This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

According to The Salt Lake Tribune ("New homeless shelter announcement — any day now," Nov. 21), the Salt Lake City Council and the mayor decided in a closed session on Nov. 10 to approve the four sites for the new homeless shelters without letting the public discuss the sites. According to several other community councils, the council members admitted to agreeing to the sites in October.

I can't find any notice on the City Council meeting portal or on the RDA agenda page that there was a meeting on Nov. 10 or that sites were going to be selected. Whether it was legal or not, the council ignored the many promises made over the last year to the citizens that they would be able to have input on a list of potential sites. The undisputed fact is that the council and Mayor Jackie Biskupski made the decision secretly without telling the public and ignoring promises made!

In addition, Councilwoman Lisa Adams said (and other council members have repeated the phrase) that the public knowing about it "would have pitted neighborhood against neighborhood ­— something the council and the administration sought to avoid."

I can't think of a more disrespectful way for the mayor and council to treat the citizens that they are "supposed" to be serving.

Jay Inglesby

Salt Lake City