Shila Sharps’ Diatribe - Recorded

It’s been a tumultuous three years for Medicine Hat city council with the last 12 months of the term set to see raucous factions within and outside city hall continue to tear away at public confidence in the institution.

Councillor Shila Sharps

An audio recording obtained by Community TV featuring Coun. Shila Sharps is unlikely to enhance the city’s reputation.

The recording features Sharps speaking of plans to lay off dozens of city staff, potential of legal actions against the city for millions of dollars as well as internal alignments of her fellow councillors.

It also features a description of a racist threat against Sharps.

The first-time councillor described what can only be portrayed as a vile, racist social media post. That post included information identifying Sharps’ personal residence and she states the post resulted in a police response as well as criminal hate charges being laid.

The nearly two-hour interview between Sharps and two city residents was recorded with the councillors’ knowledge. The May 13, 2024 recording was also mentioned in affidavit filed by Mayor Linnsie Clark in support of her judicial review.

Sharps said the decision to enact organizational changes that resulted in job losses prior to amending a requisite bylaw to allow such actions was to avoid anxiety with staff.

“So, you don’t go to council and say I’m going to lay of five people next week because you would cause a panic throughout the organization,” said Sharps.

Despite saying that, later in the conversation and unprompted, Sharps volunteered her plans to lay off a fifth of the municipality’s more than 1,000 staff.

“My battle is let’s lose 20 per cent of our staff and maintain our services for our community,” said Sharps in the May recording. “My idea for 2025 is no more than a two per cent tax increase. The only way I can do that – I’ve already got my five votes to get that done.”

But Sharps said that level of layoffs – which could result in 200 staff losing their jobs – is contingent on maintaining services to the public.

“We’re over staffed and we’ve tasked the city manager to get that under control. And we’re all on the same page. But that overstaffing happened over the last six, seven years,” said Sharps.

Sharps explained the reasons for the job losses which preceded the Aug. 21, 2023 council meeting and interaction between city manager Ann Mitchell and the mayor resulting in the sanctions.

Specifically referencing the chief of staff position held by Adam Nelson who was hired in the fall of 2022, Sharps said council wasn’t getting results by the following spring.

“We weren’t getting any facetime with the premiers,” said Sharps. “We weren’t getting anywhere on our objectives trying to get the gas and utilities down a little bit, so we don’t have the same obligations.”

Sharps said she originally supported the public relations position which Rachel St. Jean was hired to fill as she didn’t feel the city’s communications were strong enough.

She added invitations to the mayor and councillors to what she described as “very political” events with community members weren’t being passed on to councillors.

“That was setting a bad tone in the business community,” said Sharps highlighting that specific requests for councillors Robert Dumanowski and Darren Hirsch weren’t getting through because of the mayor.

Sharps also indicated later in the conversation that she makes sure she shares with every member of council invitations she receives for community events.

She also appears to take exception to seating arrangement at a particular event hosted by the Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter.

Sharps said the organization’s board was given no choice but to allow St. Jean to sit at the table with the mayor.

“Meanwhile, the whole table of council is sitting at the back of the bus,” said Sharps.

She added the positions no longer served the taxpayer.

“They were supposed to report to the mayor and council. By the time they had got hired, they reported to the mayor, and they became her personal positions,” said Sharps.

In response to questions about renovations to offices at city hall, Sharps said city manager Ann Mitchell has kept within her budget. But she also highlighted that hasn’t always been the case for Mitchell’s predecessors.

But Sharps said the city spent $1.5 million on renovations to a leased office space on Fourth Street which was used to house Invest Medicine Hat.

“Meanwhile, they were building First Street, which is another $2 million. That was not this council,” said Sharps, describing the location of the old post office which is now a new municipal administration building.

City Manager Ann Mitchell

Sharps said the city manager had done some renovations on her office involving replacing carpet with a roll in storage and having it repainted, adding she kept to her budget for office upkeep in doing so.

Am I mad that she has a $200,000 budget and she spent $80,000? No, I don’t care,” said Sharps. “She hasn’t gone over budget at all.”

But when it comes to a city manager going over budget, “the only person who did was Bob,” said Sharps. “And that was before this council.”

Sharps also spoke of issues between the mayor and councillors that began from the start of council’s term. But also, that she believed there is a way forward.

“I think it’s fixable. So fixable. And everybody does otherwise the sanctions would have been worse,” said Sharps in the mid-May recording.

But Sharps was critical of what she described as the un-communitive nature of the mayor, lack of punctuality at meetings, the inability to engage socially with fellow councillors and “hijacking” of meetings.

Sharps highlighted one incident which occurred at a meeting she hosted at her private business with developers.

“I’ve housed meetings, here in my office, with developers that are ready to walk away and try to take us to court for millions of dollars and she shows up halfway through the meeting or when it’s done,” said Sharps. “It’s horrific and it’s been going on since day one.”

She also referenced another meeting with a developer.

Sharps said she met developers while socially visiting Cochrane and one who commented he was interested doing work in Medicine Hat but said it was challenging to do so.

“He helicoptered in. Linnsie didn’t make it to the meeting. Just didn’t show,” said Sharps.

That meeting was held between Ann Mitchell and the city’s managing directors, she added.

The city’s Code of Conduct Bylaw section pertaining to confidentiality lists several matters which are required to be kept from public discourse either to residents or public.

City Hall Horeshoe (FILE PHOTO)

Those include conversations held in-camera, information acquired by councillors by virtue of their office and not authorized to divulge, amongst others. It also restricts information from being released that is generally considered confidential including employment and labour relations as well as potential litigation.

Despite the provisions in the city’s code of conduct, there have been multiple anonymous releases of information involving internal council discussions and personnel matters since March 2024.

On Aug. 1, Community TV sought comment from city councillors regarding the recording featuring Sharps. It also sought comment on the April 1, 2024 press release signed by all of council with the exception of Mayor Clark and Coun. Sharps.

It specifically sought comment regarding the releases statement that council must respect municipal and provincial legislation when it comes to disclosing information and to, “keep in confidence matters discussed during closed sessions of council.

“To uphold that duty, we are unable to respond to, or correct any misstatements, relating to those issues. Council has a responsibility to uphold the values and standards expected of us by our residents, and the bylaws and policies that govern our city - including the Code of Conduct.”

No councillor responded to the request for comment sought more than a month ago.