Martin L. Dobkin

Martin L. Dobkin
1st Mayor of Mississauga
In office 1974–1976
Preceded by	none
Succeeded by	Ron Searle
Personal details
Born	1942 (age 68–69) Toronto, Ontario
Profession	Medical Doctor

Martin L. Dobkin was the first mayor of the City of Mississauga, Ontario (1974–1976). He was succeeded by Ron A. Searle.

The Dr. Martin Dobkin Park in Mississauga is named in his honour.

Early life

Dr. Martin L. Dobkin was born in Toronto in 1942. The son of Irving and Mary Dobkin, he was the eldest of 4 boys. He attended Essex St. Public School. In 1955, at the age of 13 years, he moved to Cobourg, Ontario with his family. He attended Cobourg and District Collegiate Institute. He grauduated from Queen's University Medical School in 1966. This was followed by an internship at the Montreal General Hospital and then a one year residency in pediatrics at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

In 1968 he married Michele Bitton and began his medical practice as a family physician in Mississauga. He became a member of the active staff at the Mississauga Hospital. In 1970 Dr. Dobkin was appointed as Coroner in the Region of Peel.

On October 1, 1973, as a political novice, he was elected as the first Mayor of the newly created City of Mississauga.^[1] At 31 years of age, Dr. Dobkin became the youngest person in Canada to be elected mayor of a large city. He served a 3 year term as Mayor of Mississauga and also as a Councillor on the Region of Peel Council.

The First Council (1973-1976)

Dobkin was swept into office as the head of a "reform council" which included other newcomers such as Mary-Helen Spence, David Culham, Hubert Wolf, Kaye Killaby and Hazel McCallion. The residents of the City of Mississauga wanted change, and change is what they got.

The term of the first Council was very prolific, creative and productive in its many achievements. The most important of these was the initiation and creation of a new and comprehensive Official Plan for the new City. This Plan provided the blueprint for the future large-scale development of the City into one of the finest municipalities in Canada.

Numerous properties were purchased to provide the green space and parklands for the new City. These included the acquisitions of the Rattray Marsh, Adamson House, Cawthra Elliott Estate, Jack Darling Park, Morning Dew Park, Cooksville Creek Lands and the CVCA parkland at the mouth of the Credit River.

Libraries that were built or completed were the magnificent Burnhamthorpe Library, Lorne Park Library, and the Lakeview Library. The Malton Community Centre and the Burnhamthorpe Community Centres were created and built.

During Dobkin's era, Mississauga Transit was significantly enlarged, adding a state-of-the-art transit headquarters on Central Parkway West, and Canada's first articulated buses.

Other infrastructure projects, too numerous to mention, were initiated and completed.

Professional life

In 1968, Dr. Martin Dobkin began practising Family Medicine in Cooksville in the practice of Drs. Ann and J. D. Smith. In 1970, he left this practice and opened up his own office in Applewood Hills. In 1978, he purchased a property at the corner of Hwy. #10 and Central Parkway West and in conjunction with Dr. K. Malicki, founded the City Centre Family Physician Clinic. The clinic soon grew to 7 family doctors, the largest family practice clinic in South Mississauga. In 1992, a new comprehensive medical building was constructed on the site and the practice continued there.

Dr. Dobkin worked in the Emergency Dept. of the Mississauga Hospital (now Trillium Health Centre) on a part-time basis for 20 years. For the first 17 years in practice, he delivered several hundred newborns. He held the position of Medical Director at the Tyndall Nursing Home from 1976-1984. He served on various committees at the Mississauga Hospital and has been a member of the Dept. of Family Practice since 1968.

In 2003, after being injured in a car accident, he reduced his practice to a part-time basis. He still continues to serve his many longtime patients.

References

1. ^ Urbaniak, Tom (10 December 2009). "The end of the Mississauga monarchy?". Toronto Star. http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/736838. Retrieved 9 February 2011. 

Persondata
Name	Dobkin, Martin L.
Alternative names
Short description	politician, family physician
Date of birth	1942
Place of birth	Toronto, Ontario
Date of death
Place of death