Welcome to Season Five the Political Trenches: Local Government At Work. We’re back in the trenches for another great episode. We are continuing our dive into the role of the CAO. And for our first edition of 2026, we are diving into an organization that works hand in hand with Municipal Administrators from across Canada, CAMA. We will be joined later in the episode by CAMA President Brenda Orchard. But as always, we have three stories we have been watching. First, Senior Shu

As we close out the final episode of Municipal Affairs for 2025, and begin to look ahead to 2026, I want to take a moment to pause and reflect—if you’ll allow me. Traditionally, this final episode is about the issues municipalities are facing and the challenges they carry forward year after year. But tonight, I’m going to veer slightly off that familiar path and talk about something a little more personal: this show, this network, and what has been an extraordinary, complicat

Welcome to The Political Trenches: Local Government At Work. Ian and I are back for the final time of 2025, with a look back on the stories that made municipal headlines across Canada, and your submissions regarding what took place over the last twelve months that we may have missed. Then finaly, we will be looking ahead to what the next twelve months may look like. *********************************** Subscribe to Show: Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/3GISqEX   Spotify Podcas

For most municipal leaders across Canada, the work of local government remains rooted in the day-to-day responsibilities that residents often take for granted: maintaining water systems, repairing infrastructure, keeping taxes manageable, and ensuring services reach those who need them most. These are the issues that anchor municipal governance, the practical concerns that demand attention regardless of political climate. Yet in 2025 - and I would even say before that as well

Over the past twelve months, municipal leaders from coast to coast have been navigating a perfect storm of pressures. Housing affordability and homelessness reached levels we’ve never seen before, pushing our shelter systems — and our compassion — to the breaking point. At the same time, rapid population growth continued to strain the very foundations of urban life: public transit, roads, water systems, community services… all aging faster than we can repair them, and all exp

Today we’re taking a deep dive into the year that was — 2025, a year that tested Alberta’s municipalities, reshaped policy debates, and reminded us just how essential local government is to the everyday lives of Albertans. 2025 was an election year — on October 20th, nearly every community in Alberta headed to the polls. However, even before voters cast their ballots, the conversation around local democracy was intensifying. From concerns over new rules banning electronic vot