Political Career
He entered civic politics in 1978 after being elected to the Vancouver Parks Board. In 1986 he became a member of Vancouver City Council, and served there for seven years.
Owen was elected Vancouver’s 42nd mayor in November 1993, and was re-elected in 1996 and 1999, making him Vancouver’s longest serving consecutive-term mayor.
During his nine years as mayor, the city's downtown residential population doubled from 40,000 to 80,000 and the residents enjoy a new vitality in a part of the city that continues to improve and is a model for North American cities. The city maintained a "Triple-A" credit rating as well as being rated the number one city in the world for quality of life by the William Mercer Study.
Under his leadership, the city also opened Library Square, a new downtown headquarters for the Vancouver Public Library which features an innovative architectural design by Moshe Safdie.
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