Mayor's Office

Born and raised in Belleville, Neil is first and foremost a loving husband to Susan, and the proud father of Zachary, Maddison and Abigail.

Neil has deep roots in the community. He owned and operated Doug’s Bicycle for nearly 30 years. From 2006-2014, Neil served as Mayor of the City of Belleville. He proved to be a visionary leader who championed physician recruitment and infrastructure improvements, believing such investments to be a precursor to economic growth and an improved quality of life for all citizens.

During his two terms as Mayor, Neil quickly came to realize that federal leadership is key to securing the stable funding needed for municipal infrastructure development and service delivery. This prompted him to run for federal office, and in 2015 Neil was elected as the first Member of Parliament for the Bay of Quinte riding. For the next four years, he served as Chair of the Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs. Upon re-election in 2019, Neil was named Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.

Neil has extensive knowledge of Belleville and the surrounding area, and has built strong working relationships with business leaders, elected officials from all levels of government, and community stakeholders. He is a well-respected leader who has earned a reputation for being approachable. Neil welcomes the opinions of others, and is committed to teamwork and collaboration.

Neil is an experienced candidate with a proven commitment to the principles of good governance. He has earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Law and Psychology from Carleton University, and professional designations through McMaster University’s Directors College Executive program.

As the Mayor of the City of Belleville, he believes that decisions made by municipal government most directly affect the daily lives of citizens, and this is his greatest passion.

We are pleased to recognize residents celebrating milestone anniversaries and birthdays.

When requesting a certificate, four weeks' notice is preferred, though requests should not be made more than six months in advance.

• Wedding Anniversary Certificates – Eligible to residents of the city of Belleville celebrating 25 or more years.
• Birthday Certificates – Eligible to residents of the city of Belleville celebrating 65 or more years.

Please complete our Congratulatory Certificate Request Form to request a certificate in honour of these milestone events.

Congratulatory messages, letters, scrolls, etc. are also available from your local federal and provincial Member of Parliament offices. Please contact them directly.

To invite the Mayor to your function or event, please include the date, time, location and nature of the event, a contact person and relevant phone number or email address in your request. Requests can be submitted to the Mayor's Office by:

• Email: mayor@belleville.ca 
• Mail: Office of the Mayor, 169 Front St., Belleville, Ont. K8N 2Y8

Please also include details regarding the specific role for the Mayor at your event. For example, if you would like him to speak at your event, please indicate this in your request.

In the event that the Mayor is not available and you would like a representative from Council to attend on the Mayor's behalf, please indicate that in your request. The Mayor's Office will contact you to confirm the Mayor's attendance or regrets.