1068 Cresthaven Road Memphis, TN 38119

Sale Amount: $2.5 million

Sale Date: May 2, 2013

2. Raleigh Car Wash Buyer Files Construction Loan - Friday, May 17, 2013

The new owner of a car wash at 2515 Covington Pike in Raleigh has filed a $1.3 million construction loan on the property.

3. Owner Files $1.7 Million Loan on Arlington Center - Tuesday, May 14, 2013

The new owner of the 13,658-square-foot retail center at 9915 U.S. 64 in Arlington has filed a $1.7 million loan on the property.

HGG Investments LLC filed the deed of trust May 6 through First Citizens National Bank. The financing was in conjunction with HGG Investments obtaining the property in a quitclaim deed from Robert E. Harris, Beverley R. Harris, Becky J. Graybill and Andrew P.P. Golay.

4. Nuclear Protester Trial Gets Underway This Week - Tuesday, May 07, 2013

NASHVILLE (AP) – An octogenarian nun and two codefendants used bolt cutters to cut through fences and spent about two hours inside a Tennessee national security plant that has had a hand in making, maintaining or dismantling parts of every nuclear weapon in the country's arsenal, federal authorities allege.

5. Test Drive - Friday, May 03, 2013

When car sharing meets the parking and driving practices of Memphians on the streets of Downtown, the encounter could go so many ways between bad and good.

So when Zipcar parked four cars in four on-street parking spaces Downtown last month, there were a lot of questions first about how car sharing works but also about whether the national trend would apply to a city with a unique driving culture.

6. Haslams Try to Halt Fallout From FBI Raid on Pilot - Thursday, April 25, 2013

NASHVILLE (AP) – Tennessee's Haslam family is furiously trying to control the damage following a federal investigation into the family business that could threaten to unravel decades of growing wealth and influence that spans business, sports and politics in the state and beyond.

7. Critics Revive Past Promises to Knock Obama Budget - Friday, April 12, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – Advocates for seniors say President Barack Obama is breaking his promise to protect Social Security, while conservatives say he is breaking his promise not to raise taxes on the middle class.

8. Then and Now - Saturday, April 06, 2013

Jay Bailey pictured marching bands and floats when his mother told him he was going on a march.

“We thought of it as a parade,” said Bailey, who was 6 years old in March 1968. “We thought of it as something fun.”

9. Lessons Learned - Tuesday, April 02, 2013

What happened 15 years ago outside the Shelby County Courthouse between the seated figures of justice and wisdom informed much of what happened Saturday, March 30, when a different Ku Klux Klan group, the American Knights, came to Memphis and rallied at the other southern entrance to the courthouse – between the seated figures of authority and liberty.

10. US Citing Security to Censor More Public Records - Tuesday, March 12, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Obama administration answered more requests from the public to see government records under the Freedom of Information Act last year but more often than ever cited legal exceptions to censor or withhold the material, according to a new analysis by The Associated Press. It frequently cited the need to protect national security and internal deliberations.

11. Nike Buys Frayser Land From Belz for Expansion - Tuesday, February 05, 2013

200 acres in Frayser Sale Amount: $2.2 million

Sale Date: Jan. 24, 2013

Buyer: Nike TN Inc.

12. Winchester Q-Mart Sells for $2 Million - Monday, February 04, 2013

Noorallah Dharani has paid $2 million for the Q-Mart convenience store and gas station at 6745 Winchester Road in Hickory Hill.

13. Mayor, Banks Revive Program Targeting City’s Unbanked - Monday, February 04, 2013

It started with a letter. More than two dozen of them, actually. Bankers from around Memphis got a missive from Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. in 2010 that solicited help from bankers like Joe DiNicolantonio, West Tennessee area president for Regions Bank.

14. Healthy Church Challenge Tackles Obesity Epidemic - Wednesday, January 30, 2013

BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee’s second annual Healthy Church Challenge 100-day weight loss competition for churches in West Tennessee is set to get under way on Saturday, Feb. 2.

This year’s challenge is anticipated to include more than 50 local churches that will get the chance to compete for cash prizes to benefit their churches and health ministries.

15. Immigration Reform on Horizon - Tuesday, January 29, 2013

November’s presidential election clarified a need for bipartisan immigration reform; Republican intransigence on this issue melted away as they watched about 71 percent of Latinos vote in favor of the Democratic candidate.

16. Cohen, Fincher Discuss Issues at Krone - Monday, October 22, 2012

U.S. Reps. Steve Cohen and Stephen Fincher couldn’t be more different.

