Art Eggleton, Mayor of Toronto 1980-1991: Record and Later Career

Arthur (Art) Eggleton, born in Toronto on September 29, 1943, was mayor of Toronto from 1980 to 1991, an 11-year run that the federal government later called the longest in the city’s history. He then served as a Liberal MP and cabinet minister from 1993 and as a senator from 2005 to 2018.

From accountant to budget chief

Eggleton was raised and educated in Toronto and first worked as an accountant, according to a 2005 Government of Canada news release. He was elected to Toronto City Council in 1969 and served 22 years in municipal politics. The Canadian Parliamentary Guide entry for him lists him as the City’s budget chief from 1973 to 1980, which placed him in the financial centre of David Crombie’s reform council. For that era, see the article on David Crombie.

He also sat on the Metropolitan Toronto Police Commission and on the board of the Canadian National Exhibition, per the same sources. The Exhibition’s own story is told in Canadian National Exhibition history.

Elected mayor in 1980

Wikipedia says he won the 1980 election against the sitting mayor, John Sewell, and took office on December 1, 1980. Official sources give the years in several ways. The Government of Canada release and the Parliamentary Guide both say he was mayor from 1980 to 1991, while the City of Toronto’s chronological list shows him as 1981 to 1991, a year range that does not give exact dates. All sources agree on the end year.

He served 11 years. The 2005 federal release described him as the longest-serving mayor in the city’s history, and Senator Day repeated that description in a Senate tribute in September 2018. He left office in 1991. The wider list of mayors is in Toronto mayors and municipal elections.

Wikipedia reports that his only serious re-election challenge came in 1985 from Anne Johnston, who received 59,817 votes to his 92,994. It also says Toronto lost its bid to host Expo 2000 to Hanover, Germany, during his time in office. Both items rest on that article alone, so confirm them in the City’s election records before quoting them.

Housing, parks and race relations

The Senate tribute, delivered when he retired, credited him with providing more social housing, more parks and more support for people without homes while he was an alderman and mayor, and with making the city more welcoming to newcomers. These are the speakers’ words, so they describe how colleagues remembered the period, not a measured audit.

The Canadian Parliamentary Guide lists him as a member of the Mayor’s Committee on Community and Race Relations, the Housing Action Committee, the Toronto Economic Development Committee and the Mayor’s Task Force on Drugs. Wikipedia reports that the city built a record amount of social housing, added 50 acres of parkland and launched programs for single people in need of housing. Those specific counts come from Wikipedia alone, so they are not confirmed here.

Toronto’s later struggles with housing and shelter are covered in the article on homelessness in Toronto. The City awarded Eggleton its Civic Award of Merit in 1992.

The railway lands and the dome

Wikipedia attributes the redevelopment of the downtown west railway lands to the official plan adopted in his years, a project that produced the Convention Centre, the CBC Broadcast Centre and SkyDome. The Canadian Encyclopedia confirms that SkyDome held lavish opening ceremonies in 1989 and calls it the world’s first fully retractable-roof multi-purpose stadium. Its entry also says the stadium opened with a $165-million debt, which grew to $400 million by 1993 before the Ontario government paid it off in 1994.

The stadium, now Rogers Centre, is described in the article on the Rogers Centre. The railway lands sit beside Union Station. The encyclopedia entry does not name Eggleton in connection with the stadium, so his personal role is best described as that of the mayor during construction.

The 1981 bathhouse raids

In February 1981 Toronto police raided gay bathhouses in an operation known as Operation Soap. Wikipedia’s account of Eggleton says he stated that he had no foreknowledge of the raids and that he commissioned an inquiry led by Arnold Bruner. The same article says Bruner’s report contained 16 recommendations, many of which were implemented only decades later, and that Pride Toronto was created partly in response to the raids.

According to Wikipedia, in 1990 organizers filed a complaint with the Ontario Human Rights Commission after he did not officially declare a Pride day. The same article says he later said he had come to see the parade differently and took part in it. These events are covered from the community’s point of view in the article on the Toronto Pride Parade. Details in this section rest on secondary reporting and should be checked against the primary record.

Federal career and the Senate

Eggleton was first elected to the House of Commons for York Centre in 1993 and re-elected in 1997 and 2000. According to the Parliamentary Guide and the 2005 federal release, he was President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for Infrastructure from November 4, 1993, to January 25, 1996, Minister for International Trade until June 11, 1997, and Minister of National Defence from June 11, 1997, to May 26, 2002. Wikipedia says he announced in May 2004 that he would not seek re-election.

Prime Minister Paul Martin announced his appointment to the Senate on March 24, 2005. He sat there until September 29, 2018, when he reached the mandatory retirement age. The Senate tribute notes that he chaired and deputy-chaired the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology and led an all-party anti-poverty caucus. Wikipedia adds that he chaired a mayor’s task force on Toronto Community Housing in 2015 and 2016.

Frequently asked questions

When was Art Eggleton mayor of Toronto?

From 1980 to 1991, according to the Government of Canada and the Canadian Parliamentary Guide. The City of Toronto’s list shows 1981 to 1991 as a year range, and Wikipedia gives a start date of December 1, 1980.

Was Art Eggleton the longest-serving mayor of Toronto?

A 2005 Government of Canada news release described him that way, and a senator repeated it in 2018. He served 11 years. Check the City of Toronto’s list if you need to compare against earlier mayors.

What federal posts did Art Eggleton hold?

Treasury Board president (1993 to 1996), minister for international trade (1996 to 1997) and defence minister (1997 to 2002), all as MP for York Centre.

When was he in the Senate?

He was appointed on March 24, 2005, and retired on September 29, 2018.

What happened in the 1981 bathhouse raids?

Police raided gay bathhouses in February 1981. According to Wikipedia, Eggleton commissioned an inquiry led by Arnold Bruner, whose report had 16 recommendations.

Sources

Government of Canada, Prime Minister’s Office news release, “Prime Minister announces appointments to the Senate” (March 24, 2005)
Canadian Parliamentary Guide (2005), entry “Eggleton, Hon. Art, P.C.” (as reproduced in an online encyclopedia reference)
Senate of Canada, Debates of the Senate, Senators’ Statements, tribute to Senator Eggleton (September 26, 2018)
City of Toronto, “Mayor, Reeve & Chairman” chronological list (accessed October 2026)
The Canadian Encyclopedia, Toronto feature on Rogers Centre/SkyDome (accessed October 2026)
Wikipedia, “Art Eggleton” (used for dates and civic details; items resting on it alone are hedged in the text)

Last verified: October 2026

Cite this page

APA: History of Toronto. (2026, October 31). Art Eggleton: Toronto Mayor 1980 to 1991, Later Minister and Senator. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/arthur-eggleton

MLA: “Art Eggleton: Toronto Mayor 1980 to 1991, Later Minister and Senator.” History of Toronto, 31 Oct 2026, https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/arthur-eggleton. Accessed .

Chicago: History of Toronto. “Art Eggleton: Toronto Mayor 1980 to 1991, Later Minister and Senator.” Last modified October 31, 2026. https://historyoftoronto.ca/blog/arthur-eggleton.

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