LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas — Mayor Frank Scott Jr. has been under heat after a Little Rock director confronted him about a mysterious contract that was not seen by the board.
Director Capi Peck brought up the issue on Tuesday night after she had a constituent that came to her with an unanswered Freedom of Information Act request.
Peck explained that when she asked the Planning and Development Director, Jamie Collins, to produce the documents, he told her that the mayor said not to release them.
Then, a heated exchange began between Peck and the mayor— She asked him about the contract in question and asked who won the bid on it.
The mayor did not answer her questions, and he said he never told anyone not to produce or release any documents.
The controversy surrounds a consultant contract that proposed building affordable housing in three areas of Little Rock, including at War Memorial Park.
The other two areas were downtown and southwest Little Rock.
The contract was worth $49,140 which is just under the $50,000 dollar mark that would need the board's approval.
The bid winner was a company called A-Squared. Which was founded by Gerald and Sam Alley, who both donated to Frank Scott Jr's election campaigns in 2018 and 2022.
We reached out to Collins about what the next step is for the contract but he was out of the office on Wednesday.
Vice Mayor Lance Hines is hopeful that there will be changes in the future to allow the board to know what contracts the city is paying for no matter what the cost.
"I think the board needs to be notified of every RFQ that goes out. At least we will be aware of it," Hines explained.