Hugo Rodrigues: Will Cornwall council hear enough on the 2026 budget?

Governing is about choices. Article content

There’s nothing groundbreaking in that statement, but as Cornwall city council approaches the release of the 2026 draft budget by Mayor Justin Towndale and the subsequent presentations and deliberations, does this council have enough information to make the best choices? Article content

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The doomsday warnings — from inside the city itself, not the constant keyboard warriors upset over the latest thing they see as frivolous spending — have been audible since the summer.

First, council was told this summer that based on current program and service levels and their known cost increases, alongside various decisions made by councils trying to lower property tax increases in previous years and to spend on specif