Sedona council authorizes payment for Dig Studios work, defers contract extension after public criticism

The Sedona City Council on Sept. 23 authorized payment for past services by Dig Studios on the Western Gateway master plan and voted to defer consideration of a proposed contract amendment until staff provides an itemized breakdown of work already completed and any remaining obligations.

Councilor Kinsella moved to authorize payment for completed work and to defer further action on the proposed amendment; the motion passed 6–1, with one dissenting vote. The proposed amendment had sought to revise the contract to allow Dig Studios to continue work on additional conceptual drawings and extra stakeholder meetings at a proposed not-to-exceed amount of $106,921.

Why it matters: Councilors and members of the public pressed city staff for greater transparency about what Dig Studios had already been paid to do and what additional work the amendment would fund. Public speakers said the project had prompted substantial public concern and urged the council to pause major spending until a pending ballot measure is resolved.

The debate: Council discussion focused on whether the city should immediately approve the full contract amendment or instead pay only amounts owed for work already performed and bring back a detailed, itemized accounting before approving any further expenditures. Steve (city staff) told the council the original contract had been for a 12-month period and that staff had asked Dig Studios to provide more frequent meetings and additional conceptual drawings; some of that extra work, Steve said, had already been completed. When asked where the money would come from, Steve said the funds would come from the city’s implementation plan.

Public comment: Tim Perry, a Sedona resident, urged the council to pause the project and argued the city should not proceed before a public vote on a separate Cultural Park Preservation Act. Multiple councilors said they had received late-arriving materials from community members that they wanted time to review before approving more contract dollars.

Outcome and next steps: With the council’s motion, staff were authorized to pay Dig Studios for past services, and the council directed staff to return with a detailed, itemized breakdown of what has been paid, what remains owed, and what future work (and costs) the amendment would cover. Councilor Kinsella made the motion; the maker of the second was not recorded in the public transcript. The motion passed by roll-call tally 6–1 (no further per-person vote record was provided in the transcript).

Clarifying details reported at the meeting: the proposed amendment amount cited in staff remarks was “not to exceed $106,921”; staff described added work as including more frequent meetings (weekly rather than every-other-week), additional stakeholder meetings, conceptual “eye‑level” drawings, P&Z work sessions, base-elevation and view-shed analyses. Steve said some deliverables in the original contract were not used and some funds were reallocated to additional meetings and concepts.

What the council asked staff to provide: an itemized accounting of amounts already incurred and an estimate for remaining work; staff also noted some amounts might be payable within the city manager’s existing administrative authority if those sums fall under the manager’s contract approval limits.

Context: The amendment was listed on the agenda as AB 3264 (transcribed as “AB 32 64”) and described in staff remarks as a Western Gateway master plan contract revision with Dig Studios. Councilors said they want clearer answers about what the amendment would fund before approving any additional changes to the contract.

The issue will return to council when staff provide the requested itemized cost breakdown and a recommendation on whether the city manager can administratively approve payments for completed work that fall within manager authority or whether a full council action will be required to fund outstanding amounts.