City Council and the Ravenstahl administration wrangled yesterday over how to spend the city's stimulus money -- with the head of council's budget committee pressing for details that administration representatives say aren't fully developed.

"All I'm asking for is a discussion. I'm not asking for a blueprint," said City Council President Doug Shields, who arrived late to a special meeting chaired by Councilman William Peduto and quickly laced into Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, who he said ignored an April 29 letter requesting a meeting on plans for the city's share of federal stimulus dollars.

"It's hard for us to make decisions that are cogent, thoughtful and productive in cooperation with the mayor's office when a letter such as this is basically ignored," Mr. Shields said. "I would like a white paper from this administration defining what they expect to get, what sectors it'll be applied to and what's open for discussion and what isn't."

Chuck Half, director of the Mayor's Office of Management, Accountability, Performance and Strategy, pleaded for patience, saying the administration is dealing with a massive federal allocation process.

Department heads dispatched by the mayor's office to explain used terms such as "moving target" -- at one point the figure $40 million was cited, at another point $47 million, then another $18 million for the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority came up.

The series of answers appeared to do little to satisfy council members.

"Is there a list for council to look over? I don't want something coming to us at the final hour. That's what happened [Wednesday]," said Councilwoman Darlene Harris. She was referring to a project proposal by Mr. Ravenstahl sent to council for approval without prior consultation.

Administration representatives dispatched to the hearing said there is, indeed, a list for council to examine: a "stimulus tracker" posted on the city's Web site, something a few of them privately complained council hadn't been following.

"There's no attempt to leave anybody out of the process," Mr. Half said between sessions yesterday.

Much of the disconnect, both sides agreed, was the sheer magnitude of the spending and the sometimes complex series of channels through which the money will flow, first from the Obama administration, down through federal agencies that dispense the money to various state-level agencies and from there to a diffuse assemblage of counties, towns and authorities.

City-related authorities are already spending federal stimulus money. Yesterday, the Pittsburgh Housing Authority board voted to approve construction-related contracts totaling $4.54 million, to be paid entirely or partly from stimulus funds.

State Rep. Chelsa Wagner, D-Brookline, opened yesterday's session explaining the state's role. She was the one who provided the first of the moving figures: $40 million.

The money, she said, would be overseen by the Pennsylvania Department of General Services.

"Beyond that, it is going through many of the established departments," she said.

Some things, she fears, could be lost in the process as various projects compete for their share of the state's share of stimulus.

Complaints of missing details did not follow every presentation yesterday. When Rob Stephany of the Urban Redevelopment Authority sat down at the conference table, he presented a $19 million list of planned expenditures that covered projects down to the neighborhood and with each dollar amount broken out.

Holding the list aloft, Mr. Peduto beamed. "That's all I'm asking for from each department and each authority," he said. The URA's list, however, turns out to account for state community development allocations that are not part of the federal stimulus bill.