Ear to the Ground
Promenade Hill is on the agenda for tomorrow morning's Historic Preservation Commission meeting. Since the HPC reviewed the original plans for the plaza at Promenade Hill earlier this year, it is expected that what the commission will be reviewing tomorrow are the "scaled back" plans--scaled back to cut half a million dollars from the budget. Last week, Mayor Kamal Johnson predicted the cuts would be achieved by using less expensive materials: "Instead of using a certain stone we'll use a different version to scale some stuff down, but it's not really a big deal." Tomorrow, we may find out if it's a big deal or not.
The Historic Preservation Commission meeting begins at 10:00 a.m. Click here to join the Zoom meeting. COPYRIGHT 2021 CAROLE OSTERINK
Such reassuring words: it's not a big deal.
ReplyDeleteUse inferior stones. The original creators of the park would be ashamed.
Scaling the budget back to that extent will encompass more than the materials used. Pretty soon you're mucking around with the design.
ReplyDeleteSince the DRI Committee insists on conducting its affairs in executive-like sessions, a huge responsibility has now landed on the HPC.
Now, and for the first time in years, DRI-related business will be conducted openly in real time. The fact that it's the HPC holding a Zoom meeting rather than the all-but-opaque DRI Committee won't lessen the perception that the HPC is now the public face of the DRI, at least for this project.
Is there any reason why the HPC shouldn't know the budget details and planned allocations? They SHOULD know if they're going to make responsible recommendations, and that presents the public a rare opportunity to peak behind the veil at the workings of the DRI Committee.