The Municipal Panel is back to talk about the year ahead. RogersTV hosted us in their studios for this special episode.

2026 is a municipal election year, and we talked about:

* Who on Council is planning to run again, and who else has put their name forward,

* What we see as the main issues for the election, and what could be the surprise sleeper issues that get attention,

* How candidates will manage the multi-billion dollar infrastructure deficit facing the City.

Links to some of what we mention in the show:

* Gio Petti’s documentaries Train to Nowhere and Dude, Where’s My Bus?

* Alto’s 21-22 January Open House on High Speed Rail

* Theresa Kavanaugh’s questioning at City Council regarding the absence of funding to deal with end-of-life assets

* Better Ottawa’s community town hall on 28 January on Getting Ottawa Moving Again

Finally, there is one minor correction to the pod discussion. We refer to a survey presented at OREB — which is the Ottawa Real Estate Board, not Ontario.

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