The facts . . . just the facts.

The fictional police detective Joe Friday would say that on the TV show “Dragnet” a long time ago when questioning principals involved in a criminal activity.  The admonition applies, it seems, to local media seeking to report on the status of a non-profit organization charged with shepherding downtown Amarillo’s revival.

Downtown Amarillo Inc., it was reported, was losing its revenue source from the city. Not so, DAI officials have said. Ditto, according to Mayor Paul Harpole.

A TV station reported that the city had decided to “defund” DAI. Turns out the story was a bit off the mark.

DAI failed to meet a deadline set by the City Council to come up with strategic action plan on downtown revitalization efforts.

The council, though, did not pull the plug on DAI. It extended its deadline, giving the organization a little more time to finish its work on the strategic plan. Harpole said DAI is going to present its plans at the next City Council meeting.

DAI has been the subject of a fair amount of criticism from those who dislike the effort being put into reviving downtown Amarillo. I happen to think DAI provides a service of great value to the city and want it to continue operating at full speed.

From my vantage point, it appears that the City Council and DAI need to become more familiar with each other’s move. Think of them as a dance team learning how to move in sync.

There might be more hiccups along the way as DAI and the City Council — with its three new members still feeling their way through a sometimes-complicated process — move forward . . . hopefully together.

My admonition to DAI would be to ensure that meets all the deadlines required in the future by the bosses at City Hall.

Meanwhile, it’s incumbent on the media — given the occasionally overheated rhetoric that has punctuated the recent community discussion on downtown’s future — to ensure it gets it right the first time.