For starters, Cohen is a Democrat and Fincher is a Republican. Both are the congressmen who represent Shelby County in Washington. Cohen’s district is entirely within Shelby County. Fincher’s district is rural West Tennessee for the most part, with a part of East Memphis and East Shelby County included.

17. Piccadilly Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy - Friday, September 14, 2012

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) – Piccadilly Restaurants, a Baton Rouge-based cafeteria chain, has filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Thomas Sandeman, the company's CEO, told The Advocate that the filing, which was made Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Lafayette, will protect the value of Piccadilly, along with its employees and restaurants.

18. For the People - Monday, September 03, 2012

It’s well-known that the Memphis area’s population suffers from a host of chronic health issues, from obesity to hypertension to Type 2 diabetes, making it ground zero for students and researchers dedicated to finding solutions to public health issues.

19. Venson Center Work Kicks Off Heritage Trail - Tuesday, August 28, 2012

The ambitious $1 billion, 10-year redevelopment project called Triangle Noir during former Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton’s administration is now called Heritage Trail.

And the first move beyond the demolition of the Cleaborn Homes public housing development is the exterior renovation of the R.Q. Venson Center high rise at Beale Street and Danny Thomas Boulevard.

20. Work Remains for Superintendent Selection Group - Tuesday, August 21, 2012

The group trying to come up with a process for selecting a superintendent to lead the merger of Shelby County’s two school systems has a lot of lead work to do in a short time.

The group is likely to have numerous discussions in the coming weeks about what kind of school system that superintendent will be leading. The countywide school board hasn’t yet acted on the set of recommendations from the planning commission that will define the merged school district’s structure and scope.

21. Airfare Campaigns Continue Through Turbulence - Friday, August 03, 2012

More than 12,000 citizens have sent email appeals to the CEOs of numerous airlines to consider increasing air service at Memphis International Airport, according to “Come Fly Memphis,” the Facebook group that has become the daily gauge of the civic effort.

22. Most Oppose Unlimited Corporate Campaign Spending - Wednesday, July 18, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) — Most Americans know they have a constitutional right to freedom of speech, and for a clear majority, that does not translate into allowing unlimited spending by corporations or labor unions on political campaigns, according to a new survey.

23. Reaction: Coverage for Most, Scramble for States - Friday, June 29, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Supreme Court settled the legal argument over health care Thursday. Now people in the United States will find out if President Barack Obama’s overhaul can work as advertised to provide coverage to millions of uninsured while also keeping costs in check.

24. Public Stations May Get OK for Political Ads - Tuesday, June 26, 2012

NEW YORK (AP) – A federal court decision has created the possibility that some public television and radio stations that are perpetually challenged financially could see a windfall of cash from political advertising.

25. Market Value - Monday, May 14, 2012

Investor Warren Buffett admitted in his annual letter to shareholders recently that he was “dead wrong” in his early 2011 prediction that the housing market would have begun recovery by now.

26. In Need of Repair - Wednesday, April 25, 2012

The Shelby County Trustee’s office is out of the Vasco Smith County Administration Building and in the county government building across Second Street at 157 Poplar Ave.

27. Redbirds Reconnection - Monday, April 16, 2012

One of baseball’s enduring maxims is that anytime you go to a game you’ve got a chance to see something you’ve never seen before.

Apparently, this now applies off the field too, because a few weeks ago a group that included Magic Johnson as the front man paid $2.15 billion to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers from financially troubled owner Frank McCourt.

28. Hernando's Mayor Cited as National Good Example - Wednesday, April 04, 2012

NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Hernando, Miss., Mayor Chip Johnson says listening to voters is a big part of the reason he's now being held up as a national model for creating healthier cities and counties.

29. Justices Ready to Move to Heart of Health Case - Tuesday, March 27, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Supreme Court plunged into debate Monday on the fate of the Obama administration's overhaul of the nation's health care system, and the justices gave every indication they will not allow an obscure tax law to derail the case.

30. RPAC Keeps Housing On Policymakers’ Minds - Monday, March 19, 2012

Carol Lott understands that some people have misgivings about giving money to politicians, particularly when budgets are tight.

31. Democratic Court Clerk Primary Tops Early Voting - Tuesday, February 21, 2012

The winner so far on the March 6 election day ballot in Shelby County headlined by the Republican presidential primary appears to the Democratic primary for General Sessions Court clerk.

So far, early voter turnout is greater in the countywide Democratic primaries, which include a hotly contested five-way primary race for General Sessions Court clerk.

32. Applying Pressure - Monday, February 20, 2012

On Super Bowl Sunday, a group of 20 people huddled near a set of about as many tents on the Civic Center Plaza – the part of the Main Street Mall that is home to City Hall as well as the county, state and federal buildings.

