Yannis Boutaris, the unconventional former mayor of Thessaloniki, businessman, and vintner, passed away at the age of 82. He took his last breath on Saturday night at a private hospital in Thessaloniki, where he had been hospitalized with serious health issues.
With a touching post, the family of Yiannis Boutaris announced and bid farewell to the former mayor of Thessaloniki and winemaker.
“Yannis Boutaris is no longer with us, he passed away this evening at the age of 82, with his family by his side,” reads a post from the Boutaris family.
Early life and education
Yannis Boutaris was born in Thessaloniki in 1942, the son of winemaker Stelios Boutaris and Fanny Vlachos. Both his parents were of a Vlach background. His mother’s family had its roots in the town of Krusevo, now in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), while his father’s family originated from the town of Moscopole, now in Albania.
His primary education was at the Experimental Elementary School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. He completed his secondary education at Anatolia College and graduated with a degree in chemistry from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in 1965. He received another degree in oenology from the Wine Institute of Athens in 1967.
From 1969 to 1996, he worked for Boutari, his family’s wine company based in Naoussa. He left the company in 1998 to establish the Kir-Yianni wine company on estates in the villages of Giannakochori and Amyntaio.
Boutaris served as president and board member of various professional, environmental, and cultural organizations, including the International Academy of Wine, the Greek Wine Association, the Interprofessional Vine & Wine Organization, the Thessaloniki Tourism Organization, the Thessaloniki Film Festival, and WWF Greece.
A founding member of the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art and the Addiction Support Center ‘Oasis,’ he also established ‘Arcturos,’ an organization dedicated to the protection of brown bears and wildlife and received numerous national and international acclaims.
Political career and mayoral achievements
Yannis Boutaris became the 60th mayor of Thessaloniki in 2010 and served two consecutive terms until 2019. In the recent municipal elections held in October 2023, Yannis Boutaris rejoined the faction of Spyros Pegas as the first municipal councilor, receiving a record number of votes.
During his two terms as mayor of Thessaloniki, Yannis Boutaris earned recognition for implementing progressive policies. He supported the Jewish community and developed friendly relations with business and political circles in neighboring countries. He also made an open call to the city’s LGBT community to honor diverse sexualities.
During his term as mayor, the annual ‘Thessaloniki Pride’ events were also approved. Ideologically, he stated that he considers Helmut Schmidt’s German model of social democracy as his ideal. He mentioned that, in the 2019 parliamentary elections, he voted for New Democracy.
In January 2018, the foundation stone for a Holocaust Museum in Thessaloniki was laid by Greek PM Alexis Tsipras and Israeli President Reuven Rivlin. Boutaris was president of the Holocaust Museum of Greece.
Controversies and vision for Thessaloniki
Boutaris repeatedly angered hardliners with his controversial statements on the naming dispute with FYROM and the history of Greco–Turkish relations.
“We planted the seed of renewal and extroversion. I believe that the city will create the right conditions so that we will not return to the gray and introverted condition of the past,” he said.
Boutaris declared his wish to build an Islamic mosque as well as monuments to Thessaloniki’s Jews and to the Young Turk Revolution. Boutaris claimed that construction of such monuments would attract Jewish and Turkish tourists to Thessaloniki, as these tourists would want to visit the hometown of their forefathers.
On May 20, 2018, a group of Greek ultra-nationalists physically assaulted Yannis Boutaris for which he received medical treatment afterwards. The group was angry over his appearance at a remembrance event for the Pontic Greek victims of Turkish genocide.
Boutaris believed that Thessaloniki should have embraced the Turks because it was the birthplace of the founder of Turkish democracy, Kemal Ataturk. Ataturk’s residence is now a museum that thousands of Turks visit annually. “I don’t care if they say that the Turks slaughtered the Greeks and all that,” the mayor said regarding reactions against his stance on the museum.
“We are also looking to welcome the Jews and the Russians,” he added. He mentioned the importance of tourism to the city’s economy.
Boutaris’ views on Greece’s political and economic landscape
The Thessaloniki mayor believed that Greece needs major changes, arguing that “all we change is the prime minister.”
“The municipal system, the tax system, the education system, they need to change,” he said. He also noted that there should be separation between the Greek Church and the state. “In theory it is separated, but in reality it is not,” Boutaris stated.
“Greece is the last Soviet-type society and economy,” Yiannis Boutaris claimed in an exclusive interview with Greek Reporter. He explained that in Greece many citizens expect everything from the state, avoiding individual responsibility.
Boutaris had then added that it would take at least ten years before the Greek economy recovered. He even stressed the need for investments. “However, the system for enterprises in Greece is so hostile,” he had noted.
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