The Memphis City Council’s budget committee approved the largest budget for any single city division Tuesday, May 7.

But the committee debate before the vote set the stage for what is expected to be more discussion about how much the Memphis Police Department needs to protect and serve.

2. Beyond the Numbers - Saturday, May 04, 2013

It’s that time of year again when thick budget books dominate life for those in the Memphis and Shelby County governments.

But this year’s budget season on both sides of the Civic Center Plaza is more than line items and bottom lines on paper. The deliberations that ultimately determine how much you will pay in property taxes and at what rate go beyond the plans in the books of estimates, projections and the recurring and one-time revenue sources.

3. Questions Kick Off City Budget Hearings - Thursday, April 25, 2013

Memphis City Council members opened budget committee hearings Tuesday, April 23, on the clock and with lots of questions about what seemed to some like different budget numbers from last year at this time by the administration of Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr.

4. State Delays Auto Inspection Takeover - Thursday, March 07, 2013

The state of Tennessee has told the city of Memphis it will probably take two years for it to take over auto inspection duties in Shelby County.

But city funding for the auto inspection stations and employees runs out when the current fiscal year does, at the end of June.

5. Sales Tax Hike Headed to Ballot - Tuesday, March 05, 2013

Memphis City Council members take final votes Tuesday, March 5, on a half-percent city sales tax hike referendum and the use of the estimated $47 million in revenue the tax hike will produce.

The council, which meets at 3:30 p.m. at City Hall, 125 N. Main St., is expected to pass the referendum and send it to voters this year.

6. Five Big Ideas: Powering Your Business - Friday, March 01, 2013

As Jim Collins explains in “Great by Choice,” all business leaders are bombarded with both great luck and bad breaks. The smartest CEOs learn not to squander sudden opportunities and figure out how to turn dismal news to their advantage – multiplying the benefits of whatever hand they’re dealt. Maximizing your “ROL” (Return on Luck) should be top of your list, every day. But your ROL is just part of the picture. Here are four more ideas that will help you achieve great results in 2013 and beyond.

7. City Council Approves Fairgrounds TDZ Request - Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Memphis City Council members approved Tuesday, Feb. 19, plans for a tourism development zone to capture sales tax revenue in a large area for a renovation of the Fairgrounds property at first.

The boundaries of the zone go to the state for approval and city Community and Housing Development division director Robert Lipscomb said such a proposal could be at the state building commission in Nashville in April.

8. Maximizing Your Return on Luck - Monday, December 17, 2012

Hunkering down in year-end strategic planning sessions, you are probably thinking about what’s next for the economy and how that will affect your business.

Slow down. You should be laser focused on maximizing what Jim Collins, in his book “Great by Choice,” calls your “return on luck” – one of the most important business concepts ever articulated.

9. Become Great by Choice - Monday, December 03, 2012

There are those who continually improve their knowledge and skills and have accumulated 30 years experience. And then there are those who simply repeat their initial year of experience 30 times, learning very little along the way.

10. Funding Cut Underscores Gov. Divide - Thursday, August 23, 2012

Consider this the latest dust-up on the city-county government divide. Some Memphis City Council members who voted this week to end city funding for vehicle inspections at the end of June 2013 see the decision as one in a series of challenges to the long-held definition of what city government does and what county government does.

11. Council Approves Cut of City Funding For Vehicle Inspections - Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Memphis City Council members voted Tuesday, Aug. 21, to end city funding for vehicle inspections at the end of June 2013.

The 10-2 council vote followed months of discussion among council members about Shelby County government or the state of Tennessee assuming responsibility for the car and truck inspections.

12. Herenton Wants Juvenile System Charter School - Friday, July 06, 2012

Former Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton wants to open a charter school that draws its students from those youths in the custody or care of the Memphis-Shelby County Juvenile Court.

Herenton talked about the still forming proposal for a charter school under the name W.E.B. DuBois Academy this week as he returned to City Hall. He sought City Council support for a Memphis City Schools collaboration with charter school operators offered by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. MCS leaders declined to participate last year.

13. City Budget Season Ends With Frustration - Thursday, June 07, 2012

The year of the “gap budget” at City Hall felt and sounded a lot like the previous two budget years at City Hall.

The mayor and City Council were frustrated even as the budget deliberations came to an end with a lowered city property tax rate.

14. Council Looks to End Budget Season - Tuesday, June 05, 2012

Memphis City Council members are likely to end their budget season Tuesday, June 5, with final votes on an operating budget ordinance as well as a tax rate ordinance.

But going into the week there was no single budget proposal or tax rate proposal that had the formal endorsement of a majority on the council.

15. Differences Remain on City Tax Rate - Thursday, May 31, 2012

When the Memphis City Council’s budget committee gets together Tuesday, June 5, there probably will be agreement that the full council should not raise property taxes.

Instead, it should lower the property tax rate and should use more of the city’s $81 million reserve fund than Mayor A C Wharton Jr.’s administration believes is prudent.

16. Council Weighs Three Tax Roll Back Proposals - Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Three Memphis City Council members have presented plans that would roll back the city’s current property tax rate to varying degrees and come up with the city’s last mandatory funding to Memphis City Schools using differing combinations of one-time funds.

17. Council Looks at Four Budget Proposals - Monday, May 28, 2012

The Memphis City Council begins talking seriously Tuesday, May 29, about at least four budget proposals already forwarded by individual council members and possibly more to be unveiled at a council budget committee session.

18. Budget Talks Turn to MCS Funding Issue - Monday, May 14, 2012

If the city of Memphis has one more fiscal year of funding Memphis City Schools, it could be one-time-only funding instead of raising the city property tax rate.

After several years of Memphis City Council members debating the use of one-time-only funding to cover continuing expenses in the city’s operating budget, the coming schools consolidation that begins in August 2013 has prompted some new scenarios.

