Twenty million in federal grant dollars to help southern Dallas parks is slowed down amid an ongoing dispute over how the money should be spent. The disagreement between State Rep Yvonne Davis, D-Dallas, and city staff spilled out into the open at Dallas City Hall on Tuesday. Davis told NBC 5 she came to city hall after a story published by The Dallas Morning News late Monday highlighted a months-long difference of opinions between Davis’ office and city of Dallas staff. “The city staff has been unwilling to listen to the community,” Davis said. “Our goal is to make sure we maximize that effort for the community.” The city council accepted the grant money in 2022 after Davis secured the federal funds from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as part of the American Rescue Plan Act the previous year. The projects were designed to support $10 million in parks and trails in House District 111, including athletic field improvements. In a memo obtained by NBC 5, Interim City Manager Kim Tolbert and Park and Recreation Department Director John Jenkins described “atypical involvement of the state legislative district.” Councilmember Adam Bazaldua on Tuesday requested an audit of the TPWD grant and defended city staff procedure for ensuring the money is spent in a manner that complies with federal requirements. “We need to make sure this is done in a manner that maintains transparency and accountability with our taxpayers,” Bazaldua said. “I believe this money would have already been spent if we didn’t have the unusual involvement of the state representative.” Davis said she requested certain projects be stopped because it didn’t reflect what was requested in the community or concerns over instability in other areas. One project included $3.5 million for a digital message board at Fair Park, which the memo says Davis’ office ordered canceled on August 27. “We stopped it because they are in chaos over there,” Davis said, referring to recent turmoil at the non-profit Fair Park First. “I’m a partner with them. I brought the money to the city.” City staff said they remained committed to “work in a collaborative way” with Davis’ office and meet the federal deadline of December 31 to get the grant money allocated to projects, according to the memo.