Shitshow Showdown - Medicine Hat AB Mayor vs City Manager and rest of Council

The August 21 2023 City Council Meeting became a Shitshow Showdown about 1 hr 52 minutes in. I transcribed most of the dialogue but I suggest you watch the tape yourself and see what you think. Remarks in quotation marks are exact quotes, the rest is summarized.

Background

City Manager Ann Mitchell sponsored a Briefing Note that outlined the recent divisional realignment. This realignment was apparently done in violation of city bylaws as Bylaw 4662 is required to be amended before any realignment is done. CM Mitchell presented it to council as a fait accompli wanting council to rubber stamp a bylaw change.

The realignment included a change in who hired and fired the City Clerk. CM Mitchell changed it to put her in charge of hiring and firing the City Clerk. She subsequently hired a colleague from her former position.

(He appears to be well qualified, I’m not suggesting anything else. The optics look bad on this.)

Mayor Linnsie Clark stood alone in her opposition to the order of events.

Before Clark became mayor she worked for the city of Medicine Hat as a lawyer. The mayor is the only full time council member.

The City of Medicine Hat Administrative Organization Bylaw 4662 Section 6 says

“Council shall determine by resolution the departments and business units in the Energy and Infrastructure Division, Corporate Services Division, Public Services Division, Strategic Management and Analysis Division, and Invest Medicine Hat Division, and, in addition, the departments and business units reporting directly to the City Manager.”

The City of Medicine Hat Administrative Organization Bylaw 4662 Sections 37 and 38 says

37 The City Clerk shall be appointed by the City Solicitor.

38 The City Solicitor may revoke the appointment of the City Clerk.

Note

I will be inserting portions of the Council Code of Conduct at relevant parts.

Here is the Youtube recording.

The Shitshow Showdown Begins

1:52:37 Mayor Linnsie Clark “I have a few questions, this re-org already happened, people have already lost their jobs, why are you bringing it to council now?”

1:52:55 City Manager (CM) Ann Mitchell “There was a conversation with council on July 4th, so council was aware of this; if the process happened out of order, that was my issue.”

1:53:05 Clark “When did the re-org start, so the City Clerk moved to report directly to you when did that happen?”
Mitchell - “...a memo went to council on July (sic) 19, then council was discussed about the re-org on July 4, then the actual re-org itself happened on July 10”

1:53:45 Clark - Financial Report Apr 4 2023 says City Clerk was reporting to City Manager at Dec 31 2022 which was not the case

Mitchell - I’d have to check

1:54:05 Clark This is a council decision (quotes the AO bylaw 4662 re depts and business units) procedure bylaw says city clerk is appointed (and revoked) by city solicitor “That is a significant period of time where you had done things that were not consistent with our bylaws, I’m wondering how that happened”

1:54:50 Mitchell “That happened because I missed a process… and that's on my fault, I did advise council and council was aware of what was happening This AO bylaw also says that there should be 5 divisions and that hasn’t been the case for 5 divisions for quite some time “that was missed previously as well” “not excusing me, just saying it got missed before”

1:55:15 Clark “Presumably you consulted the AO bylaw before you did a reorganization...wondering how council didn’t have the opportunity to follow the bylaw”

Mitchell “Council was informed”
1:55:50 Clark “it has to be a resolution” Section 6 says …..we discussed this and your position was that section 6 shouldn't be in our bylaw.”

(The CM did not dispute this. Once again Section 6 says

““Council shall determine by resolution the departments and business units in the Energy and Infrastructure Division, Corporate Services Division, Public Services Division, Strategic Management and Analysis Division, and Invest Medicine Hat Division, and, in addition, the departments and business units reporting directly to the City Manager.”

That seems a bit presumptuous of the CM to think that Section 6 should not exist.)

1:56:00 Clark “I’m wondering if you have considered the consequences of making these changes without having proper authority.”

1:56:20 Mitchell “The consequences are that council was advised and that this is how it happened previously under other City Managers as well, I’m not saying it’s right but it did.”

(To paraphrase the Princess Bride “I do not think the word consequences means what you think it means.”

Clark - “It didn’t, when the City Solicitor was moved under the City Manager at that time, so council decided it Aug 19 2019 then an AO bylaw was brought forward and then the next re-org the same thing, a briefing note came forward to get authority to do the re-org and then the bylaw was amended. Regardless of how it happened before, Managing Director Egert was here during that period, Managing Director Pancoast, City Solicitor Bullock, what got missed?”

