Business continues at City Hall but pandemic still front and centre

Merrick Brown told councillors the city is well prepared and is proceeding to build resiliences into critical municipal infrastructure, stressing the need to protect staff. Without whom, Brown said, “we cannot enact any of these other objectives.”

As for whether or not to declare a local state of emergency, Brown told council, “we’re not there yet,” highlighting Medicine Hat has yet to have a confirmed case to his knowledge.

He said many of the communities that have declared such local emergencies have had cases including community transmitted ones.

The focus, said Brown, is to continue its moves in coordination with step-by-step trigger points, an example of which was shuttering city-run facilities within minutes of the provincial decision to close schools. That was done to prevent facilities like the Family Leisure Centre becoming sites of large gatherings because children would tend to gravitate there, said Brown.

While staff directly employed by the city will be taken care of in regards to pay, things are less clear for those employed at the Canalta Centre.

A Go Fund Me page was set up to help raise funds for those who work at the city-owned facility but are employed by private contractor SMG Canada.

That page was taken down shortly after it went up but the question remains what supports are available to the workers who have seen the event centre cancel all its events.

Asked about the situation, Mayor Clugston said Monday, “it`s on our radar.“

by Alex McCuaig

Business continues at City Hall but pandemic still front and centre

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