Legal Question in Construction Law in Illinois

Part of the answer depends on whether the original contract was a public process or done in closed session - ordinarily it is public but final contract negotiations are in closed session. The city may feel that because there could be homeowner complaints they do not want to settle the contract issues out in closed session but make it a public process. My assumption is that this is the advice that the city was given by its attorneys. As a public process people can voice their complaints, so in the end it is a conservative approach. Otherwise, without reviewing the way in which the contract was originally awarded, what monies may be owed or are being claimed by the city that should be withheld, and what the issues are, it is really speculative to say.