Ryan moved to Pickering in 1985. He worked in general business and management at
IBM for 33 years before retiring to run for mayor of Pickering
in 2003. After mayor
Wayne Arthurs retired in 2003, Ryan ran against regional councillor Doug Dickerson for mayor of the city. The main issue of the race was over the development of the Duffins Rouge Agricultural Preserve, with Ryan supporting development and Dickerson opposing. Ryan defeated Dickerson by nearly 3,000 votes. Promising to attract more business development to the city, and building infrastructure to the proposed community of
Seaton, Ryan defeated John Newell by over 7,000 votes in the
2006 municipal elections. Newell ran on a campaign focused on the environment and against developer influence. The
2010 mayoral election was especially heated, as Ryan ran against former regional councillor Maurice Brenner, who had filed a multi-million-dollar lawsuit against Ryan in 2009, citing allegations of fraud against him destroyed his political career. Brenner dropped the lawsuit during the campaign, as he felt his reputation was intact. Ryan ended up defeating Brenner by 1,700 votes. Ryan and Brenner faced off again in the
2014 mayoral election. Ryan ran on a campaign of jobs, transportation and health care, highlighting the city attracting new companies like Search Engine People and expansion of companies like Eco-Tec and Purdue Pharma. He supported building a new hospital in the city, and getting more assistance from other levels of government for infrastructure, like the building of the harbour entrance. He also wanted to bring an arts centre, hotel and convention centre to the city, and expanded services for seniors. in the
2018 mayoral election, Ryan faced off against former city councillor and perennial
New Democratic Party candidate Eileen Hidgdon. Ryan easily won the race by over 9,000 votes. In 2020, Ryan had to take a leave of absence due to a double lung transplant, following a diagnosis of Interstitial
Lung Disease. One of the major projects being undertaken during his mayoralty is the construction of the
Pickering City Centre project. During the
COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Ryan made news for asking Torontonians to avoid travelling to next-door Durham Region (which includes Pickering) to avoid COVID restrictions in that city. He also denounced a car rally in May 2021 that drew hundreds of people to parking lot in the city, despite provincial COVID restrictions. In 2021, he also called for a pause on "any immediate disruption" for a proposed
Amazon distribution centre at the
Duffins Creek wetland. In January 2022, Ryan stated his disappointment that a new regional hospital was going to be built in neighbouring
Whitby rather than Pickering. He stated "Pickering will have the largest population in Durham Region and is the only city in the region to not have a major health-care facility". In April 2022, Ryan announced he was not going to run for re-election
in 2022, citing a desire to spend more time with his family. He cited maintaining Pickering as a 'close knit community' as well as the construction of the
Pickering Pedestrian Bridge, and the
Seaton development as his greatest accomplishments as mayor. ==References==