19. Council Pursues Alternatives To Tax Hike - Thursday, May 03, 2012

City Council member Ed Ford Jr.’s students finished their algebra tests this week and he took them to Chik-fil-A as a reward.

It is one of the few diversions Ford is allowing himself this budget season in which he and other council members are contemplating ways around the 47-cent property tax hike Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. has proposed for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

20. Council Rejects 18 Cent Property Tax Hike - Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Memphis City Council members voted Tuesday, March 20, to reject a one-time, 18-cent property tax hike to mop up an estimated $13 million in red ink for the current fiscal year.

Instead the council voted to use $10 million from the city’s reserve fund and cut $3.2 million in the existing budget including money for a voluntary buyout program of some sanitation workers that the Wharton administration has yet to activate.

21. Lawmakers Debate Pay Cutoff for Budget Gridlock - Thursday, March 15, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) – Even the top sponsor of a bill that would cut off lawmakers' pay if they can't – or won't – pass a budget blueprint admits many of his colleagues think it's just a political talking point instead of a serious idea.

22. Elvis Presley Blvd. Center of Council Talks - Thursday, February 23, 2012

For decades what is now Elvis Presley Boulevard was the road to Memphis for those from Mississippi, whether they were coming to stay or coming to visit.

Much has changed since Elvis Presley moved into a home on a hill already named Graceland in the mid-1950s when Whitehaven was a country road not yet a part of the city of Memphis.

23. Sides Firm on Annexation but Stand Down - Thursday, February 02, 2012

A year after the Memphis City Council and Republican state legislators from Shelby County had their first race to see who could pass their school consolidation measures first, there is hesitancy on both sides to stage a second political drag race on annexation.

24. ‘Contrarian’ Collins Finds Success in Tough Market - Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Doug Collins has always believed that the greatest opportunities are found in troubled times.

The president of Prudential Collins-Maury Inc. Realtors even classifies himself as “somewhat of a contrarian.”

25. In-Synk Book Club to Review 'Great by Choice' - Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Leadership Memphis’ In-Synk book club will meet Friday, Jan. 13, at Triumph Bank, 5699 Poplar Ave., to review the new book by Jim Collins, “Great by Choice.”

26. Council Weighs In on Electrolux Incentives - Thursday, January 05, 2012

Some Memphis City Council members want to at least slow the appropriation of local government funding to Electrolux North America Cooking Products if the company isn’t more responsive to hiring local for the construction of its Memphis manufacturing plant.

27. Council Cautious About City Finances - Thursday, December 08, 2011

Memphis City Council members set the tone for the beginning of a new four-year term of office at their next to last meeting of 2011.

And the message is the council intends to be an equal partner with Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. in setting the city’s fiscal priorities, not waiting and then voting his proposals up or down.

28. Council Passes Amended City Bonus, Rejects Water Rate Hike - Wednesday, December 07, 2011

Memphis City Council members approved a $750 flat bonus for all full time city employees Tuesday, Dec. 6, and a flat bonus of $200 for part time city employees.

Just as the Shelby County Commission did Monday for county employees, the council departed from the mayoral administration’s plan for a bonus as a percentage of pay.

29. Occupy Protests Cost Nation's Cities at Least $13M - Thursday, November 24, 2011

NEW YORK (AP) – During the first two months of the nationwide Occupy protests, the movement that is demanding more out of the wealthiest Americans cost local taxpayers at least $13 million in police overtime and other municipal services, according to a survey by The Associated Press.

30. Wharton, Fullilove & Conrad Re-Elected -- Harris-Ford to Runoff - Friday, October 07, 2011
Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. won a full four-year term of office as mayor Thursday, Oct. 6, two years after he claimed the mayor’s office in a special election.

And all 12 of the Memphis City Council members seeking re-election won new four year terms in the city election cycle, marking the largest return of incumbents to the 13-member council in the 43-year history of the mayor-council form of government.

31. City Council Delays MLGW Insurance Contract - Monday, September 26, 2011

A fight for a $122 million health insurance contract that began last year continued last week as the Memphis City Council delayed approval of the contract between CIGNA and Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division.

32. Vote for Me - Monday, September 12, 2011

Four years after the biggest turnover on the Memphis City Council, the Oct. 6 city elections could see the biggest return of incumbents ever on the council. Early voting begins Friday, Sept. 16.

Twelve of the 13 incumbents are seeking re-election. It would have been 13 had Barbara Swearengen Ware not taken a plea deal on an official misconduct charge.

33. Debt-Limit Votes: Senate Momentum, House Concerns - Tuesday, August 02, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) – The House began debate Monday on the hard-bargained plan to avert a national financial default, even as the White House and congressional leaders struggled to round up enough votes to approve it. Supporters said momentum for the deficit-reduction compromise was on their side, but resistance from both liberals and conservatives made the outcome unclear.

34. Boyd Moves Into Temp. Council Seat - Monday, July 25, 2011

It’s the week between the filing deadline for the Oct. 6 Memphis elections and the deadline for any candidates who made the first deadline to get out of the race by Thursday, July 28, at noon – the withdrawal deadline.

35. 4 Council Members - All 3 City Court Judges To Run Unopposed In Oct. Elections - Friday, July 22, 2011

Four incumbent Memphis City Council members and all three incumbent City Court Judges were effectively re-elected at the Thursday, July 21, noon deadline for candidates to file their qualifying petitions for the Oct. 6 Memphis ballot.

36. Last-Minute Filers Make Election Deadline - Thursday, July 21, 2011

A flurry of last-minute filings came at the noon Thursday, July 21, deadline for candidates in the Oct. 6 Memphis elections to turn in their qualifying petitions.

Shelby County Election Commission staffers were still checking the signatures on the petitions filed Thursday to make sure those signing were voters and lived in the districts they signed for or the city in the case of the citywide races.

