Francis's open City Hall pledges, before Nov. 15
Mayor-elect Fred Francis ran on opening up City Hall. His platform pledges to eliminate strong mayor powers, move council meetings from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., audit closed-door agendas yearly and publish every council vote online. The new term starts Nov. 15.
Topics: Election 2026Council and City Hall
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Windsor's new term of council starts Nov. 15, and Mayor-elect Fred Francis campaigned on opening up City Hall. This is what his campaign platform pledges on how council works, so readers can check it against what happens next.
Strong mayor powers
The platform's first item reads: "Eliminate Strong Mayor Powers." Those powers are set by provincial law, in Part VI.1 of Ontario's Municipal Act, not by City by-law.
Meeting time
Francis pledges to move regular City Council meetings to a 4 p.m. start, with closed (in-camera) meetings held beforehand. The City's 2026 meeting calendar lists regular council meetings at 10 a.m.
Closed meetings
The platform pledges to publish detailed descriptions of in-camera meeting agendas and release them earlier, to audit in-camera agendas every year for compliance with section 239 of the Municipal Act, and to report all in-camera decisions publicly at the next regular council meeting.
Votes and access
It also pledges to publish all council voting results online in a clear format, to hold monthly news conferences at City Hall with an open question period, to meet monthly with each councillor followed by media availability, and to hold a free, public State of the City address each January.
What's next
The new term begins Nov. 15. The City's 2026 meeting calendar lists the inaugural meeting of council on Nov. 16. These are campaign pledges, not City policy.
