A Medicine Hat bakery has a sign showing support for sanctioned Mayor Linnsie Clark. (Eli J. Ridder/CHAT News)

By Eli J. Ridder | @EliRidder

‘They’re not telling us’: Medicine Hat bakery owner says council needs to explain mayor sanctions further

Apr 30, 2024 | 6:00 PM

The owner of a Medicine Hat bakery said Tuesday the councillors who sanctioned the mayor have not done enough to explain why, even a personal conversation with a member of council.

Brendan Hillson has used the social media page of McBride’s Bakery to criticize council and detail his meeting with a councillor he did not identify.

Hillson started by questioning council’s decision to takeaway Mayor Linnsie Clark’s powers and cut her salary on social media in what he called inflammatory posts.

“It started with me just looking at the video that supposedly contains the transgression that the mayor committed, and then looking at the sanctions that the city council imposed on the mayor, and just saying it’s just out of whack,” Hillson told CHAT News.

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It was a tense exchange between Clark and City Manager Ann Mitchell during an August 2023 council meeting that led to a code of conduct complaint from Coun. Shila Sharps and an investigation that provided the basis for the sanctions.

The councillor that recently came to speak to Hillson told him to imagine a mayor who isn’t working with the rest of council, is hard to approach and doing their own thing.

Hillson was not satisfied with that response.

“That’s it?”

“My frustration has been — it’s not that I say the mayor’s right and council’s wrong — I’m saying, if council’s right, then just tell us why you’re right, and they’re not telling us,” he said.

The seven councillors in public have maintained the sanctions were required to protect city staff and to show Medicine Hat is a safe place to work.

Council on April 1 said it’s unable to address misinformation circulating through the community over its move to sanction the mayor due to the city’s bylaws and provincial rules.

Some residents say there must be more behind council’s restrictions on the mayor beyond the one incident considering the levity of the sanctions.

“It looks like there’s more behind the story,” Hillson said.

“As it goes on, we’ve got Ted Clugston on TV going, ‘there’s more behind the story but I won’t tell you’, and I’ve got city workers in my bakery going, ‘there’s more behind the story, but I can’t tell you’,” he added.

“Then, the seven city councillors themselves all signed this letter on April 1 saying, ‘well, there’s more behind the story, we’re just not going to tell you’.”

CHAT News has contacted the City of Medicine Hat for comment.

Clarification: Due to the short timeline provided, the city would, if there was interest to, respond on Wednesday.