Make Hamilton Better: How You Can Impact Crime, Housing, Pollution & Property Taxes (Part 1)
5 Ways to Make a Difference in Hamilton Today
1. Learn
Learn about the issues in Hamilton and how city council works. You’ve already started this one since you’re reading about it right now in this blog post! We’ll also be coming out with additional parts to this content series, so stay tuned for more.
2. Find your ward and city councilor
Find Which Ward You Live In. Hamilton has 15 different wards. Enter your address on the City of Hamilton’s Find My Ward page to see which ward you live in so you can determine who your city councilor is.
Find your City Councilor. Once you’ve determined which ward you are apart of, you can find your councilor and their contact information here, through the City of Hamilton’s website.
3. Speak up
Speak up about issues in the city that you care about, like crime, homeless encampments, garbage, or high property taxes.
Contact Your City Councilor: Click this link to view all city councilors of Hamilton and their contact info.
Attend a Meeting at Hamilton City Hall:
Where is Hamilton City Hall? Hamilton City Hall is located at 71 Main Street West in downtown Hamilton. Anyone can attend a meeting, whether you’re a resident of Hamilton or not.
Meetings are usually held in the council chambers room, but you should refer to the City’s meeting calendar to ensure you have the correct location within City Hall prior to attending the meeting.
Aim to arrive at least 5 minutes before the meeting starts to avoid disruptions. The public may also be asked to leave during “closed sessions” where council members discuss private issues.
When Do City Council Meetings Run: Click this link to find the meeting calendar.
How to Speak at a City Council Meeting: You can submit oral, written or pre-recorded submissions for city council and committee meetings. Refer to the city’s website here for submission deadlines, as they differ depending on the meeting and submission type.
Watch a Hamilton City Council or Committee Meeting Online: Click this link to find past meetings online. You can also live-stream upcoming meetings.
4. Stay informed
Keep up-to-date on local news through a variety of channels:
Follow the City of Hamilton on social media:
Join discussions and fill out surveys about city projects on Engage Hamilton, an online tool designed by the City of Hamilton to help you learn about community initiatives, provide feedback and stay informed about projects.
5. Vote
Mark October 26, 2026, on your calendar for the next municipal election. To prepare for voting, you should:
Register as a voter if you haven’t done so already.
Research candidates running in the next Hamilton municipal election and understand their campaigns so you can vote for the person who offers solutions for issues that you care about most. In a municipal election, you will be voting for:
Mayor. The current mayor of Hamilton is Andrea Horwath.
City Councilors. Hamilton has 15 different wards, which means there are 15 councilors, however, you will only need to vote for the ward which you live in.
School Board Trustees.’ Hamilton has a public school board, a catholic school board and others. School board trustees’ are elected to represent the community's voice in public education and work to ensure local priorities and needs are addressed in Hamilton school falling under their board.
They set goals for student learning, oversee the school board’s budget, decide on school closures or openings, and approve policies on things like safety, curriculum, and special programs.
Get out and vote in the Hamilton municipal election on October 26, 2026
Your Voice Can Make a Difference in Hamilton
When Hamilton resident A. Egbeyemi attended a public budget meeting, she had one clear message: the city needed to prioritize climate action.
As a project coordinator for Environment Hamilton, she spoke passionately about the importance of sticking to climate goals, even as the city faced challenges like rising property taxes and housing shortages.
Her voice, along with input from around 70 other people who signed up to speak at the meeting, made a real impact. Stories like this prove that you don’t need to be a politician to shape Hamilton’s future—you just need to show up and share your perspective.
“In the 2022 Hamilton municipal election, only 35% of residents voted.”
Why Your Voice Matters
Hamilton’s municipal government makes decisions that affect your daily life—from the roads you drive on to the water from your tap.
Yet, in the 2022 municipal election, only 35% of Hamilton residents voted. Imagine the impact if more people got involved! When you participate—whether by voting, attending a meeting, or filling out a survey—you help create a city that reflects your needs and values.
How Are Decisions Made in Hamilton
Here’s the steps for how important decisions are made in the community you call home, plus how you can get involved in the process:
1. Ideas and Proposals
Policies start as ideas brought forward by councilors, staff, or residents like you. For example, Hamilton’s Housing and Homelessness Action Plan began as a response to over 1,500 individuals experiencing homelessness in 2023.
2. Committee Review
Committees discuss the idea, gather feedback (often from residents), and make recommendations.
For example, public consultations from residents just like you helped shape the city’s strategy for addressing homelessness.
3. City Council Approval
Council debates and votes. A majority vote turns the policy into action. For example, in 2023, Council declared a state of emergency on homelessness, mental health, and opioid addiction.
4. Implementation
City staff put the policy into action, and residents can track of the progress of the project or provide further feedback.
For example, the Housing and Homelessness Dashboard aims to keep residents informed about ongoing efforts towards homelessness and housing issues in Hamilton.
The city is also working on other projects to support the housing and homelessness crisis in the city, we we discuss further in our next blog post.
Tackling Common Roadblocks
Here’s how to tackle some common barriers that stop us from getting involved with a municipal government, or any sort of politics for that matter:
1. “I don’t have time to.”
By spending a few minutes each day catching up on the local news, you’ll be staying informed on what’s going on in your community. You can watch past city council meetings online at your own convenience or use Engage Hamilton to share feedback at a time that suits you.
2. “I’m not sure where to start.”
Start with our checklist at the top of this blog post, “5 Ways to Make a Change in Hamilton” and work your way through the items. Learn about the issues in your city and what steps you can take to solve them, like contacting your ward councilor.
Then, you can move on to things like attending a city council meeting (and you don’t even need to speak—just listen and get a feel for the process the first time you go).
3. “My voice won’t matter.”
Local elections and decisions are often decided by slim margins, which means your voice could be the one that tips the scales.
4. “I don’t understand how the government works.”
That’s why we’re actively creating content that will help you learn about and engage with the Hamilton municipal government. With our blog posts and videos, you’ll gain the information you need to get involved and make an impact with your local city council.
Hamilton Needs Your Input
Real change starts with you. Whether it’s sending an email to the city council, attending a committee meeting, or voting in the next municipal election, your participation can shape Hamilton’s future. Just like other Hamilton residents have, your voice can also lead to real change. So, let’s work together to make Hamilton the city we all want to call home.
Get involved in Hamilton’s municipal government today, and stay tuned for more blog posts/videos to help you learn more about this important topic.
Stay Tuned for More About This Topic
In our next blog post, we’ll dive deeper into Hamilton’s top issues, like housing, crime, property taxes and pollution. We’ll also including discuss what the city is doing about these issues and what role you can play in solving them, too.
360HAMILTON
At 360Hamilton, we’re on a mission to change the way people connect to the information they need. That's why we’re actively creating content like this blog post about Hamilton’s Municipal Government, and our video, which will help you get to know the City of Hamilton.
But that’s not all we've been up to. We’re also building online platforms that will enable you to provide a one-stop shop in support of your own community, no matter where you are.
Stay tuned for what’s ahead at 360hamilton.ca. Soon, you’ll be able to combine innovative tools from videos, blog posts, news articles, online stores, collaboration, and more - all in ONE convenient location. Stay tuned for more videos and blog posts by 360Hamilton!