37. After Early Zeal, TV Networks Pull Back Web Series - Tuesday, July 12, 2011

NEW YORK (AP) – Around 2007, TV networks made a land rush to the Web, looking to lay down digital production studios. Four years later, many of those networks have pulled up stakes, shunning original Web content and reorienting their online outlook.

38. Pieces of the Puzzle - Monday, June 27, 2011

Memphis City Council members left the city property tax rate at $3.19 Tuesday, June 21, as they ended their budget season.

But they added 18 cents to the tax rate on a one time basis with a separate resolution.

39. Council Approves ‘Right-Sizing’ Budget, Tax Hike - Thursday, June 23, 2011

While the Memphis City Council left the city property tax rate at $3.19 as it ended the budget season Tuesday, June 21, it added 18 cents to the tax rate on a one-time basis with a separate resolution.

40. Council Approves City Budget With One Time 18 Cent Tax Hike - Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Memphis City Council members approved a $661.4 million operating budget and added 18 cents on top of the city property tax rate, although they insist it is a one time only tax hike to pay money owed the Memphis City Schools in the upcoming budget year.

41. Council to Consider Sewer Fee, Postponing Layoffs - Tuesday, May 03, 2011

A voting majority of Memphis City Council members seem to have reached an early agreement on lowering the city sewer fee.

At a 10 a.m. council committee session Tuesday, council members will discuss the proposed ordinance sponsored by eight of the 12 council members to cut the maximum monthly residential sanitary sewer fee from $50 to $25.

42. Council Wants Mediation of MCS Funding Dispute - Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Mediation is the latest direction in a complex school funding morass that is getting more complex by the day.

Memphis City Council members Tuesday voted to have their attorney file a motion in Chancery Court seeking non-binding mediation on how and how much the city should pay the Memphis City Schools (MCS) system in a two-year funding dispute.

43. Business Sense - Monday, November 01, 2010

Mark Luttrell has a little more than eight weeks under his belt as Shelby County mayor, and he’s spent much of that time on things that shouldn’t come as a surprise.

44. Midtown CVS Approved By Council - Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Memphis City Council member approved a CVS drug store at Union Ave and Cooper St. on a 10-2 vote that followed a two hour debate.

The council also approved an amendment calling on the developers of the store to get as close as they can in their plans to requirements of the advisory Midtown overlay. The two exceptions to that are restrictions on a drive through window for the pharmacy and how far from the street the building can be.

45. Gaining Speed - Monday, August 16, 2010

For years the Whitehaven community has been fighting against urban decay, crime and economic decline, including the effects of the recent recession.

But with ambitious plans for Graceland in the offing, committed political leadership in place and cooperation from the major players in the area, Whitehaven seems poised to turn an important corner.

46. Checks Will be Coming: Jobless Benefits Renewed - Friday, July 23, 2010

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal checks could begin flowing again as early as next week to millions of jobless people who lost up to seven weeks of unemployment benefits in a congressional standoff.

47. Unemployment Benefits Extension Clears Hurdle - Wednesday, July 21, 2010

WASHINGTON (AP) – Legislation to restore unemployment benefits to millions who have been out of work for more than six months broke free of Senate Republican delaying tactics on Tuesday.

Senators voted 60-40 to move ahead on the bill, clearing the way for a final Senate vote later on Tuesday. The measure would restore jobless checks for 2.5 million people whose benefits started running out seven weeks ago in a stubbornly jobless economic recovery.

48. City Council Rejects Cap On Tuition Reimbursement - Wednesday, July 07, 2010

Memphis City Council members rejected a plan by the Wharton administration Tuesday to cap tuition reimbursement for city employees at $1,400 per worker.

The council move came after funding for the city’s tuition reimbursement program was cut from $1.4 million last fiscal year to $500,000 in the fiscal year that began July 1.

49. Renaissance Avenue - Monday, June 28, 2010

When Larry Schmitt bought a two-story building on the corner of Broad Avenue and Collins Street in 1993, he knew the place needed some TLC.

50. Council Makes Minor Budget Changes - Thursday, June 24, 2010

Memphis City Council members Tuesday made a few changes to the new city budget for the fiscal year starting July 1. But coming up with $57 million in funding for the Memphis school system wasn’t one of them.

51. Strickland Attempts To Reopen City Budget - Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Memphis City Council members closed out their budget season two weeks ago, but council member Jim Strickland will take one more try at amending the budget plan at Tuesday’s council session.

52. Council Battles Funding Issues - Thursday, February 25, 2010

As Memphis political leaders made another trip to Nashville this week seeking money for The MED, others questioned the hospital’s life expectancy.

Memphis City Council members this week delayed a vote on $2 million in emergency funding for The MED until April.

53. MED MCS Funding Swap Proposal Emerges - Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Some Memphis City Council members are working with Shelby County Mayor Joe Ford on a deal in which county government would become the single source of local funding for the Memphis school system. In exchange for that the city would contribute some amount of funding to the Regional Medical Center.

54. UPDATE: MED MCS Funding Swap Proposal Surfaces - Tuesday, February 09, 2010

Some Memphis City Council members are working with Shelby County Mayor Joe Ford on a deal in which county government would become the single source of local funding for the Memphis school system. In exchange for that the city would contribute some amount of funding to the Regional Medical Center.

55. MED Funding a State Issue, Leaders Say - Friday, January 29, 2010

The issue of double taxation reared its head this week as a plan to provide $12 million in local emergency funding for the Regional Medical Center at Memphis scored $10 million.

The county funding cleared the Shelby County Commission on a 9-3 vote after lots of debate Monday.

56. School Funding Debate Marches On - Thursday, January 28, 2010

The city of Memphis is pursuing a last appeal in the Memphis school funding court case, and the City Council this week came up with a plan to provide $50 million in court-ordered funding to the school system.

