On Thursday, October 12th, I – along with three of my fellow council colleagues, held a pre-budget consultation meeting to allow our residents the chance to meet with some of our City Staff from varying departments, receive information on our City’s 2018 Budget, and ask questions.

Thank you to all those who attended and took the time to provide us with your feedback. It was great to hear comments that spoke to both our spending and our investments – after all, the budget should reflect not only how Council spends residents’ tax dollars, but how we should work to enact policies that help save money as well.

The evening’s discussion surrounded the importance of investments on our infrastructure, social services and renewable energy strategy, while ensuring that tax rates remain within residents’ means.

Budget 2018 will set the priorities for the next year, and continue Council’s long-term vision of an affordable, caring, sustainable and prosperous city.

I will continue to engage with you, and I look forward to receiving your input on what you would most like to see in the 2018 Budget. Feel free to call or email me with your suggestions and/or use the City’s Interactive Budget Tool – available until November 8th when the Draft Budget is tabled.

Take advantage of the following tools available to help you understand and provide feedback on the 2018 Budget;

Online: Ottawa.CitizenBudget.com
Email: JeanCloutierOtt@ottawa.ca
Twitter: @jeancloutierott using the hashtag #ottbudget
Phone: 613-580-2488