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“We’re punching at shadows. We can’t solve anything if we don’t know who it is and exactly what they need,” general manager Janette MacDonald said, breaking her silence more than a month after a petition began circulating calling for a “demonstrative change in management.”

“We still don’t know exactly what they want,” said board chair Gerald Gallacher.

But in Thursday’s letter, the LDBA board acknowledged it had “work to do” to address member concerns.

It’s the latest development in a battle between the board and a group of disgruntled downtown businesses, which in December launched a petition and wrote to Mayor Ed Holder, suggesting MacDonald and the board mismanaged funds, created a “toxic atmosphere,” and failed to advocate for members.

Merchants cited a slew of downtown issues, including bus rapid transit, supervised injection sites, the loss of on-street parking, and a contentious consultant contract with Toronto-based Live Work Learn Play to recruit new businesses.

David White, a downtown clothing store owner who signed a previous agreement on behalf of the clients represented by Lerner, could not be reached for comment on Thursday.

Last week, Lerner said his clients’ concerns were with leadership of the agency as a whole and “never a witch hunt to get Ms. MacDonald, because she reports to the board.”

The LDBA board and management said it was disappointing to see the group air its concerns by hiring a lawyer and sending a letter to the mayor rather than communicating with the agency. Recent membership engagement meetings have been poorly attended – in some cases as few as three people showing up, they said.