57. School Funding Delay Could Rear Up Again - Tuesday, January 26, 2010

The Memphis City Council appears poised to pay the city school system $70 million despite voting two weeks ago to delay such a payment.

But the terms of the payment remains an issue.

Today’s council session begins at 3:30 pm at City Hall, 125 N. Main. An agenda for the meeting is on Page 11.

58. Appeals Court Ruling Raises More School Funding Issues - Friday, January 15, 2010

In the 19 months since the Memphis City Council voted to cut funding to the Memphis public school system, much has changed beyond the borders of the legal issue it raised and the lawsuit it prompted.

59. Tn Appeals Court Rules MCS Owed $50 Million By City - Thursday, January 14, 2010

The Tennessee Court of Appeals has ruled the city of Memphis owes the Memphis school system $50 million in funding by the end of June.

The ruling filed today in Jackson, Tenn. affirms an earlier decision by Chancellor Kenny Armstrong and is likely to be appealed to the Tennessee Supreme Court or the city could ask the Appeals Court to take a second look at its decision.

60. UPDATE: Appeals Court Backs MCS In Funding Lawsuit - Wednesday, January 13, 2010

The Tennessee Court of Appeals has ruled the city of Memphis owes the Memphis school system $50 million in funding by the end of June.

The ruling filed today in Jackson, Tenn. affirms an earlier decision by Chancellor Kenny Armstrong and is likely to be appealed to the Tennessee Supreme Court or the city could ask the Appeals Court to take a second look at its decision.

61. 2009 Year In Review - Monday, December 28, 2009

2009 was a year without a script – and plenty of improvising on the political stage.

It was supposed to be an off-election year except in Arlington and Lakeland.

2008 ended with voters in the city and county approving a series of changes to the charters of Memphis and Shelby County governments. Those changes were supposed to set a new direction for both entities, kicking into high gear in 2010 and ultimately culminating two years later.

62. UPDATE: Council Weighs One-Time 31 Cent Tax Hike - Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Memphis City Council members will weigh budget cuts in the middle of the current fiscal year as well as using at least $16 million of the city’s reserve funds to pay the Memphis school system $50 million.

63. City Leaders Grapple With Public Safety, Blight Issues - Monday, December 07, 2009

Memphis City Council members are among civic leaders now pondering the next step beyond Blue CRUSH, the Memphis Police Department’s strategy credited with a 17 percent drop in overall crime in the city since 2006.

64. City’s Dilemma: Fight Crime or Bust Blight? - Thursday, December 03, 2009

Some Memphis City Council members question whether the city’s crackdown on crime is coming at the expense of efforts to eliminate or prevent blight in neighborhoods.

That sentiment surfaced in a council committee session this week. It came the same week that Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. talked of an emerging anti-crime strategy at his first town hall meeting.

65. A City in Transition - Monday, November 09, 2009

Just before sunrise on a rainy Tuesday morning, the armed officers raided the city office. They didn’t make any arrests, but they took files, interviewed employees and served search warrants. And they temporarily closed the Memphis Animal Shelter.

66. Chaotic Council Welcomes Wharton To ‘Land of Fire’ - Thursday, October 22, 2009

Memphis Mayor-elect A C Wharton Jr. got an early welcome to the ways of City Hall in the week before he took the oath of office.

It came from the City Council he will serve with for the next two years.

67. Events - Tuesday, October 20, 2009

In-Synk will host a live telecast of Jim Collin’s keynote address at the Gazelles/Fortune Small Business Growth Summit today at 8 a.m. at The Crescent Club, 6075 Poplar Ave., Suite 909. Collins is author of “Good to Great” and will discuss his latest discoveries in studying small- and mid-sized companies that have thrived. Cost is $75. To register, visit in-synkcollinstelecast.eventbrite.com or call 276-0200.

68. City Mayoral Transition Yields Crowded To-Do List - Tuesday, October 20, 2009
 

Memphis Mayor-elect A C Wharton Jr. will be appointing a new city attorney once he takes office next week.

Elbert Jefferson, the city attorney Mayor Pro Tem Myron Lowery tried to fire just minutes after taking the oath of office on July 31, Friday sent a second resignation letter to Lowery. The two met for an hour Sunday evening at City Hall and Lowery accepted Jefferson’s resignation.

Jefferson’s attorney, Ted Hansom, and city Chief Administrative Officer Jack Sammons were also present. Jefferson turned in his key card, the keys to his city car and his laptop.

“The drama is over,” Lowery said Monday. “For my part, I wish it had never happened.”

Dramatis personae

In a resignation letter last week to Wharton, Jefferson had expressed hope that he would be hired for some position in the new administration. Over the weekend, he used the same text in the new letter but addressed it to Lowery instead. He requested the city pay his legal fees as well.

The resignation letter to Lowery made moot an ouster suit filed by Shelby County District Attorney General Bill Gibbons. Criminal Court Judge James Lammey, who was to hear the case, reset a final report to Oct. 27, citing Jefferson’s departure.

“A hearing on the issue of suspension would be an inefficient use of judicial resources, of the state of Tennessee and of the resources of the city of Memphis, and considering (Jefferson’s) current health status, would be an unnecessary tax on (Jefferson’s) well-being and a possible threat to his health,” Lammey wrote in the court order.

Jefferson was scheduled to return to City Hall from sick leave Monday. He apparently believed the new mayor would be in office by the time he returned.

An audit of city financial affairs is standard procedure in a change of administrations. Wharton is naming team members to review the offices of the city attorney, human resources and finance and administration. He was also to name members of his transition team Monday.

Time-, battle-tested

Shelby County Commissioner Mike Carpenter and Methodist Healthcare executive Cato Johnson will head the team.

