Medicine Hat Minute: Downy Brome, Recruitment Standards, and Another City Clerk

Medicine Hat Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Medicine Hat politics

This Week In Medicine Hat:

• There will be a City Council meeting this afternoon at 3:45 pm. The meeting begins, as usual, with a closed session. During this portion of the meeting, Council will discuss energy matters, a tax cancellation matter, an environmental utilities matter, and a Police Commission vacancy. Once the meeting opens up to the public, the City Manager will request permission from Council to send a letter to the Province asking for increased policing funding. Another piece of new business will also be introduced regarding Project Clear Horizon, a carbon capture and sequestration hub. The City has been assessing the feasibility of the project since 2022, and, now that the evaluation has progressed significantly, the City is considering a financial transaction related to the project. Council will also assess the final version of the Environmental Framework.
  
  
• A local brewery is making the beer for the World Professional Chuckwagon Association (WPCA) races. Travois Ale Works has introduced Stolen Rail Lager, featuring the top five drivers and the top outrider from the previous year on the can. The beer was developed with input from WPCA drivers and board members, celebrating the culture and traditions of chuckwagon racing. Hatters can sample this special edition beer at Blowers and Grafton on June 19th, just before the WPCA races at the Medicine Hat Exhibition and Stampede from June 20th to 23rd.
  
  
• The Grasslands Naturalists are urging residents to check their properties and alleys for invasive downy brome before it seeds. This common weed in Medicine Hat has shallow roots and is easy to pull out. Residents are advised not to compost the pulled plants to prevent reintroducing the seeds into the soil. The Grasslands Naturalists are hosting free workshops, on June 8th at Riverside Park and June 22nd by the Veiner Centre, to educate the public about invasive weeds and control methods. These workshops, supported by a City microgrant, will take place from 10:00 am to noon.

Last Week In Medicine Hat:

• The City has posted an advertisement for a “temporary” City Clerk position, emphasizing its potential to become permanent. This comes weeks after the current City Clerk last participated in a Council meeting. The posted role requires a university degree in public administration and ten years of municipal government experience. City officials declined to comment, citing a policy of not speaking about human resources matters, but noted an increased workload in the Clerk’s office due to more freedom of information requests. This hiring follows the departure of three City Clerks over the past two years, with two current legislative staff members temporarily covering Clerk duties.
  
  
• The Medicine Hat Police Service emphasized that the force will maintain high recruitment standards despite a shortage of applicants. With 111 officers currently serving out of a maximum goal of 113, MHPS says that there are no current staffing concerns. Bi-annual training sessions are held to boost numbers amid lower-than-average applications. Despite upcoming retirements, MHPS insists on prioritizing quality over quantity in new recruits.
  
  
• The City has signed on to a plan to reduce recycling fees for residents, though the specifics and future collection methods are still being determined. The Extended Producer Liability (EPL) system, adopted by the Province in 2022 and set to be implemented in April 2025, charges producers for the cost of recycling their materials. Details, such as whether cities will manage recycling pickup or contract it out, are being finalized. Currently, residents pay about $8 per month for curbside collection, but this may change under the new system. The City's recycling services, which handled 6,000 tonnes of materials in 2024, are currently contracted to GFL. Further information is expected following meetings in late June.

-----

Donate:

Common Sense Medicine Hat doesn't accept any government funding and never will. We think you should be free to choose, for yourself, which organizations to support. If you're in a position to contribute financially, you can make a donation here.

-----

Share:

If you're not in a position to donate, we understand, but if you appreciate our work, you can help by spreading our message. Please email this post to your friends, share it on Facebook or Twitter, and help make sure every Hatter knows what's really going on at City Hall.