Medicine Hat Minute: Water Restrictions, Conduct Code, and a Wednesday Evening Event

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

This Week In Medicine Hat:

• There are no meetings at City Hall today, on account of the Family Day holiday, which means that the week will begin with a City Council meeting on Tuesday, at 3:45 pm. As usual, the first portion of the meeting will be held in-camera. The agenda for the secret session will include a Municipal Affairs Information Request, an energy matter, a media and communications update, and a legal matter. When the meeting opens up to the public at 6:30 pm, Council will discuss a potential Capital Project Grant Program for non-profit agencies and options to create a Downtown Enhancement Grant. Council will also nominate a representative to sit on the Steering Committee for the Rural Renewal Stream of the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program. 
  
  
• The Municipal Planning Commission will meet on Wednesday at 1:30 pm to discuss a few land use amendments, and the Corporate Services Committee will meet on Thursday at 4:00 pm to discuss a social media policy.
  
  
• We're hosting a Pints & Politics event on Wednesday night at 6:00 pm at LOCAL Public Eatery, in conjunction with our friends at the Alberta Institute. We're going to keep things simple and just have some casual drinks, with no formal agenda, as an opportunity for everyone to get together with like-minded Hatters. Come out and meet the folks behind Common Sense Medicine Hat as well as members of the Alberta Institute team. The event is free, but registration is required due to capacity limits. You can RSVP by clicking here. Hope to see you all there!

Last Week In Medicine Hat:

• The Administrative and Legislative Committee accepted the draft of an addition to Council’s Code of Conduct policy, which would define the process of how to deal with complaints against elected officials. The proposed changes include expanding the definition of complainants to include staff members or the public, addressing social media concerns, adding discrimination and harassment as problematic behaviour, and defining conflict of interest language. The revised policy recommends early mediation and gives the final determination of breaches to third-party investigators. The proposal will be debated by Council at an upcoming meeting.
  
  
• The City said it is considering the possibility of implementing mandatory water restrictions in response to the anticipated record-breaking drought conditions expected in Alberta this summer. River basins across the province are experiencing extreme dryness, prompting the City to prepare for special rules to address potential water shortages. While prioritizing water for drinking and food production, the City says that certain activities, such as using hoses, could be banned under extreme conditions. Initially, voluntary measures will be considered, with the option of implementing mandatory water restrictions if conditions worsen.
  
  
• Parents voted against a proposed reorganization in the grade levels at schools within the Medicine Hat Public School Division. The reorganization would have impacted Webster Niblock, Vincent Massey, Dr. Roy Wilson Learning Centre, and George Davison Schools. The School Board initiated a consultation in January, including a survey to parents, and within two weeks, 44% of families expressed that they did not support the changes, and another 24% were leaning towards opposing it, while just 12% were in support. Despite expecting more varied responses, the Superintendent said that the matter was closed and that the feedback received during the consultation process would be respected.

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