The other members are:

- Herman Morris, attorney and 2007 candidate for Memphis Mayor.

- Tomeka Hart, Memphis Urban League CEO and Memphis school board member.

- Jim Strickland, attorney and Memphis City Council member.

- Rev. Dwight Montgomery, Southern Christian Leadership Conference Memphis chapter President.

- Jose Velasquez, Latino Memphis former executive director.

- Nisha Powers, Powers Hill Design Inc. President.

- Paul Morris, attorney and former chairman Center City Commission.

- Douglas Scarboro, The Leadership Academy vice president.

- Steve Reynolds, Baptist Memorial Health Care Corp. CEO.

- Diane Rudner, Plough Foundation chairman.

- Darrell Cobbins, Universal Commercial CEO.

Johnson has more experience serving on such task forces and ad hoc committees than any other leader in the city’s corporate community. Most recently, Johnson was one of two business leaders on the ad hoc committee exploring single-source local funding for education. He also served as a leader of the Mid-South Fairgrounds renovation committee and has been involved in similar capacities with every major construction project for a civic use in the past 15 years.

Carpenter’s appointment is certain to fuel speculation that he might be tapped for some role in the new administration. However, Carpenter has already been holding fundraisers in anticipation of a bid for re-election to his commission seat in the 2010 county elections.

Wharton is tentatively scheduled to take the oath of office Oct. 26.

The Shelby County Commission also meets that same day and could receive Wharton’s resignation and declare a vacancy in the county mayor’s office with a vote to appoint Wharton’s successor-to-come in November. Until that vote, County Commission Chairwoman Joyce Avery will serve as interim mayor.

“It will be a day in which I come to work at one place and leave work from another place,” Wharton told The Daily News.

But the Shelby County Election Commission will meet earlier than expected -- Thursday afternoon -- to certify the Oct. 15 election results. Once the results are certified, Wharton is free to resign as Shelby County mayor and take the oath as Memphis mayor.

Cooperative efforts

Meanwhile, Wharton has asked City Council Chairman Harold Collins to consider delaying a council vote today on the five appointees the city mayor is to make to a metro charter commission. The council set today’s vote with the intention of having whomever won the Oct. 15 special election appoint members of the panel.

“I won’t be there on the 20th. … I’m seeing if they are in a position to put it off until I’m actually over there,” Wharton told The Daily News, as he has had attorneys researching if a council vote in November would meet timelines for such an effort set out in state law.

“I believe that they may be able to meet on Nov. 3,” Wharton said.

Wharton has already named the 10 appointees to be made by the Shelby County mayor to the panel. The County Commission approved all 10 earlier this month.

While it appears he will make the other five, Wharton said he will ask the council, through Collins, to effectively pick the five nominees, whom Wharton would then send to the council as his appointees.

“I chose all 10 over here, which I had to do by law. If I could find some way around it that passed legal muster, then I would do that,” he said. “But we’ve researched it and I know of no way in which the city mayor can say … ‘I’m not going to do that.’ You can’t transfer it.”

Wharton and Lowery were to discuss the matter at a meeting Monday afternoon. Lowery told The Daily News he had received no suggested appointees from council members, but would be willing to submit names the council wants on the charter commission.

69. Events - Monday, October 19, 2009

Burke’s Book Store will host a reading and book signing with Jill McCorkle today from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Burke’s, 936 S. Cooper St. McCorkle will read from her new book, “Going Away Shoes.” For more information, call 278-7484.

70. Events - Friday, October 16, 2009

The University of Memphis College of Communication and Fine Arts will recognize filmmaker Craig Brewer today at 11:30 a.m. at Charles Vergos Rendezvous, 52 S. Second St. Brewer will receive the 2009 Distinguished Achievement Award in the Creative and Performing Arts. Cost is $50 per person and $350 for a table of eight. For reservations, call 678-5086 or 678-4372.

71. Dress Newest Pathologist At Pathology Group of the MidSouth - Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Dr. Matthew A. Dress has joined Pathology Group of the MidSouth PC as its newest pathologist.

Before joining Pathology Group of the MidSouth, Dress served as the chief resident in anatomic and clinical pathology at the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Tennessee. He then completed a fellowship in hematopathology at the University of Rochester Medical Center-Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, N.Y. 

72. Election Commission to Consider Mayoral Deadline - Thursday, July 09, 2009

The Shelby County Election Commission today is setting the stage for the next step in the coming special election for Memphis mayor.

The commission will meet at 4:30 p.m. to consider setting a deadline for candidates to file and a date for the election itself sometime in late October. In setting the dates, the commission would abide by terms of the Memphis Charter. The charter calls for a special election three months after a vacancy in the mayor’s office if there is no regularly scheduled election within six months of the date the office becomes vacant.

73. City Council Declares Mayoral Vacancy At End Of July - Wednesday, July 08, 2009

The Memphis City Council approved Tuesday on a 7-6 vote a resolution declaring the mayor’s office vacant as of July 31.

The vote came after a debate in which council members questioned each other’s motives, Mayor Willie Herenton’s word and several legal opinions.

74. UPDATE: Council Approves Mayoral Vacancy Effective July 31 - Tuesday, July 07, 2009

The Memphis City Council approved Tuesday on a 7-6 vote a resolution declaring the mayor’s office vacant as of July 31.

The vote came after a debate in which council members questioned each other’s motives, Mayor Willie Herenton’s word and several legal opinions.

75. There Goes the Neighborhood: New hope emerges in one of Memphis’ roughest areas - Monday, July 06, 2009

Hope and despair have co-existed for a long time along the stretch of Poplar Avenue between Danny Thomas Boulevard and Decatur Street. And for the past two years, the area has seen more change than just about any other inner-city avenue in Memphis.

