The Redding City Council special agenda (Tuesday, 5:30 p.m.) has a space for a closed discussion about maybe converting an office building into a new police facility (Item 8).

Item 2 indicates a “possible discussion” in open session and links to this memo reminding the council of its options on this: proceed as planned, wait until after the rest of the meeting, table the matter indefinitely or take this excellent opportunity to solicit public input before closing the meeting to discuss an Aug. 8 proposal from the developer and a staff report that touches on “potential price, terms and conditions of a real estate transaction.”

Wait, what? From proposal to terms in 10 days flat? Is this a good idea worth thoughtful discussion, or is it a shotgun wedding?

Here’s another memo.

Dear City Council: By all means, ask for public input. But don’t stop there. Open the meeting. The public deserves to hear an exchange of your gentle thoughts and some particulars about this multimillion-dollar public project before it gets any closer to being a done deal while we’re not looking. We would really appreciate that. Thank you.