Catherine Trautmann, the socialist mayor of Strasbourg, defended a financial audit conducted by the consulting firm Deloitte during a meeting with the municipal council. She emphasized the importance of having an external and independent review of the city’s financial health. The audit revealed that Strasbourg’s debt could reach about 500 million euros and that the city would need to invest approximately 600 million euros over the current mandate, requiring around 40 million euros annually to maintain that level of investment. Jean-Philippe Vetter, a member of Les Républicains, said the audit confirmed a known financial path and called for a 7.5% reduction in operating expenses. Syamak Agha Babaei, from the former ecological majority, dismissed concerns about bankruptcy or over-indebtedness, pointing to past investments. Florian Kobryn of LFI criticized the audit’s methodology, questioning Deloitte’s terms of reference and accusing the majority of creating a narrative to justify a "mandate for nothing." Pierre Jakubowicz of Horizons described the situation as a "moment of truth and gravity," noting how debt interest limits the city’s ability to make policy decisions. A revised budget amendment to the original 2026 budget shows initial savings, with 5 million euros less in tax revenues and 2.5 million euros in additional expenses, creating a 7 million euro gap. To address this, the city needs to save 4.7 million euros on current expenses. The amendment also revised investment plans, removing 16.6 million euros in revenue from sales that are not expected to be realized in 2026 and increasing loans by 15.3 million euros. The opposition criticized the amendment for lacking concrete measures, and Germain Mignot from the PCF questioned which policies would be affected, specifically noting reduced funding for greening schoolyards. Céline Geissmann, deputy for educational affairs, assured that no greening projects would be stopped, only rescheduled. The budget amendment was approved by 45 votes in favor, 10 against, and 10 abstentions. After this, the council tried to agree on internal regulations, but opposition members left the chamber after feeling humiliated by a forced passage. The council then proceeded to adopt four deliberations regarding the Archipel 2 real estate project. These changes included removing three social housing units on lot D1 and four on lot D3, increasing owner-occupied housing units, and reducing land prices. The sale of land for a project aimed at women in difficulty or victims of domestic violence was postponed until February 28, 2027. The Blue Paper factory, which was fined for pollution, requested an increase in its authorized production capacity. The city’s approval of this request is conditional on the Regional Health Agency’s position and the company’s efforts to reduce emissions. Subsidy applications for religious institutions, solidarity projects, and other community initiatives were also adopted without opposition. A motion supporting feminist and infantist associations for the protection of victims of sexual and gender-based violence was approved.