In the process, leaders of the organization Save Audubon Park were rebuked by Councilman Jay Batt, whose district includes the park, for what he called the "reprehensible" tone of the group's attacks on Ron Forman, Audubon's chief executive officer.

Starting last summer, Save Audubon Park and other critics have attacked Audubon officials' decisions to rebuild the park's golf course and especially to build a new golf clubhouse on the edge of a large grove of oak trees.

Having failed to get the Audubon Commission to stop the work, the critics then called on Audubon officials to submit their plans for the park to the Planning Commission, so it could review whether the plans jibe with the section of the city's proposed master plan dealing with parks, recreation and open space.

Several weeks ago, Councilman Marlin Gusman introduced a resolution directing the commission to conduct such a review and report the results to the council.

But on Thursday, Gusman said he had "taken a long, hard look" at the issue and decided such a review is not needed.

Batt went further, reading a long statement defending Audubon's plans and its procedures for obtaining public input. He said it would be a bad idea to ask one city agency "to oversee the work of a parallel city-empowered commission" and that the Planning Commission has made clear it doesn't want to take on the task.

Batt said that "public response to my office in support of the proposed clubhouse has outnumbered opposition to the project about 17 to 1."

He also criticized Save Audubon Park for refusing to identify on its Web site the people responsible for its attacks on Forman and other Audubon officials. "This sort of belligerent posturing is not acceptable in my view," he said.

Apparently anticipating what the council would do, no one from Save Audubon Park attended Thursday's meeting.

But Ann Pettit, chairwoman of the Environmental Committee of the League of Women Voters of New Orleans, said her group favors the idea of having the Planning Commission review Audubon's plans. She said Audubon officials have not done a good job of informing the public about their plans and of publicizing meetings where citizens can voice their views.

At Gusman's request, the council voted to let him withdraw the resolution calling for a Planning Commission review of Audubon's plans.