It appears as if that input from the public, boards, commissions and even the council is largely disregarded," Councilman Pat Burt said. "Then we get a product at the end that inadequately reflects a lot of the input that is based upon context knowledge and not just the important domain expertise of the consultants. And we'll get a product that we disagree with fundamentally at the end even though we've put in a year or two and hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"The murder of my son has left a wound that may never heal. But the denial of this memorial adds new pain. Our city talks about equity, justice, and healing-but when it matters most, those words vanish."
The former director of the Economic Development Department authorized grant awards that violated city code restrictions, permitting the overlap of funding for arts organizations.
"The request prompted unified opposition among the police chief, mayor, city manager and several city council members who argued that preserving the integrity of criminal investigations was paramount."