1:57:35 Mitchell “The process got missed from me and it wasn't until after we made the discussion about it that I was advised I had to go through and change this AO bylaw which I wasn't aware of, no excuses on anybody but me though.”

1:57:56 Clark “I did bring it up with you several times.”
Mitchell That was after the fact I believe.”

The City Manager Appears to have an Ally

1:58:04 Councillor Shila Sharps says “Point of Order (POO)

Procedure Bylaw 2270 posted on the City website says
18.2 When the chairman is called upon to decide a point of order or practice, the point shall be stated succinctly and without unnecessary comment, except to cite the rule or authority applicable to the case.
23.2 The member raising the point of order shall address the chairman with the words "I rise on a point of order", whereupon the chair will reply "Please state your point of order".
23.3 Upon being requested by the chairman to state his point of order, the objecting member shall give a clear succinct account on the point at issue, and shall not deal with or raise other matters.

23.4 The chairman may request the advice of Council on the point of order but shall himself decide the point of order raised

1:58:04 Councillor Shila Sharps Point of Order “This is starting to be an inquisition than vs council asking administration of questions. So I don’t know all the Roberts Rules of Orders but with all due respect we’ve already talked about this, we’ve talked about it at our Strategic Meeting on Monday. I believe Councillors Hirsch and Dumanowski both corrected us and let us know that this was exactly the process that was taken in the past, so we all moved forward and I’m not happy that this is happening the way it is and I will ask for a recess if this continues.”

(I’m not sure if she fulfilled the requirements of a POO, no rule or authority was cited. I’m also pretty sure that Council members, no matter how long their tenure, are not qualified to give anyone advice on how things are done, that’s why the City has a legal department. The mayor actually worked in the City’s legal department and would know more than the rest of council how things are done.)

1:58:47 Clark” Ok, I do honestly find it quite disappointing that no one else really cares about the exercise of a council power”, what she was being told was not consistent with the MGA or the bylaw

1:59:25 Clark Got a legal opinion, reads it (Guy Giorno, Fasken, head of their government ethics department - consequences that decisions made without authority are null and void

2:00:44 Clark “My role wasn't respected as an elected official, the other problem is that all of the other decisions that were made were null and void so they have no effect those are the consequences, I'm wondering if you had discussed with the legal team”

Mitchell “I think this is highly inappropriate and I’d like to stop this discussion right now.”

2:01:03 Robins “There was a POO from Sharps that was never ruled upon (Again, I did not hear exactly what rule or authority was violated) we should have a ruling on that (she spoke without being recognized by chair)

2:01:17 Clark “I didn't ask any more questions.”

2:01:19 Sharps “Nope you’re right, you’re going on a diatribe so I have a POO in and if you choose not to respond to it I will ask for a recess and ask for a seconder (speaking without recognition from the chair, all interactions now are speaking without being recognized)

Merriam Webster defines “diatribe” as

“a bitter and abusive speech or piece of writing”.

2:01:35 Hider - I will 2nd that Shila (not using the title)

(Someone asking city clerk, interrupting Mayor)

Clark “So what is the POO is that I just stop talking about this?”

Sharps (again without being recognized) “With all due respect, with all due respaaact (yes she said it that way), this has already been talked about and I don’t believe anybody around the table is actually in agreement with you so we had a strategic meeting and you did bring this up and ….I have no intentions into getting into her (CM) weeds, I have my own business to run, we are not administration… she did come to us,…. To me that was done. We shouldn't have to discount each other's credibility when we’re around this table and the question was asked, we answered it (physically pointing at the mayor) YOU might not have agreed, that does not change the answer.”

(Apparently revealing the opinions given behind closed doors, pushes her mike button hard, seems visibly irritated.)

2:02:35 Clark “Now it is before council and we’re being asked to approve something.”

2:02:42 Sharps “I don't feel like you are okay I’m not sure, City Clerk if you could advise me here I would like to go straight to vote because this isn’t a question period this is a diatribe and (looking to CM) I’m probably more offended than you are so don’t worry.”

2:02:59 McGrogan “Shall we put the motion on the floor?”

2:03:08 Clark “The motion is that I just stop talking about this?”

McGrogan “No the motion is that I move that council approves the divisional realignment as presented.”

Seconded (by Sharps?)

2:03:29 Knodel suggests they can vote by a show of hands.

Vote passes

2:03:55 Knodel leaves and misses a couple of votes (she said she had a personal medical issue)

More to come on the Monday Night Shitshow Showdown!

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