High Point City Manager Strib Boynton has called for a mediator to resolve the “spat” between the City Council and the nonprofit City Project, which has been overseeing redevelopment efforts for several years now.

Primarily the spat revolves around the council’s approval of only $35,000 of the City Project’s $210,000 funding request. But the council also seems reluctant to sign off on the recommendations of architect Andres Duany, who was contracted to provide a vision for the “core city” at a cost of $450,000. The council is taking a ‘dim view’ of Duany’s proposal to to turn the area outside the city’s library into a public gathering space, and I don’t see a lot of enthusiasm among council members for ‘dieting’ Main Street.

High Point Enterprise takes to task council members who blew Duany off when he returned to HP to answer questions:

Maybe some were out of town, or working or sick. Maybe some are so against Duany’s plan they can’t stand to talk about it. Everyone’s got a right to an opinion. But the reality is, a guy we paid big bucks to help us out returned for questions and discussions. And more than half of our elected city officials didn’t show up to hear it.

Personally I would say the lesson here is be careful when someone suggests paying big bucks to an out-of-town consultant for his ‘vision.’