Medicine Hat Minute: Trail Renaming, Intersection Changes, and Feral Cat Trapping

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

This Week In Medicine Hat:

• On Monday, at 3:45 pm, there will be a City Council Meeting. The meeting, as usual, will begin with a closed session. During that closed session, Council will discuss a Labour Relations Update and Workforce Planning. When the meeting opens up to the public, around 6:30 pm, the agenda includes a motion from Councillor McGrogan that directs Administration to publish, twice per year, all Senior Administration expenses. Council will also discuss renaming the Devonian Trail to Kiwanis Centennial Trail, approving a funding request of $675,000 to engage third parties in the due diligence phase for the Saamis Solar development project, and publishing HR metrics on the City’s website. For the latter item, those metrics would include the total number of employees, contractors and consultants, voluntary terminations, involuntary terminations, safety stats such as WCB lost time, and both short-term and long-term disability statistics. Mayor Linnsie Clark will bring forward a Notice of Motion requesting that her legal fees incurred defending herself from City Manager Mitchell’s allegation of defamation be paid.
  
  
• The Administrative and Legislative Review Committee will meet at 4:00 pm on Tuesday. No agenda is available for this meeting yet.
  
  
• The City is now accepting nominations for the 2025 Community Spirit Awards, which recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to the community. Awards are available in categories such as arts, sports, compassion, environment, and volunteerism, among others. Nominations are open to residents of Medicine Hat, Redcliff, and Cypress County, with the requirement that the contributions benefit Medicine Hat residents. The deadline for submissions is June 16th, and the awards will be presented at a ceremony on October 8th at the Esplanade Arts & Heritage Centre. More details and nomination forms are available on the City’s website.

Last Week In Medicine Hat:

• City staff defended recent changes to the intersection at Sixth Avenue and Third Street, citing safety and federal design standards, despite objections from a local business owner. Sabrina Moore, owner of Kollectiv Cycle Studio, criticized the removal of parking stalls and claimed the City dismissed data she obtained showing only five collisions in six years. City officials argued that their 12-year traffic analysis paints a more complete picture, especially considering reduced traffic during the pandemic. While staff say overall parking remains unchanged, Moore remains unconvinced and is exploring legal options. Councillors declined to reverse the decision but acknowledged the need for better communication about the standards guiding such projects. The City also announced plans to review its broader parking strategy in 2026.
  
  
• The Medicine Hat Public School Division has launched the OurSchool Survey to gather feedback from students, parents, and teachers to inform future planning. The survey, which is open until April 23, focuses on areas such as student learning drivers and classroom practices. Responses are anonymous, and participants will be provided with random login credentials to ensure privacy. The survey takes about 20 minutes to complete in one session and will be available to students during school hours and to parents via email. Additionally, a session on dual-credit, work experience, and Registered Apprenticeship Opportunities for Grade 9-12 students will be held on April 10th at 6:00 pm at Medicine Hat High School.
  
  
• A feral cat trapping program got underway in Medicine Hat and surrounding areas to spay and neuter free-roaming cats. Volunteers are using humane traps to catch the cats, which will then be treated for parasites, vaccinated, and fixed to help reduce the local cat population. The initiative is supported by the Canadian Animal Task Force and involves veterinarians from across western Canada. The task force is focused on reducing the number of kittens born in hidden areas, which could lead to uncontrolled population growth.

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