The Record Searchlight filed a Freedom of Information suit to get copies of the four iterations of the Blue Print for Public Safety prepared by Matrix Consulting prior to the just released 5th and final iteration
There is a recent trend in the media where the media itself becomes the focus of the story. Donald Trump vs. Megan Kelly is an example of this trend. While the Trump/Kelly dust-up may be interesting to some it had nothing to do with the subject up for debate.
Our local newspaper has also made itself the center of its own news story. The Record Searchlight filed a Public Records Act lawsuit to get copies of two of the four iterations of the Blue Print for Public Safety prepared by Matrix Consulting prior to the just released 5th and final iteration. In doing so the paper has editorialized repeatedly on the public’s right to know and be involved in the process leading to the final product. The final product is of course now known to all and consists of series of recommendations designed to improve public safety services for both the City of Redding and Shasta County.
Paid consultants, such as Matrix, gather information, arrive at conclusions based on that information, and come up with a suggested blueprint for the future. It is very ordinary that this blueprint went through several revisions with each iteration being somewhat different than the prior one.
Generally this is because the outside consultants often reach a conclusion based on erroneous data. For example, replacement schedules for fire trucks can be correlated based on population by comparing Redding to other cities with similar populations.
The consultant will come up with a number of engines based on these “facts”. However a local review of a preliminary report could point out that a comparable city, while of equal population, had four times the population density per square mile as does Redding. By adding “facts” not previously considered the consultant will then come up with a different recommendation since the miles driven per engine have a bearing on the response times.
The Record Searchlight has inferred that because the process was not done in the presence of a reporter it is definitional flawed, and if not flawed, in all probability corrupt. The paper’s inference is that politicians have manipulated the process and/or final report to make themselves look good.
This line of thinking, by extension, can only mean that Matrix allowed the end product to be manipulated to assure they got their $155,000 fee at the expense of a more hard hitting report; that they value money over their own reputation as independent consultants.
The newspaper has spent a lot of time and ink on their self-righteous indignation. Two hundred years ago there were witch hunts in this country. The hunters always found witches. It feels like the Record Searchlight is more interested in finding a witch than they are about informing the public about how this very important and ordinary process benefits us all.
Ken Murray lives in Redding and works at Redding Realty where he has been an agent for 37 years. He served two terms on the Redding City Council, 1994 to 1998, and 2004 to 2008. He has been active in many other service projects in Redding and was a talk radio host for more than 10 years focusing on local issues.
