The city of Spokane is continuing its expensive habit of erring on the side of secrecy. Last year, Tim Connor and Larry Shook, journalists for the online magazine Camas, were denied a public records request for the memo prepared by the city’s financial officer in connection with the settlement with the developer in the River Park Square garage dispute.

Gavin Cooley prepared the document and presented it to City Council members in executive session before they approved of a settlement in December 2004. The mall is owned by affiliates of Cowles Co., which also owns The Spokesman-Review.

In February 2005, U.S. District Judge Edward Shea ruled that the document was a public record. The following month, Laurel Siddoway, a private attorney hired by the city, informed Connor and Shook that the document was an “exempt work product” and thus wouldn’t be turned over. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals refused to hear the city’s appeal of Shea’s ruling.

Because of the city’s refusal to budge in the face of a clear court ruling, The Center for Justice, on behalf of Connor and Shook, sued the city for violating public records law. Will the city acquiesce, or will it hand another pile of money over to lawyers to defend the indefensible and risk incurring expensive fines? If history is any judge, the city will hunker down.

The city’s intransigence is baffling. The RPS legal dispute is over. The public has a right to know the rationale behind its political leaders’ decision-making.

The sad truth is that most people would’ve given up by now, and the city’s secrecy would’ve been rewarded. Why it persists in prizing secrecy over transparency and credibility is an enduring mystery.