Over 11,500 St. Catharines residents picked up the phone as the city conducted the 8th annual Telephone Town Hall.
City staff and councillors are working on the budget for next year and use the Telephone Town Hall as an opportunity to connect with the people living in the city and determine what their priorities are.
Although up to 30,000 calls were made, only 11,594 people answered.
At the peak of the event 601 residents stayed on the line.
The questions centred on homelessness, affordable housing, transit, and water rates.
Residents who pre-registered have another chance to learn more about the budget discussions tonight during a virtual open house.
The budget diliberations are happening earlier this year than they have in the past as council wants to pass the budget before the start of the year it applies to.