

, later mayor * 1919–1920, G.W. McFarland * 1922, James Martin * 1948–1949, F. Gordon Umphrey * 1950, Cecil Carscadden * 1951, William Robinson * 1952, Frank Richardson * 1953, C.G. Patterson * 1954, Joe Racine * 1955, Emerson McKinney * 1956, William Watson * 1957, William Coupar * 1958, William Robinson * 1959, Lloyd Denby * 1960, Stan Stonehouse * 1960–1961, Harold Knight * 1961–1962, Cecil Chinn * 1962–1963, Edward Ching * 1963–1964, Sam Charters * 1964–1965, Douglas Brown * 1965–1966, Gordon Vivian * 1966–1967, Stan Eisel * 1967–1968, J.A. Carroll * 1968–1969, Ronald Rider * 1969–1970, Richard Boyle * 1970–1971, R.C. Harvey * 1971–1972, Hank Sawatsky * 1972–1973, Peter Montgomery * 1973–1974, Watson Kennedy * 1974–1975, G.W. (Joe) Harley * 1975–1976, A.D.K. Mackenzie * 1976–1977, Harry Lockwood * 1977–1978, Don Crawford * 1978–1979, John Logan (from

John Logan Chevrolet-Oldsmobile John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

) * 1979–1980, Terry Champ * 1980–1981, Jim Phair * 1981–1982, Marty Hughes * 1982–1983, Earnie Mitchell * 1983–1984, Keith Coulter * 1984–1985, Bruce Carruthers * 1985–1986, Robert Bell * 1986–1987, Dennis Cole * 1987–1988, Lou Duggan * 1988–1989, Wally Rudensky * 1989–1990,

, later an MPP * 1990–1991, Al Brannon * 1991, Lewis Wagg * 1991–1992, Jack Coughlin * 1992–1993, Jim Inglis * 1993–1994, Paul Howlett * 1994–1995, Blaine Mitton * 1995–1996,

Bob Nutbrown Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: Places *Mount Bob, New York, United States *Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica People, fictional characters, and named animals * Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname ...

* 1996–1997, Bryan Dawson * 1997–1998, Maria Britto * 1998–1999, Ken Hay * 1999–2000, Heather Picken (from Lawrence, Lawrence, Stevenson LLP) * 2000–2001, Adam Nowak * 2001–2002, John Sanderson * 2002–2003, Robert Peacock * 2003–2004, Michael Collins * 2004–2005, Mitch Robinson (from ScotiaMcLeod Inc.) * 2005–2006, Michael Luchenski (from Lawrence, Lawrence, Stevenson LLP) * 2006–2007, Wayne Waters * 2007–2008, Linda Ford * 2008–2009, Carman McClelland * 2009–2010, F-Charles Waud (from WaudWare Incorporated) * 2010–2011, Stephen Rhodes * 2012, Jim Schembri * 2013, Glenn Williams * 2014, Susan Crawford * 2015, Jaipaul Massey-Singh * 2016, Badar Shamim * 2017, Evan Moore * 2018, Heather Strati *2019, Manpreet Mann *2020, Vanessa White *2021, Donna Fagon-Pascal

Brampton Business Person of the Year

* 1978: Emerson McKinney * 1979: Charles Armstrong * 1980: William Pickett * 1981: Carl Dalli * 1982: Max Rice * 1983: G.W. (Joe) Harley * 1984: Marie and Joseph Colbacchin * 1985: John Logan * 1986: John Mills * 1987: David Dickson M.D. * 1988: Harry Lockwood * 1989: Donald Crawford * 1990: Robert Bell * 1991: Ruth Sharpe * 1992: Jeff Kerbel * 1993:

John Cutruzzola John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

* 1994: Al Brannon * 1995: Bill Graham * 1996: Lou Duggan * 1997: Bob May * 1998: Roger Peddle * 1999:

Ignat Kaneff Ignat Kaneff ( bg, Игнат Христов Кънев; 6 October 1926 – 12 July 2020) was a Bulgarian Canadians, Bulgarian-Canadian business magnate and philanthropist. Biography Ignat Hristov Kaneff was born on 6 October 1926 in Gorno A ...

* 2000: Mike Cuttle * 2001: Chris Butcher * 2002: Maria Britto * 2003: John Sanderson * 2004: Bryan Dawson * 2005: Bill Strachan * 2006: Scott Goodison * 2007: Neil Davis * 2008: George Chiu * 2009: Doug Munro * 2010: Vlad Stritesky * 2011: Rob Filken * 2012: Linda Ford * 2013: David Sharpe * 2014–15: Bob Peacock * 2016: Heather Picken * 2017: Mohamad Fakih * 2018: Robert Bedard< * 2019: Richard Prouse, lawyer, Prouse, Dash & Crouch, LLP * 2020: William E. Johnston, Bramgate Automotive Inc. president *2021: Vito Ciciretto, President & CEO, Dynacare *2022: Heather Strati, Partner, Deloitte

Lifetime members of BBoT

* Robert Bell * J. Bruce Carruthers C.A. * Keith Coulter * Donald R. Crawford * G.W. (Joe) Harley * Harry Lockwood * John Logan * Ron Rider * Peter Robertson * Ruth Sharpe * Gordon Smith

References

External links

Brampton Board of Trade
{{Brampton, Ontario Brampton Chambers of commerce in Canada 1887 establishments in Ontario 1903 establishments in Ontario Organizations established in 1887