What’s in store for 2026? Only a fool would tell you with absolute certainty. But we do know some of the key stories that will impact us this year, from economic pressures to the upcoming elections, from The Endowment and its $1.6 billion (and growing) in assets to a high-profile criminal case, and the story of the Northside Food Co-op, where it goes next, it what it means for the future of government intervention in food insecurity and other issues that impact our region’s most vulnerable residents.
Here are some of the big stories we’ll be watching this year. Starting, in alphabetical order, with a concise new buzzword for an old and complicated problem.
Affordability
Those costs hit people harder than foreign policy debates or culture wars. You can turn off the news and delete Facebook, but if a dollar buys a nickel’s worth, you’re still gonna be mad as hell. So, it shouldn’t be surprising that what James Carville said almost 35 years ago is still true: “It’s the economy, stupid.”
But what to do about it, especially at the level of local or state government?…