Ottawa's business community held a public conversation about the city's economic future on Tuesday evening, with the 2026 municipal election as the backdrop. The Ottawa Board of Trade brought business and community leaders together for "Ottawa's Next Chapter: An Economic Leaders Panel."
What the panel was about
The Board of Trade described the event as a conversation about "the priorities that will shape the city's economic future." According to the event listing on the Ottawa Business Journal's site, the panel was set to look at opportunities and challenges influencing Ottawa's competitiveness, infrastructure, housing, talent, downtown revitalization and long-term prosperity.
That is a broad list, but it lines up with questions many Ottawa residents and employers deal with every day. Housing affects where workers can afford to live. Infrastructure shapes how people and goods move around the city. Downtown revitalization is a question for anyone who works, shops or spends time in the core. Talent is a concern for employers trying to hire and keep people.
Who was on stage
The discussion was moderated by David Coletto, Founder and CEO of Abacus Data. The Board of Trade's listing says employers, entrepreneurs and industry leaders would share their perspectives. The listing we reviewed does not name the individual panellists, so we are not naming them here.
When and where
The event ran on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. It was held in the Alma Duncan Room at the Ottawa Art Gallery, 50 MacKenzie King.
What we do not know yet
The sources available to us are the event listings published before the panel took place. They describe what the evening was meant to cover, not what was actually said in the room. We do not have a record of the discussion, so we cannot report which proposals were raised, what the panellists agreed or disagreed on, or whether any of the points were directed at candidates in the election. The listings also do not say how many people attended.
If the Board of Trade or other outlets publish a summary of the discussion, that will be the place to find the specifics of what business leaders asked of the next city council.
Why it matters for voters
The municipal election is a chance for residents to weigh in on the same themes the panel was set to cover: housing, infrastructure, downtown and the local economy. Events like this one give the business community a chance to set out its priorities before ballots are cast. Voters who want to hear from the people who run local employers, as well as from candidates themselves, now have a sense of the topics the Board of Trade considers most important for Ottawa's next chapter.
Sources: Ottawa Board of Trade, Ottawa Business Journal (event listing)
