Mitch Owens was a city councillor and interim mayor of Gloucester, Ontario

Gloucester, Ontario

Gloucester is a suburb of and within the City of Ottawa. Gloucester Township was established in 1792 and originally included lands east of the Rideau River from the Ottawa River south to Manotick. It was incorporated as a township in 1850 and became a city in 1981...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. Born in Hazelridge, Manitoba he joined the Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Royal Canadian Mounted Police

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...

 in 1944. That same year he served on the St. Roch, during a part of its historic voyage through the Northwest Passage

Northwest Passage

The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...

. After time working in the Arctic and in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 he moved to the Ottawa

Ottawa

Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...

 region in 1953, and settled in the rural area south of the city. He went into business as the owner of a trailer park

Trailer park

A trailer park is a semi-permanent or permanent area for mobile homes or travel trailers. The main reasons for living in such trailer parks are the often lower cost compared to other housing, and the ability to move to a new area more quickly and easily, for example when changing jobs to another...

.

He was elected to council in 1966, and served four years as deputy reeve. In 1980 he ran for a seat on the Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton

Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton

The Regional Municipality of Ottawa–Carleton was a regional government area and census division in Ontario, Canada which existed from 1969 until 2001...

, but lost by six votes. He was appointed mayor in July 1984 after mayor Fred Barrett

Fred Barrett

Frederick William Barrett is a retired professional ice hockey defenceman who played 745 games in the National Hockey League. He played for the Minnesota North Stars and Los Angeles Kings. His brother, John, also played in the NHL.- External links :...

 died in office. He was challenged in the 1985 elections by aldermen Harry Allen and Royal Galipeau

Royal Galipeau

Royal Galipeau is a Member of Parliament for the Ottawa—Orléans federal constituency. He was the successful Conservative Party candidate in the Canadian federal elections of 2006 and 2008...

, with Allen emerging victorious by just over a thousand votes. In 1988 he returned to council, defeating Harold Keenan.

Gloucester city council voted in 1990 to rename Regional Road 8, where Owens lived, to Mitch Owens Road

Mitch Owens Road

Mitch Owens Road runs along the border primarily of the former city of Gloucester and Osgoode Township. It was named after former Gloucester mayor Mitch Owens....

, after residents along the lengthy street signed a petition to have it renamed. Owens retired from politics prior to the 1991 elections at age 70.