33. Health Equity Topic of Luncheon - Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Healthy Memphis Common Table will host a luncheon focused on the state of health equity in Shelby County Jan. 26 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the National Civil Rights Museum, 450 Mulberry St.

34. City Community Enhancement Probe Clouds Wharton's Long Term Plans - Monday, January 16, 2012

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. admitted that he sounded a bit glum Wednesday, Jan. 11, when he spoke to a group of around 100 at the Memphis Kiwanis Club at the start of his new term of office.

“Some may say, ‘That guy’s really negative today,’” Wharton told reporters later. “I simply wanted to let everybody know that while things are getting better we have a ways to go.”

35. That's a Wrap - Monday, January 02, 2012

If the grand sweep of 2011 could be captured on celluloid and presented to an audience on the big screen, all the components of a great film would be readily apparent.

There was drama, in the form of a deluge and historic flooding that led the Mississippi River to crest at nearly 48 feet early in the year. One of the year’s big surprises saw President Barack Obama give the commencement address for the Booker T. Washington High School class of 2011 at the Memphis Cook Convention Center.

36. Rep. DeBerry Says She’s Free of Cancer - Wednesday, December 21, 2011

NASHVILLE (AP) – State Rep. Lois DeBerry of Memphis has a lot to be thankful for this holiday season – mainly being alive.

37. A GOP Debt Plan Would Hit Some Popular Tax Breaks - Friday, November 18, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) – Millions of taxpayers who take advantage of deductions for mortgage interest, charitable donations and state and local taxes would be targeted for potential tax hikes under a GOP plan to raise taxes by $290 billion over the next decade to help reduce the nation's deficit.

38. Memphian Cobb Joins MIFA As Meals on Wheels Director - Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Trentwood Cobb has joined Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association as director of MIFA Meals on Wheels, which provides hot meals to senior citizens in the greater Memphis area.

Hometown: Memphis

39. Partisans Debate State Voter ID Law - Wednesday, November 02, 2011

If you voted early or on Election Day in the recent city of Memphis elections, you probably got a piece of paper from election officials about the next elections.

The new state law requiring Tennessee voters to have a valid state or federal government-issued photo ID goes into effect with the 2012 elections starting with the March primaries. And the poll handout was about the new state law and what the new ground rules will be.

40. Parish Nurse Resource Center Moves to Memphis - Wednesday, October 19, 2011

It’s been a landmark year for the Memphis-based Church Health Center, which provides access to quality health care for the city’s vast population of uninsured citizens.

From the release of founding executive director Dr. Scott Morris’ book, “Health Care You Can Live With” – which saw him giving print, radio and television interviews with media outlets from Los Angeles to New York – to a CBS national news feature spotlighting the nonprofit’s mission to serve the working poor, Americans from coast to coast have become familiar with the Church Health Center’s work.

41. Herman Cain's Sudden Surge Powered by 9-9-9 Plan - Thursday, October 13, 2011

ATLANTA (AP) – If there's a policy star in the Republican presidential primary it may be Herman Cain's 9-9-9 tax overhaul plan. It has helped fuel the Georgia businessman's sudden surge in the GOP race. But behind the catchy slogan is a reality: Experts say it will raise taxes on some Americans.

42. Tenn. Gun Bill Sponsor Faces DUI, Firearm Charges - Thursday, October 13, 2011

The Collierville sponsor of the law that made it legal to carry a gun into bars in Tennessee is facing charges of possession of a handgun while under the influence and drunken driving.

Rep. Curry Todd, a Collierville Republican, was pulled over in Nashville late Tuesday, according to court documents. Police said he failed a roadside sobriety test and refused to take a Breathalyzer test. A loaded .38-caliber gun was found in a holster stuffed between the driver's seat and center console.

43. Elmwood’s Costume Tour Ends Month of Events - Friday, October 07, 2011

Memphis’ Elmwood Cemetery is gearing up to host a number of events this month, leading up to its popular annual Costume Twilight Tour, which attracts about 1,000 visitors to its historic grounds at 824 S. Dudley St.

44. Carpenter Reflects on Five-Year Run - Wednesday, October 05, 2011

As Memphis voters prepare to bring to an end another city campaign season, Shelby County Commissioner Mike Carpenter just ended a five-year run on the Shelby County Commission.

45. Early Voting Off to Modest Start - Tuesday, September 20, 2011

The first full week of early voting in advance of the Oct. 6 Memphis elections got a push with 1,684 citizens casting ballots on Friday, Sept. 16’s first day of the early voting period.

