The Detroit Auditor General issued a harsh report Friday on the city's demolition program, finding it has been mismanaged and fraught with problems for the past four years, the Detroit Free Press reports.
Tyrone Clifton, director of the Detroit Building Authority issued a statement saying the report was riddled with errors.
The report comes before an anticipated Tuesday vote by the Detroit City Council on Mayor Mike Duggan's $250-million blight bond proposal.
(Photos: Violet Ikonomova)
The Freep reports:
The sweeping audit revealed the Detroit Building Authority— along with one or more city departments in some instances: failed to properly provide oversight and administer contracts; did not fully comply with some local and state laws; didn't monitor to ensure that demolition contractors met requirements.
Auditor General Mark Lockridge also blasted the city for having "inconsistent and unreliable" demolition data, as well as poor record keeping that made it difficult to perform the audit.
"A perception that public officials are using the procurement system to reward themselves, their friends, or supporters, poisons the public’s confidence in government and shakes its faith in the bureaucratic process," he wrote.
The mayor's office responded, saying:
The current demolition process and success of our monitoring efforts are not reflected in the Auditor General’s report. Our response shows that we have a near 100 percent monitoring record. The Auditor General’s report on City-funded residential demolitions is riddled with procedural and substantive errors
