Gray said the people hold their elected officials accountable and if the preservation or planning commissions do not make the right decision, it should come before the aldermen. He said communication between the board and commissions should increase so concerns can be heard.

“But I think it’s in the right hands,” he said. “We do have some honest people on the board, and I am one of them.”

Mathis said the board’s track record of not overturning any of the preservation’s decisions should speak to the board’s trust of the commission. She also said people need to trust their elected officials to do what is right for the city.

“You have to have a little faith in the people you elect, faith in the Constitution and faith in the democratic process,” she said.

Ward 4 Alderman Ernest “Tony” Fields said the aldermen want to protect the historical preservation of the city, but, at the same time, he said there is a need for economic development.

“You have to bring politics into it, it is a political issue,” he said. “This isn’t solely a preservation issue, you have to have all of these pieces working together.”

Preservation commission member Valencia Hall said she was not on the commission when the ordinance passed, but she said she believes communication between the board and commissions is essential to protecting the city’s best interest.

“I think everybody has the best interest in mind, but we have to be cognizant as to what our guidelines are and communicate,” she said. “A miscommunication could occur, and we don’t always know the last effects of what communication can lead to.”

Pollard and Ward 5 Alderman Mark Fortenbery both said they do not support the ordinance. Pollard voted for the ordinance in 2005 in his first year as an alderman.

“Now that I have more experience and have looked at it, I don’t think it should have ever been changed,” Pollard said. “Politics shouldn’t be brought into stuff I don’t think the board should even hear.”

Pollard said if the developers want an appeal, they should have to go straight to a court.

“The power should stay with the preservation commission,” he said.

Fortenbery said he wished the appeals would go back to court.

“I’m not a lawyer, but it’s not fair for the decision to come back to us, a governing body, where we know politics can make a difference,” he said.