76. UPDATE: Council Goes Long to Approve $600 Million Budget - Wednesday, June 17, 2009

The Memphis City Council late Tuesday approved a city operating budget of just over $600 milliion after cutting nearly $17 million from the budget proposed in April by Mayor Willie Herenton.

The council also set a property tax rate of $3.19 for the new fiscal year that begins July 1. Some confusion about the new tax rate remained Wednesday morning among council members. At least one council member contacted by The Daily News immediately after the council session said it was a $3.25 tax rate. Council Chairman Myron Lowery told The Daily News Wednesday afternoon, the rate is $3.19.

The state adjusted certified rate including an allowance for appeals of property reappraisals is $3.19. The certified adjusted rate represents the tax rate that will produce the same amount of revenue the city now gets from the $3.25 rate after the recent property reappraisal process.

“This is democracy in action. In the end it works,” said Council chairman Myron Lowery at the end of the eight hour council session which followed seven hours of committee meetings at City Hall.

Lowery’s verdict, however, contrasted sharply with other council members on both sides of a roiling debate about where to make budget cuts.

Most of the $16 million in cuts were made by following recommendations made by the council’s budget committee chaired by Wanda Halbert. But the votes by the full council were close and came with lots of debate instead of a single vote on a package of budget committee recommendations.

Halbert said she was “deeply saddened we have spent so much of the past few weeks coming to City Hall every single day discussing this budget line by line.”

“Some of you weren’t even here,” she continued. “I’m tired. I’m behind on a lot of things.”

The council left intact three percent pay raises for city employees that follow the five percent raise city employees got during the current fiscal year after two prior years with no pay raises.

Some on the council fought hard to either eliminate any pay raises or cut the size of the pay raises citing the current national economic recession.

“Maybe some of us live in a world where we believe at the end of the day it will all work out just fine,” said Council member Harold Collins. “But it is unfortunate we have others who believe, ‘I’ve got to get mine and get it now.’”

Council member Jim Strickland argued that savings the council has achieved through moving some city funding obligations to Shelby County government have simply been used for more city spending.

“We’ve cut schools and spent it,” he said. “We cut the health department and spent it. The public is aware of this. And they’re not receiving relief from double taxation.”

Still to be debated and determined by the council is a proposed special tax bill that could be issued as early as August that would reflect the amount the council has been ordered to pay the city school system by Chancellor Kenny Armstrong. Armstrong ruled against the city in a city school system lawsuit challenging the council’s decision to cut funding to the school system in the current fiscal year. He ordered the city to pay $57 million to the city school system. The ruling is being appealed by the city and any payment is on hold pending the outcome of an appeal that is expected to go from the state appeals court to the Tennessee Supreme Court.

A special tax bill would not be for the full $57 million under the general framework of a plan being debated by the council. Collins proposed designating $16 million from the city’s $92 million fund balance or reserve fund.

“We don’t have a money tree here in the back of city hall and can’t afford to raise taxes indefinitely,” Council member Kemp Conrad said. “This hasn’t been pleasant but it’s what we signed up for. We have to make tough decisions.”

The council voted to contribute $125,000 in city funding for the transition of the Memphis Sexual Assault Resource Center (MSARC) to county government control. In budget committee, the council voted to cut the entire $700,000 line item for the department. The committee action prompted an agreement between Herenton and Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton Jr. to move the center to the health department.

The council also included funding in the budget for a set of red light cameras to photograph traffic scofflaws at key city traffic intersections. The cost for the first year of the system would be $480,000, a cost proponents of the system, including Lowery, have said would be paid for with revenues from ticket fines.

77. Money Cut From Schools Considered for City Pay Raises - Friday, June 12, 2009

When City Council members voted earlier this year to cut all funding to the Shelby County Health Department, the Herenton administration followed up.

It proposed and the County Commission accepted a plan to provide one last dose of city funding for the county agency in exchange for a buyout of the county’s share of The Pyramid.

78. Pyramid Funding Details Shift to Legal Front - Thursday, May 07, 2009

Now the attorneys begin drafting a contract.

This week, the Memphis City Council signed off on a three-part deal that gives the city of Memphis complete ownership of The Pyramid and continues city funding of the Shelby County Health Department for one more fiscal year.

79. Pyramid-Health Dept. Deal Approved By Council - Wednesday, May 06, 2009

Memphis City Council members Tuesday approved an $8.5 million deal giving the city complete ownership of The Pyramid and providing a last installment of city funding for the local Health Department.

80. City Council Approves Pyramid - Health Dept. Deal - Tuesday, May 05, 2009

Memphis City Council members tonight approved an $8.5 million deal giving the city complete ownership of The Pyramid and providing a last installment of city funding for the local Health Department.

81. Obama: Catastrophe Coming if Congress Doesn't Act - Thursday, February 05, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans tried to push back against the ballooning size of President Barack Obama's economic recovery plan Wednesday even as he said the financial crisis would turn into "a catastrophe" unless the bill passed quickly.

82. Council Amends Rental Energy Efficiency Standards - Wednesday, February 04, 2009

The Memphis City Council has given final approval to an ordinance that sets minimum energy efficiency standards for rental property.

The ordinance, approved Tuesday on third reading with a unanimous council vote, came with some amendments. They were worked out in talks between Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division officials and representatives of apartment complex owners as well as owners of smaller and single-family rental properties.

83. Council Approves Apartment Energy Efficiency Standards - Tuesday, February 03, 2009

The Memphis City Council has given final approval to an ordinance that sets minimum energy efficiency standards for rental property.

The ordinance, approved today on third reading with a unanimous council vote, came with some amendments. They were worked out in talks between Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division officials and representatives of apartment complex owners as well as owners of smaller and single-family rental properties.

84. Republicans Block Boost for Road Building - Wednesday, February 04, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) - Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked Democrats from adding $25 billion for highways, mass transit, and water projects to President Barack Obama's economic recovery program.

