Jean Tremblay

Tremblay supported the 21st-century merger of seven municipalities (Chicoutimi, Jonquière, La Baie, Laterrière, a portion of the territory of Canton-Tremblay, Lac Kénogami and Shipshaw) into a new city, later named Saguenay.

His office issued the document entitled Le courage de changer les choses (The Courage to Change Things), to promote the consolidation.

Jean Tremblay (born November 29, 1948) is a Canadian businessman and politician who was mayor of Saguenay, Quebec, Canada from 2002 to 2017.

Jean Tremblay was born in 1948 in Chicoutimi and attended local schools.

He obtained a law degree from Université Laval in 1974.

He received his diploma in notary law from the same university and became a member of the Chamber of Notaries of Quebec in 1975.

Tremblay became a practicing notary in Chicoutimi in 1975.

In 1979, he became partner in a St-Hubert restaurant in Chicoutimi.

He was also the majority shareholder in a real estate company from 1979 to 1997.

He taught in the Department of Administrative Sciences University of Quebec at Chicoutimi during the 1980–1981 school year.

Before that he was mayor of Chicoutimi since 1996.

Tremblay received international attention from his fight to maintain the saying of Catholic prayers before city council meeting.

The Canadian Supreme Court.

In 1996, Tremblay was elected mayor of Chicoutimi, serving from 1997 to 2001.

On November 25, 2001, Tremblay was elected mayor of Saguenay.

After the municipal reorganizations in Quebec, on 1 January 2002 he became the first magistrate of the new city of Saguenay.

In 2002, Trembly founded Promotion Saguenay, to help develop the regional economy.

That same year he became a member of the Union of Quebec Municipalities (UMQ).

In early 2002, Tremblay held a referendum on the name of the new city.

On April 12, 13 and 14, votes chose Saguenay, which received 35,810 votes (52.23%) to Chicoutimi's 32,399 votes (47.26%).

He has sat on the executive committee from 2004.

In 2004, Tremblay established the city ombudsman position.

Tremblay was reelected in November 2005, receiving 72% of the vote, and again in November 2009 with 78% support, described as a "dazzling victory."

In 2005, he launched a case against multinationals to recover payment of taxes on private hydroelectric dams on the territory of the city.

In 2006, Tremblay reaffirmed his support for reciting a Catholic prayer before City Council meetings.

In 2007, Tremblay began promoting a port of call for cruise ships in the borough of La Baie.

This has led to an increase of cruise ships and associated tourist business.

In 2008 Tremblay was the first mayor in Quebec to implement « Gestion par activités » (City Stat Performance Strategy).

Tremblay established the position of city ombudsman and initiated the city's first website.

He also started use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

In April 2009, the polling firm Influence Communication, hired by Le Journal de Québec, published a study on the media weight of 11 mayors in Quebec.

On this list, Jean Tremblay ranked third after Régis Labeaume, Mayor of Quebec City; and Gérald Tremblay, Mayor of Montreal.

Tremblay implemented the Gestion par activités » (City Stat Performance Strategy).

This new model allegedly saved money and improved the efficiency of municipal services.

In 2013, Tremblay received 63% of the vote.

Tremblay worked to attract more cruise ships to the region.

He also attempted to recover taxes owed by private hydroelectric plants within the city.

In Mouvement laïque québécois v Saguenay (City) (2015) ruled against the city.

Tremblay was born in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec.

He is a notary by profession and a businessman.