Thomas Small, along with his colleagues, labeled real estate investor Michael Hackman as having "too much influence," despite accepting over $300,000 in payroll from Hackman via the non-profit organization, Culver City Forward, while serving as an elected official. This was all happening during the time when “Move Culver City” was being conceived and executed as a "quick-build" project—a project Small, who served on City Council from 2016-2020, himself admitted was a temporary pilot, meant to be adjusted and changed. Now, those same individuals are arguing that any changes to it are sacrilege. Time to pull back the curtain on their selective narratives.