Another 411 filed absentee votes before Friday’s opening.

46. Web Presence Takes TDN To New Levels - Wednesday, September 14, 2011

When The Daily News Publishing Co. Inc. was founded more than a century ago, court filings were recorded manually, a tweet was a sound a bird made, and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerburg’s parents hadn’t been born yet.

47. 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.

48. Hometown Exploration - Thursday, September 08, 2011

Cruise by Sun Studio any day of the week and you’ll see tourists from every corner of the globe taking photographs of its famous brown brick façade and queuing up for a ticket to the birthplace of rock ‘n’ roll.

49. Tennesseans Urged to be Prepared for Bad Weather - Wednesday, September 07, 2011

NASHVILLE (AP) – State officials marked National Preparedness Month on Tuesday by stressing the need for readiness for natural disasters, mindful of the Memphis flooding last May and the April tornadoes that claimed 37 lives in Tennessee.

50. Airport Hotel, Conference Center Sells for $4.4M in Foreclosure - Tuesday, August 16, 2011

2240 Democrat Road
Memphis, TN 38132
Sale Amount: $4.4 million

Sale Date: July 22, 2011

51. Vieux Carre Retail Center Sells for $1.3 Million - Monday, August 15, 2011

Vieux Carre Investments LLC has bought Vieux Carre, a neighborhood shopping center at 7981 Dexter Road, from Nancy S. Waddell for $1.3 million. The deal closed July 28.

52. Coverage Expansion Critical To TDN Legacy - Monday, August 15, 2011

Since its founding in 1886, The Daily News has been identified as the city’s paper of record, featuring legal notices and business listings that many companies, professionals and citizens have long relied on.

53. Bloomberg Philanthropies Grants Memphis $4.8M - Friday, July 15, 2011

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg calls it the “Mayors Project.” The $4.8 million, three-year grant his foundation announced Thursday, July 14, it is giving the city of Memphis is part of $24 million the Bloomberg Philanthropies will give to five cities including Memphis.

54. Details Emerge About Bloomberg's $4.8M Memphis Grants - Thursday, July 14, 2011

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg calls it the “Mayors Project.”

The $4.8 million, three-year grant his foundation announced Thursday, July 14, it is giving the city of Memphis is part of $24 million the Bloomberg Philanthropies will give to five cities including Memphis.

55. Lyons Ridge Senior Apts. Open in South Memphis - Thursday, July 14, 2011

City leaders opened the city’s first green, affordable senior citizens apartment complex Wednesday, July 13, in South Memphis.

Lyons Ridge Senior Apartments is a 102-unit, three-story building at 1633 Pennsylvania St., next to Carver High School, built to National Association of Home Builders National Green Building Standards.

56. Elmwood Cemetery: Where No One is Forgotten - Tuesday, June 28, 2011

More than 30 visitors braved the sweltering summer heat on a recent Friday evening to immerse themselves in the stories of some of Memphis’ most famous, infamous and influential citizens during Elmwood Cemetery’s Evening Stroll.

57. Consortium Promotes Minority Health Equity - Wednesday, June 22, 2011

The Consortium for Health Education, Economic Empowerment and Research is wrapping up a three-day regional conference held at Memphis’ Cook Convention Center, 255 N. Main St., focused on promoting health equity among minority communities.

58. Wave of Lawsuits Over Seats Hit Retail Stores - Tuesday, June 21, 2011

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Retail store operators may want to sit down for this one – if they can find a chair.

Nearly every national chain is under legal attack in California for failing to provide "suitable seating" for cashiers and other employees who are expected to spend most of their work day on their feet.

59. Girls Inc. Celebrates 65 Years of Empowerment - Monday, June 13, 2011

Many of the city’s most influential citizens gathered Thursday, June 9, to celebrate the Memphis girls and women who embody the “Strong, Smart and Bold” motto of Girls Inc. of Memphis.

60. Tenn. Opens Door to Corporate Political Donations - Friday, June 03, 2011

NASHVILLE (AP) – A new Tennessee law opens the door to businesses making campaign donations directly to candidates.

Gov. Bill Haslam, who signed the bill into law on Wednesday, told reporters earlier that he did not take a position on the bill sponsored by fellow Republican lawmakers that gave businesses the same contribution abilities as political action committees.

61. APNewsBreak: Taxpayer Identity Theft is Soaring - Thursday, June 02, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) – Imagine filing your tax return and learning that someone else got your refund. With your name and Social Security number, no less.

