Mario Felice Ferri | |
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![]() Ferri in 2010 | |
Regional Councillor of Vaughan, Ontario, Canada | |
Assumed office December 1, 2014 | |
In office 1997–2010 | |
Deputy Mayor | |
In office May 18, 2017 – November 15, 2022 | |
Preceded by | Michael Di Biase |
Succeeded by | Linda Jackson |
Personal details | |
Born | Pescosolido, Frosinone, Italy | January 6, 1948
Residence | Maple, Ontario |
Occupation | Municipal Councillor Regional Councillor Deputy Mayor City of Vaughan |
Mario Felice Ferri (Italian pronunciation: [ˈmaːrjo ˈfɛrri]; born January 6, 1948) is an Italian-Canadian community organizer, activist, municipal and regional councilor of Vaughan, Ontario. He also co-founded an organization credited with helping to force the closure of Canada's largest municipal waste facility, the Keele Valley Landfill.
At the time of its closure, the waste facility was the third-largest in North America near the heart of Vaughan, the fifth-largest city in the Greater Toronto Area. The waste landfill site became the centre of a 14-year battle between the citizens of Vaughan and both the Government of Ontario and the City of Toronto government, which owned and operated the site. Mr. Ferri co-founded Vaughan CARES, an activist group that became prominent in the fight to close the waste facility.
As a community organizer Ferri also contributed to numerous cultural organizations and helped organize large events, as well as administering community recreational facilities in Toronto, Vaughan and other surrounding communities. In his roles as a York Region Separate School Board trustee, municipal and regional councillor and deputy mayor he undertook several community campaigns and frequently acted as a spokesperson for the school board, the City of Vaughan and for York Region. In October 2014, Ferri was elected to his fifth term as a councillor for the City of Vaughan and his third term as a councillor for the Region of York, Ontario.