Hello again to all the community leaders paying attention to what’s happening in London, Ontario. You’re the kind of people who want to understand a little more about how the city works, I think, and here’s where I can help you out.
This is City Hall Notes, my weekly attempt to make local government a bit more consumable. Every Wednesday1, I pull together a selective - and hopefully informative - briefing on the decisions, debates, developments and so on that seem worth your eyeballs. Of course, you can take this guide or leave it, and the intention is that you can dip in where it makes sense for you, as a Loon subscriber who can gain a little knowledge every week and put it to good use when you lead.
Thanks for following along, and special thanks to our five awesome sponsors.
In our public conversation this week, there has been a discernable shift away from City Hall itself to those all-important conversations on front porches. With the signs bylaw now allowing boulevard signs, and campaign teams pleading with residents to offer up their lawns, too, it can only get busier from here as our candidates seek to drum up votes.
Also this week, there was one of those important London Transit Commission meetings that always deserve more attention than they get
As usual, we’ll go by the issues. There are a few things to get through this week, so…
Off we go.
Election 2026
Let’s start with the mayoral race, which is heating up, even before campaigns’ PR efforts begin in earnest. Over time I’ll feature all candidates and today the focus is on the two who are already council members, as the perceived front-runners, don’t @ me.
Following last week’s Full Council meeting, which I reported on here, Councillor Susan Stevenson claimed victory with her successful amendment to change (remove) drug policy from the winter shelters program.
Her social media summed it up: “A WIN FOR COMMON SENSE, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND RECOVERY!”
Usually I don’t like to link to any social media2, because unverified sources have less value, but in this case it’s the key part of the conversation. So, there’s a post on Stevenson’s Instagram here, where she gives her account of what happened and thanks eight council colleagues who voted with her.
Stevenson comments: “This is the kind of change I will lead as Mayor: policies compassionate enough to help people get better… and accountable enough to protect our community.”
Stevenson’s platform is outlined on her campaign website here.
Obviously, there are opposing views and they will of course be well-represented in this column over time, so stick with me. For now, I want to show where the political campaign has reached, with two Full Council meetings left before voting day on October 26, leaving just two committee/council cycles for the two most visible candidates - Stevenson, as current Ward 4 councillor, and incumbent Mayor Josh Morgan - to use that platform.
Meanwhile, Mayor Morgan’s re-election campaign has a launch event booked for Monday (yes, Labour Day) and his website over here has lots of information.
His campaign is highlighting a list of successes in emails to supporters, which I’ll sum up here:
It says more than 1,500 people experiencing homelessness have been helped into housing, while 400 supportive units have been built or authorized, more than 70 shelter units added and 1,500 new residential units created downtown.
The Morgan campaign points to a lower crime severity index, fewer break-ins, vehicle thefts and violent crimes, faster police response times and more integrated mental-health and public-health support.
It also highlights park upgrades, sewer separation work, transportation planning and new investment around environmentally significant areas.
Financially, the administration says it reduced a projected 15 per cent tax increase to 3 per cent in 2026, while avoiding or paying down more than $90 million in forecast debt and maintaining the city’s AAA credit rating.
That’s quite dry now, isn’t it? Worthy and wholesome, but dry. Let’s switch to something that’s more fun.
When your local paper calls you a ‘whiz kid’…
…you know you’ve arrived.
Ribal Zebian, who is taking on Elizabeth Peloza in south London’s Ward 12, is again getting publicity for his micro-homes, this time from the Freeps. He’s looking to donate the homes he’s already built.
Zebian is 19 and a student of engineering at Western University, and a shining example of how candidates contribute to the public debate during the election process.
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And a few more stories to watch.
LTC - tariffs and budget ask
The London Transit Commission met on Monday, and it was a big meeting as we head into City Budget season again, with much talk of large numbers. The topline info on this one is the request for an additional $2 million, and there’s a good headline in the unexpected costs being applies by tariffs: about $50K per bus.
I’m happy to recommend our old friend Daryl Newcombe on this, with great coverage from the meeting for CTV London.
Local Government Lightning
Hmmm. Maybe that heading works better. Anyway, some quick hits to equip you today.
In education, south London’s Regina Mundi Catholic College is opening a new, $54.3M school, and it’s keeping the old building in use due to demand. LINK
On the issue of homelessness, which is absolutely key to this election, the London Free Press reported on the clearing of an encampment downtown.
And there’s a Gerry Dewan, CTV London report here that updates us on the Wellington Gateway project that’s part of Bus Rapid Transit.
And check out the Chamber’s candidates survey
Did you know the London Chamber of Commerce sends out a survey to municipal candidates and publishes the results? It’s very interesting indeed, and is being updated as the questionnaires come back in.
At time of writing, it has answers from 17 candidates - three mayoral candidates and 14 from the wards - with more coming in all the time. So far there are three from Ward 9, three from Ward 4 and some incumbents: Shawn Lewis, Skylar Franke and Anna Hopkins. Everyone is asked to tackle 12 questions on various topics - yes, including homelessness - and the outcomes are there to see. You can find them here.
I’ll probably write something about this survey at some point in the future.
Enough
Phew, we did it. I think I’m still getting this out at kind of lunchtime, and the expected additional typos are my free gift to all of you. I hope your week is being kind to you and your shoes don’t leak.
Thanks, sincerely, for following along. I appreciate everyone’s support these last (gasp) eight months or so.
Happy Wednesday!
- Mike
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