In 1978, he led the city council into accepting a multimillion-dollar plan for an office tower and convention centre in downtown Hamilton.
[2] The plan, which resulted in the Hamilton Convention Centre and the Ellen Fairclough Building above it, was formally endorsed by the provincial government later in the year.
[3] He also endorsed a pledge by the federal government to assist in construction of a National Hockey League-sized arena for the city in 1979,[4] and argued that Hamilton deserved a team in the next NHL expansion.
[9] The provincial government rejected the one-tier recommendation and MacDonald, in protest, insisted that the province pay the full cost of the commission report.
[10] MacDonald endorsed property tax assessment reform in 1978, noting that the city had lost $1.5 million in appeals the previous year.
[11] Conservative in matters of perceived government interference, he opposed plans for mandatory smoke detectors in Hamilton apartments[12] and was openly contemptuous of the city's anti-smoking by-law.
Powell won the election by promising integrity in government and by criticizing MacDonald as arrogant and uncompromising, describing him as "a good salesman but a poor manager".
[15] It has been reported that MacDonald reached an agreement with Toronto Maple Leafs owner Harold Ballard near the end of his mandate, to bring the Colorado Rockies hockey franchise to Hamilton in 1982.
The PCs did not have a strong support base in this region, and he finished third with 30.5 per cent against Liberal candidate Sheila Copps and New Democrat David Christopherson.
The Progressive Conservatives won a majority government under Brian Mulroney, and MacDonald was appointed to the federal parole board.
MacDonald argued that Harris "betrayed" Hamilton-Wentworth by refusing to impose one-tier government, and openly speculated about voting against the Progressive Conservatives for the first time in his life.
MacDonald supported Larry Di Ianni's bid to become mayor of Hamilton in 2003,[27] and became involved with the new Conservative Party of Canada in early 2004.