Medicine Hat CAO says community ‘incivility’ harms business, leadership could set better tone

That tense exchange trigged a series of events that led to a code of conduct complaint, a third-party investigation, sanctions that stripped Clark of her powers, a court case that lifted the sanctions and an apology from the mayor at Tuesday’s council meeting.

The mayor, councillors and executive staff — together the leadership of the city — need to all do a better job at setting an example, Mitchell acknowledged.

“We really have to set the tone at the top and that’s critically important,” Mitchell said.

“We always need to be mindful of that, whether we’re on social media, out in the community…how we behave is reflected and the ripples, they go on and on.”

There’s more work to do, Mitchell explained.

“We’re all a work in progress,” she said.

“We’re all human, and we’re under a fishbowl when we work in local government. It’s challenging and some days we can handle it better than others.”

Thousands of Medicine Hat residents have voiced strong concerns about the city in the past 12 months.

Skyrocketing electricity bills in the summer of 2023 forced council to take urgent action and got more Hatters invested in their local municipal government. Petitions were started — including one to recall the mayor — and even a formal utilities advocacy group was launched.

City Manager Ann Mitchell says city leadership can do a better job setting the right tone. Kevin Kyle/CHAT News

But it was when council voted to find Clark guilty of violating its code of conduct and placed a series of sanctions on her in March that many residents became alarmed over the growing conflict at city hall.

Blame has been pointed at the mayor, councillors and the city manager.

“I would say there’s some mistrust from the public,” Mitchell admitted.

She hopes the Alberta government decides to accept council’s request for a municipal inspection so that trust can be restored.

“I really welcome the inspection so that the public will feel confident in their leadership team and council that we’re doing the best for the community,” Mitchell said.

She also anticipates an inspection will clear the air on the roles staff play as opposed to council and fix outdated policies that Mitchell during Tuesday’s council meeting called “archaic”.

Many in the community misunderstand the roles of staff and council, Mitchell suggested. Critics say she has overstepped her bounds and has influenced council to work against the mayor.

Mitchell said she sees those who say that chief administrators are “usurping council’s role.”

“Find out really what my role is before you start launching into that I would say.”

The role of the city manager and the authority the position holds has been a point of conflict between Clark and the rest of council since at least the Aug. 21, 2023, meeting when Clark — according to council and a Calgary justice — breached the code of conduct in her treatment of Mitchell.

The mayor issued a general apology for her actions at the 2023 meeting that Mitchell accepted during Tuesday’s council meeting.

When asked by Mitchell to apologize specifically to staff, the city manager, council and the community, Clark moved on to the next agenda item.

Mitchell did not speak specifically to Clark’s apology, her reaction to the judicial review or her relationship with the mayor.

‘Noise’

Mitchell, the City of Medicine Hat’s highest-ranking staffer, avoids what she calls “noise”.

“I don’t go on social media, I never really have. I’m here to do a job and move forward council’s initiatives, so I don’t want to be distracted by that,” she said.

“I have nothing but LinkedIn, and it’s a professional one.”

For Mitchell, what bothers her most about social media is the damage it does to staff.

“They come to work every day, they’re serving their community and the fact that they get personally attacked bothers me heavily,” she said.

Medicine Hat’s previous city clerk, Larry Randle, left the role soon after he received a call from a local content creator that posed a series of aggressive questions after Randle said wouldn’t be able to answer them.

Randle moved on because of the treatment he received from the content creator and others, according to a council source speaking to CHAT News on the condition of anonymity.

Other employees, too, have been routinely criticized on social media.

Mitchell and some councillors have been criticized by members of the community for being inaccessible or out of touch with the public.

Instead of hurling insults and engaging in harassment, Mitchell said citizens with concerns should come forward in good faith.

Often, face-to-face meetings can bring about resolutions that satisfy all sides, the city manager said.

Ann Mitchell, who has been thrust into the spotlight over the past year, says there are better ways to engage with council and city staff. Eli J. Ridder/CHAT News

Mitchell described a recent tree appeal from a resident. Two neighbours came into city hall for an in-person discussion and walked out after coming to a general agreement that a neutral party would handle the appeal.

“I’m more than happy to talk to people, my door is always open, and I can say for the rest of the team and council, they are really open to talking to people,” she said.

Both the city leadership and the residents to come together with respect and open-mindedness.

“We all should just commit to being better humans,” Mitchell said.

Despite tensions around the council horseshoe and the frustration felt by some residents, Mitchell said she leads an organization that has remained focused on benefitting the community.

“Despite the noise, we have been hard at work, and we will continue to do work to serve the community,” Mitchell said.

“And that’s why we’re here.”

by Eli J. Ridder

Medicine Hat CAO says community ‘incivility’ harms business, leadership could set better tone

‘Noise’

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