Bob Bratina
Encyclopedia
Bob Bratina is the Mayor of Hamilton, Ontario
. Prior to becoming mayor he represented Ward 2, which encompasses the city's downtown core.
ancestry. After graduating from Delta High School, he worked with Dofasco for two years as a lab technician. Always wanting to work in radio, he found his first broadcasting job at CJCS Stratford in 1965 and went on to become one of Canada's most successful and versatile on-air personalities. Bratina was the morning show co-host with Shiona Thompson on CHML Radio in Hamilton, until September 2010, when he decided to resign his co-host job to run for Mayor of Hamilton. At times he has achieved record high ratings (BBM 22 Share) of all morning shows in Hamilton. He also re-introduced phone-in talk radio
to CFRB, and achieved highest listenership (120 thousand per quarter hour average) in Toronto in his time period.
Bratina was also the play-by-play voice of Hamilton Tiger-Cats
, and Toronto Argonauts
for a total of 20 seasons, and never missed a broadcast for more than 500 games. He also broadcast McMaster Football and Basketball games, and was commentator on junior hockey broadcasts in Kitchener (CKKW) and Senior A hockey in Guelph (Regals).
He is a member of the Football Reporters of Canada Hall of Fame, Queen's Jubilee Medal Winner for lifetime community achievement, nominee for Hamilton Citizen of the Year, Hamilton Mountain Citizen of the Year, member of GO Transit
Board of Directors, Art Gallery of Hamilton Board of Directors, Theatre Aquarius Board of Directors, and HECFI Board of Directors.
Bratina is also an avid marathon runner (18 marathons, including Boston Marathon
), Hamilton's Around the Bay Road Race (10 times, PB 2:07:07 age 45) 1/2 marathon 1:26; 10K 37:45; 5K 17:30 all after the age 44. As a musician, Bob performs with the Balkan Strings Tamburitza Orchestra, playing brac, clarinet, saxophone and accordion.
Bob is married to Carol, a teacher, artist, and singer with the Balkan Strings. They have one son, Sam, a university student who has completed degrees at McMaster University and the University of Waterloo.
, entered provincial politics. Since being elected, he has fought for more citizen participation at City Hall, downtown revitalization and more integrity.
Bratina has had some notable successes as ward councillor. His push to return rail passenger service to its historic location at James Street North has been approved and funded by the province. His concerns over high lead readings in city drinking water has resulted in a lead water service replacement loan program, which allows residents to replace their lead service line and pay for it through their taxes over a ten year period. He also instigated a lead blood screening program for young children to determine if lead is entering their bodies at levels that may affect their health. He developed a plan to move idling buses from the downtown Gore Park area to provide better connections for riders to GO transit and other city bus routes. A new state-of-the-art community centre to service one of the city's neediest neighbourhoods will be constructed as part of the new Dr. Davey School in Beasley
, in Hamilton's inner city. A $7 million dollar infrastructure project at the GO Centre on Hunter Street will provide more train service for Hamilton commuters and better on-time performance. He was instrumental in moving forward the redevelopment of the Education Centre property into a project that may see a downtown McMaster Faculty of Family Medicine, a new public health faciltiy, and potentially a new headquarters facility for the Board of Education. He has consistently been rated as one of Hamilton's most trustworthy politicians by readers of View Magazine. Conversely, he has been criticized for unprofessional conduct during his term on council, although the only support for this criticism was he once tossed a pen during a council meeting.
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
. Prior to becoming mayor he represented Ward 2, which encompasses the city's downtown core.
Biography
Bratina was born and raised in Hamilton. He is of CroatianCroatian Australian
Croatia has been a source of migrants to Australia, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s. In 2006, 128,051 persons resident in Australia identified themselves as having Croatian ancestry.- History :...
ancestry. After graduating from Delta High School, he worked with Dofasco for two years as a lab technician. Always wanting to work in radio, he found his first broadcasting job at CJCS Stratford in 1965 and went on to become one of Canada's most successful and versatile on-air personalities. Bratina was the morning show co-host with Shiona Thompson on CHML Radio in Hamilton, until September 2010, when he decided to resign his co-host job to run for Mayor of Hamilton. At times he has achieved record high ratings (BBM 22 Share) of all morning shows in Hamilton. He also re-introduced phone-in talk radio
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
to CFRB, and achieved highest listenership (120 thousand per quarter hour average) in Toronto in his time period.
