"We – and I include all the members of the team – were totally blindsided," Stinson said. "As recently as this morning, there were phone conversations with CTRC without even an inkling that this was going to happen."

Stinson said it was just several weeks ago that the restoration group wrote a letter saying they had reached an agreement, with no insurmountable issues in the way.

"I heard about this from a press release," Stinson said. "I was responding to media calls before I even knew what had happened. It was a questionable way of doing business.

"This turn of events is quite astonishing."

Stinson said he thought all of the attention on the Central Terminal during the train station debate may have influenced the board's decision.

"I think it's political," Stinson said. "I think our proposal was viewed as disposable for other reasons. And now their solution is a study."

Last month, the Central Terminal was not selected as a site for a new train station. But numerous politicians pledged to find a solution that would revitalize the 1929 art deco landmark, which was the city's train station from 1929 to 1979.