In a relatively quick and drama-free meeting, the Redding City Council took action Tuesday to streamline police record keeping, reiterate its support of a 2 percent “bed” tax to fund tourism marketing and establish a bicycle and pedestrian corridor between the Sacramento River Trail and downtown.
Redding police records
The council voted 5-0 to give an additional $376,000 to the consultant guiding the Redding Police Department through a major upgrade of its records management system.
The contract with Innovative Technologies, Ltd now totals $575,940. It was also extended from two to three years. Police Chief Rob Paoletti said it will be paid with money collected from the state to offset costs incurred with AB 109, the bill that shifts probation responsibilities from the state to individual counties.
The consultant will negotiate with vendors and oversee the implementation of each component of the upgrade, which includes software designed for jail staffing, public safety dispatching, crime analysis and mobile computing.
Paoletti said the upgrade will move the department into the 21st century and allow it to effectively cooperate with other agencies. “This will create a lot of efficiencies and get better information to officers on the street,” Paoletti said.
“We were still moving forward with this project when I first came on the council. I’m very excited to see it moving,” said Councilman Gary Cadd while making a motion to approve the amended contract.
“We just can’t get this soon enough,” added Councilman Brent Weaver.
In a related move, the council voted unanimously to create the position of a non-sworn police services manager to supervise records management. To feature a monthly salary of $3,954 to $6,304, the position will be filled from within the department. The successful candidate’s previous position will be eliminated.
The police sergeant currently overseeing records management will be transferred to Paoletti’s office and focus on internal affairs investigations, policy, procedure and project management. The new position will end up costing an additional $11,000 a year.
Tourism Marketing Business Improvement District
With a 5-0 vote, the council announced its intention to renew the Tourism Marketing Business Improvement District (TMBID) for a 10-year period. The issue will come before the council June 16, with a public hearing to follow on July 21.
Hotels and motels within the citywide district are assessed 2 percent of room-rental receipts and the money is used for tourism promotion and advertising. The Redding Tourism Marketing Group administers the money collected in the TMBID and turns it over to the Redding Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The TMBID generates about $825,000 a year and the money is to be spent on marketing campaigns focused on Redding.
Bike and pedestrian trails
The council voted 5-0 to apply for a pair of grants awarded through the state’s Active Transportation Program. If successful, the grants would fund two projects: improvements from Diestelhorst Bridge to downtown Redding along Riverside Drive and Center Street; and the addition of sidewalks and expanded bike lanes on Quartz Hill Road.
While reiterating her support for the Diestelhorst-to-Downtown project, Councilwoman Missy McArthur sought reassurance that residents in the Riverside Drive area were OK with the possible closure of Riverside Drive.
Public Works Director Brian Crane said the grant applications did not require the city to make any hard-and-fast decisions on Riverside or any other streets involved in the project.
Click here to watch a video of the May 19, 2015 City Council meeting.
Jon Lewis is a freelance writer living in Redding. He has more than 30 years experience writing for newspapers and magazines. Contact him at jonpaullewis@gmail.com.