Bratina was also the play-by-play voice of Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...
, and Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
for a total of 20 seasons, and never missed a broadcast for more than 500 games. He also broadcast McMaster Football and Basketball games, and was commentator on junior hockey broadcasts in Kitchener (CKKW) and Senior A hockey in Guelph (Regals).
He is a member of the Football Reporters of Canada Hall of Fame, Queen's Jubilee Medal Winner for lifetime community achievement, nominee for Hamilton Citizen of the Year, Hamilton Mountain Citizen of the Year, member of GO Transit
GO Transit
GO Transit is an inter-regional public transit system in Southern Ontario, Canada. It primarily serves the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area conurbation, with operations extending to several communities beyond the GTHA proper in the Greater Golden Horseshoe...
Board of Directors, Art Gallery of Hamilton Board of Directors, Theatre Aquarius Board of Directors, and HECFI Board of Directors.
Bratina is also an avid marathon runner (18 marathons, including Boston Marathon
Boston Marathon
The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon hosted by the U.S. city of Boston, Massachusetts, on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897 and inspired by the success of the first modern-day marathon competition in the 1896 Summer Olympics, the Boston Marathon is the world's oldest...
), Hamilton's Around the Bay Road Race (10 times, PB 2:07:07 age 45) 1/2 marathon 1:26; 10K 37:45; 5K 17:30 all after the age 44. As a musician, Bob performs with the Balkan Strings Tamburitza Orchestra, playing brac, clarinet, saxophone and accordion.
Bob is married to Carol, a teacher, artist, and singer with the Balkan Strings. They have one son, Sam, a university student who has completed degrees at McMaster University and the University of Waterloo.
Municipal politics
Bratina entered the 2004 by-election created when the previous councillor for Ward 2, Andrea HorwathAndrea Horwath
Andrea Horwath , is a Canadian activist and politician. She is the Leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party in Canada. She is a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the riding of Hamilton Centre, and was chosen as the party's leader at its 2009 leadership convention.She is...
, entered provincial politics. Since being elected, he has fought for more citizen participation at City Hall, downtown revitalization and more integrity.
Bratina has had some notable successes as ward councillor. His push to return rail passenger service to its historic location at James Street North has been approved and funded by the province. His concerns over high lead readings in city drinking water has resulted in a lead water service replacement loan program, which allows residents to replace their lead service line and pay for it through their taxes over a ten year period. He also instigated a lead blood screening program for young children to determine if lead is entering their bodies at levels that may affect their health. He developed a plan to move idling buses from the downtown Gore Park area to provide better connections for riders to GO transit and other city bus routes. A new state-of-the-art community centre to service one of the city's neediest neighbourhoods will be constructed as part of the new Dr. Davey School in Beasley
Beasley, Hamilton
Beasley is the name of a neighbourhood in the Lower City of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The Beasley neighbourhood is bounded in the north by the Canadian National Railway tracks just north of Barton Street, James Street , Main Street and Wellington Street .-History:The Beasley neighbourhood is one...
, in Hamilton's inner city. A $7 million dollar infrastructure project at the GO Centre on Hunter Street will provide more train service for Hamilton commuters and better on-time performance. He was instrumental in moving forward the redevelopment of the Education Centre property into a project that may see a downtown McMaster Faculty of Family Medicine, a new public health faciltiy, and potentially a new headquarters facility for the Board of Education. He has consistently been rated as one of Hamilton's most trustworthy politicians by readers of View Magazine. Conversely, he has been criticized for unprofessional conduct during his term on council, although the only support for this criticism was he once tossed a pen during a council meeting.