FOIP Request Reveals City Manager behind Questioning of Councillor

Facebook post from city hall critic Nicole Frey of the email questioning Coun. Andy McGrogan’s notice of motion.

A freedom of information request is revealing it was the Medicine Hat city manager who questioned Coun. Andy McGrogan’s ability to state residents are facing financial challenges.

“Is it appropriate to make an unqualified statement in a motion like, ‘the taxpayer is distressed,” stated city manager Ann Mitchell in her response to McGrogan’s notice of motion to reduce property taxes.

The Dec.  6 email was part of a freedom of information request, commonly referred to as FOIP, filed by vocal city hall critic Nicole Frey. It was also sent to the rest of council. The email was sent the same morning as McGrogan filed his notice of motion.

During the Dec. 16 council meeting, McGrogan took issue with the remark without naming Mitchell as its source.

 “We’re not here to passively agree with administration. They are tasked with enacting the will of council, not the other way around,” stated McGrogan at that meeting. “Recently, I received an email from a senior administrator accusing me of not being qualified to assert that taxpayers are distressed. I disagree with this assessment,”

McGrogan, a 45-year public servant who primarily served with city police before retiring as chief, also took time to highlight his mandate given to him by city voters in the last election.

In a Facebook post Thursday morning, Frey noted the FOIP request was processed within three business days.

The email outlined other issues with McGrogan’s previous statements as well as whether it would even be possible to meet his request in his motion to reduce property taxes to below four per cent for the 2025-26 tax years.

That motion stated, in part, “the taxpayer is distressed by the potential tax rate increases as economic times are unstable and uncertain.”