Mississippi Mills Mayor Christa Lowry at AMO with the 2026 AMO Youth Fellows, Allan Burri, Rebecca Bekele, and Akbar Imran
The annual Association of Municipalities of Ontario conference wrapped up in Ottawa recently, bringing more than 3,600 municipal leaders, provincial and federal representatives and other stakeholders together from across Ontario.
The four-day conference gave mayors, councillors and municipal staff a chance to press provincial and federal officials on issues ranging from infrastructure and housing to healthcare, homelessness and the growing demands on local services.
AMO board member and ROMA chair Christa Lowry reports on a major funding announcement to a specific group of municipalities.
The Province and the Feds combined their financial resources for the deal aimed a helping to pay with infrastructure and to support growth.
Municipal delegations also held more than 750 meetings with provincial representatives, giving local governments an opportunity to make their case directly to ministers and parliamentary assistants.
For many municipalities, the message was that long-term, predictable funding is needed to keep up with infrastructure costs while dealing with pressures on housing, healthcare and other local services.
Lowry said the message from the Province was clear on the funding applications they’re likely to approve.
The conference also comes as Ontario municipalities prepare for this fall’s municipal elections, making the discussions at the conference particularly important for councils facing growing expectations from residents.
Story by Brian Turner
