Anthony Hemstad, who recently resigned as Maple Valley’s city manager, plans to remain a Valley Medical Center commissioner – a position that caused a work conflict with his former employer.

Hemstad, who had a scheduling conflict between commissioner meetings and City Council meetings that were part of his fulltime Maple Valley duties, resigned his city post suddenly on July 17, the same day the council held two executive sessions to conduct employee reviews.

Hemstad was elected last year as a commissioner of King County Hospital District 1, which governs Valley Medical. Traditionally, the commissioners met at 3:30 p.m. on Mondays. In his election campaign, Hemstad suggested the commissioners meet at night to provide a more open forum. The start time was changed to 6 p.m. so that the public had a more convenient time to attend meetings. But that new time made it more difficult for Hemstad to arrive at council meetings, which start at 7. In the ensuing controversy, the commissioners voted to go back to meeting at 3:30.

Reached by cell phone last week while he was on his way back from a vacation to California, Hemstad said the earlier time “was continuing to be somewhat of a conflict.” He was still arriving late for some council meetings. The council members “weren’t thrilled” with his late arrival, although they were “understanding,” he said.

Last spring, Hemstad faced deciding whether to end the conflict by either resigning from either his elected post or his city job. He didn’t have to make that decision once the meeting time reverted back to the afternoon.

But he said he did think a lot about what he wanted to do with his future.

“It was a bit of a midwife to the decision to move on,” he said of the time crunch.

Mayor Laure Iddings has said the parting of ways with Hemstad was a mutual decision.

Hemstad, who lives in Kent, said last week he’s not thinking of resigning as a commissioner, but “I guess it’s ‘never say never.’” For example, if he got a job in Washington, D.C., he would have to move, he said.

The Renton Reporter contributed to this report.