As City officials decide what to do with nearly $335 million in federal pandemic relief, some are urging them to pump the breaks.
Online hearings with Pittsburgh City Council Saturday and Monday produced hours of public comment saying there wasn't initially enough community input regarding what to do with the money.
Local groups echoed that call outside the City-County building Tuesday morning.
NaTisha Washington with One Pennsylvania was among the group.
"We should have a say in this vote," she told Lynne Hayes-Freeland on News Radio KDKA. "It shouldn't be something that's just put on us, and 'okay, now you have a week to talk about it and then we're making this final decision that's going to impact you.'"
Washington feels the current plan doesn't adequately address many key issues.
"Everybody's requests were the same, no matter what their main issue was, it was still the same list of issues," she said. "Having clean air, having clean water, fixing up our education system, making sure that we have a good safety plan, especially for our Black and Brown communities, having support for essential workers who are renters who need public transportation. Those things were not even seen in this final budget, and we didn't know or see where those funds would come to deal with those issues that we have in all of our communities."
Pittsburgh City Council is scheduled for a preliminary vote on the plan Wednesday.
Council President Theresa Kail-Smith told Lynne Hayes-Freeland, a vote doesn't mean the conversation is over.
"This is a long process," she said. "This is not just a one-time vote and you're done. This is going to continue to be amended. We can continue to hear from people."
Kail-Smith said council will continue engaging with the public through community conversations.
"Council leadership has agreed to schedule, not public hearings, want to have actual conversations with the public," she said. "Public hearings are great, and it gives people a chance to talk, but it doesn't give council an opportunity to have a dialogue with people."
