Recent efforts by Redding’s City Manager to gauge public opinion has left him with no doubt that public safety is a major concern for the city’s residents. Barry Tippin describes a difficult reality though, especially if making the city safer means spending more money. 80% of the city’s general fund goes to public safety, but sales tax revenue is down and CALPERS retirement liabilities are tapping more and more of the city’s money. There are 777 workers on the city payroll, which is nearly a hundred fewer than 10 years ago, but still the money is thin and some jobs remain threatened. At Tuesday nights council meeting Tippin will offer 3 alternatives for the future: one is the status quo, with various services threatened as funds are shuffled from place to place and there remains little accountability for criminals. Another is a so-called “self-help”system, where less serious incidents are self-reported and neighborhoods band together to do much of their own policing. The third alternative is to increase revenue with a special tax. Redding voters have rejected that notion in the past, but Tippin believes the public is more likely now to trust its leaders to spend the money wisely.