85. Council Again Rejects Lee Legal Fees - Tuesday, December 02, 2008

The Memphis City Council this evening affirmed its vote in Oct. to reject paying the legal fees of former Memphis Light Gas & Water Division president Joseph Lee.

The bill for Lee’s legal defense in a grand jury probe that led to his indictment as well as a hearing before the council came to $426,422. The corruption charges were later dropped by federal prosecutors.

The 7-6 vote came at the end of a day in which MLGW president Jerry Collins told council members talks between the utility and Lee’s attorney, Robert Spence, failed to reach any terms for a lesser amount.

Council members voting against the proposed settlement were: Bill Boyd, Kemp Conrad, Shea Flinn, Reid Hedgepeth, Myron Lowery, Bill Morrison and Jim Strickland. Those voting for it were: Joe Brown, Harold Collins, Edmund Ford Jr., Janis Fullilove, Wanda Halbert and Barbara Swearengen Ware.

Spence told The Daily News an announcement on a decision by Lee about pursuing the legal fees in a lawsuit against the city could be made as early as Tuesday.

The council has also given final approval this evening to an ordinance regulating the location of financial services, payday loan and title loan businesses.

The council vote was unanimous on third and final reading. Third and final vote before the Shelby County Commission is scheduled for Dec. 8.

The council passed an amended version that emerged as a compromise during today’s council session.

The ordinance bans the businesses from being with 1,000 feet of each other. The compromise worked out by council member Bill Morrison, with agreement from the payday loan industry, deals with a 90 day grace period for existing businesses to apply for a waiver.

Council member Barbara Swearengen Ware argued the location of the businesses isn’t the problem. It’s the high interest rates the companies charge – up to 264 percent annually.

“We need to deal with the root of the problem,” she said. “And if we could regulate how much (of an) interest rate is charged or how much the fees are, then we would be doing a service to the community,” Ware said. “I know we mean well here, but it’s supply and demand that is driving these businesses.”

But usery rates are regulated by the state and not the city council.

Morrison said the businesses cluster in his district which covers Frayser and Raleigh. Frayser is among the areas of the city hardest hit by home foreclosures.

Council member Harold Collins, whose district includes Hickory Hill – also hit hard by home foreclosures – said there is a connection. He counted at least 20 pay day lenders along one stretch of Winchester.

“Maybe they’re not contributing to the fact that many of the people in my district are losing their homes. But they are sure out there,” he said. “There needs to be some kind of line drawn that will keep the people in Hickory Hill from losing their homes.”

Steve Lockwood, head of the Frayser Community Development Corporation, said the close proximity of the lenders allows people in desperate financial straits to get around a limit of two loans totaling $500 from a particular lender by simply going to the payday lender next door.

He termed the location limits “an opening shot across the bow.” He said his organization’s financial counselors see a connection between the lenders and foreclosures.

“I think that the neighborhoods that are really going to benefit from this are in Cordova,” Lockwood said. “If you want Cordova to look like Winchester or Frayser, don’t pass this.”

In other action, a Fairgrounds development agreement is tentatively set to have the first of three Memphis City Council votes in two weeks.

The city picked Fair Ground LLC to develop a master plan for the property that includes the Mid-South Coliseum, The Liberty Bowl and The Children’s Museum of Memphis. What is still being worked out is a contract with the terms for drawing up that master plan.

There are still several formidable obstacles to putting a development agreement in writing.

Shelby County government owns some of the Fairgrounds land including some of the land under The Liberty Bowl.

City Housing & Community Development director Robert Lipscomb told City Council members he will again pursue an agreement in which the county would sell its share in The Fairgrounds as well as The Pyramid.

The Shelby County Commission rejected such a sell-off by the county during consideration of a development agreement for The Pyramid involving Bass Pro Shops.

The commission eventually approved the development agreement after the agreement won approval from the city council.

Without a sell-off, the Fairgrounds development agreement appears on its way to the same dual track debate and voting process.

Lipscomb also told The Daily News there are conflicting legal opinions on the amount of public infrastructure financing the city would have to put up to leverage private investment.

He said the amounts vary from $75 million to $200 million. The city is seeking legal opinions on the public amount required under terms of Tourism Development Zone (TDZ) financing. If the amount is $200 million or close to it, Lipscomb said it makes the Fairgrounds renovation much harder to accomplish.

Henry Turley, one of several developer partners in Fair Ground LLC, said he considers the city’s contribution to be $75 million. Turley was instrumental in drafting the state legislation that allowed for the Tourism Development Zones.

The TDZs allow for financing of bonds through sales tax revenue generated in the designated area or zone.

Turley wants to include a big box retail store on the site and possibly a hotel according to tentative plans that are fluid on the location of those and other parts of an overall plan. The sales tax revenue from the store would go to pay off the TDZ bonds. No local government general fund revenue would be used.

86. Residency Decision Uncovers Underlying Attitudes - Thursday, November 20, 2008

It may have been the most important debate the Memphis City Council has had since the group of 13 took office in January. And it may affect the way council members see each other for quite some time.

87. Stretch In MPD Residency Requirement Rejected By Council On 6-7 Vote - Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Memphis City Council members Tuesday voted down a proposed loosening of residency requirements for police officers.

The 6-to-7 council vote rejected a resolution which would have allowed the police department to hire applicants who live within 20 miles of Shelby County.

The department is currently able to hire applicants who live within Shelby County including Memphis under a provision that allows the council to waive the requirement that all city employees must live in Memphis. The Shelby County waiver expires in February.

The council vote, which was along racial lines, came after four hours of debate among council members and citizens who filled the chambers. Most of the citizens who filled out cards to speak, over 70, were in favor of hiring outside Shelby County. But opponents, including several retired Memphis police officers, were also vocal in their opposition.

Council member Wanda Halbert argued that Memphians who apply for jobs as police officers are being rejected because they are being discriminated against.

Council member Bill Boyd termed Halbert's comment "trash".

Other council members said they respected council members with opposing viewpoints. But the disagreements were over issues other than the need to hire more police officers. They were over the best way to do that.

Those voting yes were: Boyd, Kemp Conrad, Shea Flinn, Reid Hedgepeth, Bill Morrison and Jim Strickland.

Those voting no were: Halbert, Joe Brown, Harold Collins, Edmund Ford Jr., Janis Fullilove, Myron Lowery and Barbara Swearengen Ware.

Read more about the issue in Thursday's edition of The Daily News.

In other action, the council elected Myron Lowery as its chairman for 2009. Lowery has been chairman since the resignation of chairman Scott McCormick.

Council member Harold Collins was elected vice chairman for the coming year.

Tuesday was also the first council meeting for Kemp Conrad who was elected on the Nov. 4 ballot to fill the vacancy created by McCormick's resignation.

88. Council Rejects Police Residency Stretch Outside Shelby County - Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Memphis City Council members have voted down a proposed loosening of residency requirements for police officers.

The 6-to-7 council vote rejected a resolution which would have allowed the police department to hire applicants who live within 20 miles of Shelby County.

The department is currently able to hire applicants who live within Shelby County including Memphis under a provision that allows the council to waive the requirement that all city employees must live in Memphis. The Shelby County waiver expires in February.

The council vote, which was along racial lines, came after four hours of debate among council members and citizens who filled the chambers. Most of the citizens who filled out cards to speak, over 70, were in favor of hiring outside Shelby County. But opponents, including several retired Memphis police officers, were also vocal in their opposition.

Council member Wanda Halbert argued that Memphians who apply for jobs as police officers are being rejected because they are being discriminated against.

Council member Bill Boyd termed Halbert's comment "trash".

Other council members said they respected council members with opposing viewpoints. But the disagreements were over issues other than the need to hire more police officers. They were over the best way to do that.

Those voting yes were: Boyd, Kemp Conrad, Shea Flinn, Reid Hedgepeth, Bill Morrison and Jim Strickland.

Those voting no were: Halbert, Joe Brown, Harold Collins, Edmund Ford Jr., Janis Fullilove, Myron Lowery and Barbara Swearengen Ware.

89. Council Could Revisit Lee’s Legal Bill Payment - Friday, October 17, 2008

The Memphis City Council has a chance next week to reconsider its decision not to pay more than $426,000 in legal fees incurred by former Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division president and CEO Joseph Lee.

90. Lee’s Legal Fees Suit Could Surface Again - Thursday, October 09, 2008

It was one year ago this week that nine new members were elected to the Memphis City Council.

It was the largest turnover of seats on the 13-member body in its 40-year history.

This week, the council had its most serious difference of opinion to date over a controversy that began onthe watch of the previous council. And it was one of the previous council members that made the difference in the outcome.

91. Events - Friday, October 03, 2008

The Shelby County Board of Commissioners will hold an Education Summit today at 9 a.m. at the Fogleman Executive Center, 330 Innovation Drive.

MPACT Memphis will hold a meet and greet with U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., today from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Majestic Grille, 145 S. Main St. For more information, e-mail Andre Gibson at andregibson@gmail.com.

92. City Schools, Council Sign Off on Funding - Thursday, September 11, 2008

Memphis City Schools leaders formally did this week what they already informally had done last week. They accepted the funding compromise offered by the Memphis City Council for the current fiscal year. But they threw in a surprise that council members made sure was not overlooked before both sides made it official.

93. School Board Pleads for Funding – Again - Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Since Friday, members of the Memphis City Schools Board of Education and the Memphis City Council have continued haggling over the council’s decision earlier this month to withhold more than $70 million from the school district’s budget.

94. MLGW Deal Could Slash Pyramid Upkeep Costs - Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Of the $560,000 Memphis and Shelby County would have paid for Pyramid-related costs during the coming fiscal year, almost half would have gone toward a single item: the empty arena’s power bill.

In the context of the city’s half-billion-dollar operating budget, a five- or six-figure price tag for one item might not seem like much.

95. Council to Wrap Up Budget Talks - Friday, May 30, 2008

Memphis City Council members didn’t know the full extent of what they’d encounter in the city administration’s budget proposal for the coming fiscal year. Budget committee hearings held over the last few weeks have given them the details they need.

96. Council Members, School Leaders In Intricate Dance Over Funding - Monday, May 19, 2008

Sparks didn’t fly as the Memphis City Council and Memphis City Schools leaders met last week. And there was very little talk about the council’s coming consideration of cutting all $93 million in city funding to the school system.

97. Herenton Sticks To Singing School Reform Refrain - Thursday, May 08, 2008

Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton tried to talk the City Council down from cutting $93 million in city funding to Memphis City Schools as he talked this week of reinventing and blowing up parts of a school system he said is ripe for change.

98. Attorney General To Defend Strip Club Ordinance - Thursday, March 20, 2008

Tennessee Attorney General Robert Cooper will help defend the Shelby County ordinance governing Memphis strip clubs in U.S. District Court.

Cooper's office filed a motion Monday to intervene on the side of the city and county in the case filed by seven strip club owners. The suit challenges the constitutionality of the ordinance as well as the state law on which the ordinance is based.

99. City Council Puts Off Strip Club Ordinance Vote - Wednesday, March 19, 2008

The Memphis City Council has delayed indefinitely a final vote on a new city ordinance governing strip clubs.

100. City Council Puts Off Strip Club Ordinance Vote - Tuesday, March 18, 2008

The Memphis City Council has delayed indefinitely a final vote on a new city ordinance governing strip clubs.