The IRS is grappling with a nearly five-fold increase in taxpayer identity theft between 2008 and 2010, a Government Accountability Office official plans to tell a House hearing Thursday. There were 248,357 incidents in 2010, compared to 51,702 in 2008.

62. High Water, Tall Tales - Friday, May 20, 2011

Truth drowns in high water. Katie Couric told me our daughter was underwater on Mud Island. Wolf Blitzer cut to his man in Memphis, up to his armpits in the Mississippi, giving us the impression that the entire city might be sucking river by morning. National networks reported that the river was (pick one) 4 or 3.4 or 5 or 3 miles wide at Memphis and that it was normally a half-mile or about a mile or only a mile or about half that and that hundreds or thousands or whole neighborhoods or square miles were evacuated or leaving or fleeing for safety or watching their dreams sink or their lives go under.

63. Raging River, Watchful City - Friday, May 13, 2011

As the Mississippi River crested at a historic level last week, most Memphians went to their jobs as usual.

The Memphis Grizzlies continued their NBA playoff run at FedExForum with a sellout crowd the same night that the river approached its crest less than a mile away.

64. Special Coverage: Mid-South Flooding - Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Coverage of the rising waters in the Memphis area

Police Manually Checking Memphis River Gauge

The gauge that is the official measurement of the Mississippi River at Memphis has been on the blink since last week as the river has approached historic levels.

65. City Prepares for Mississippi River Crest - Monday, May 09, 2011

As the week began the coalition of emergency responders across Shelby County had already gone from planning to action.

The groups got highly detailed marching orders Friday morning from Shelby County preparedness director Bob Nations, who coordinated with dozens of agencies across local, state and federal government boundaries in putting together the master plan.

66. River Rising - Tuesday, May 03, 2011

The workweek began at many Memphis companies with a review of flood contingency plans.

The week ahead promises to be a challenging one.

By Monday evening, the National Weather Service had changed its forecast to keep the May 10 crest date for the Mississippi River at Memphis. But they upped the river level from 45 feet to 48 feet.

67. Across Country, GOP Pushes Photo ID at the Polls - Monday, March 28, 2011

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Empowered by last year's elections, Republican leaders in about half the states are pushing to require voters to show photo ID at the polls despite little evidence of fraud and already-substantial punishments for those who vote illegally.

68. Shelby Drive Apartments Sell for $1.4 Million - Tuesday, March 22, 2011

1500 E. Shelby Drive
Memphis, TN 38116
Sale Amount: $1.4 million

Sale Date: Feb. 25, 2011
Buyer: Saddle Vineyards LP
Seller: Everbank
Loan Amount: $2.5 million
Loan Date: Feb. 28, 2011
Maturity Date: March 10, 2016
Lender: Triumph Bank

69. Open Dialogue - Monday, March 21, 2011

Ask a group of teenagers whether they feel their ideas are taken seriously by adults and it’s pretty much guaranteed the response will be a unanimous, resounding “No.”

But if those teens participate in Imagine Memphis, a citywide initiative designed to connect youth and adults to imagine and create a better Memphis, the response to that question is likely to be an overwhelmingly positive one.

70. 1.7-Acre Cordova Parcel Financed for $1.1 Million - Monday, March 21, 2011

Germantown-based Azman Enterprises Inc. has filed a $1.1 million construction loan through First Citizens National Bank for a 1.7-acre vacant parcel at the southeast corner of Raleigh-LaGrange and Dexter roads.

71. Most Memphis Banks Report Profitable Year - Tuesday, March 08, 2011

The Memphis banking market had a strong 2010, with 75 percent of the roughly two dozen banks headquartered here showing a profit for the year, according to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

72. Reader’s Digest Makes Difference-Making Memphis Stop - Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Call it the marriage of economic stimulus and National Lampoon’s Vacation, or maybe just “Three Dudes in an RV.” The Reader’s Digest We Hear You America Tour made a stop in Memphis with cash in hand.

73. New Members Appointed to MED Board - Tuesday, February 01, 2011

Three new board members were recently appointed to the board of the Shelby County Health Care Corp. by Mayor Mark Luttrell.

74. National Study to Measure Arts Impact - Wednesday, January 26, 2011

In its mission to serve not only as a funding source for local arts organizations but also as an advocate, ArtsMemphis has joined a nationwide research project that aims to offer a tangible measure of the impact of the arts in Memphis.

75. Plan to Reduce Homelessness Takes Shape - Thursday, January 13, 2011

An ambitious action plan to end homelessness in the long term and make significant cuts in the numbers of homeless in Memphis and Shelby County in the next five to 10 years goes to a vote this week.

76. Memphis Orgs Gear up for MLK Weekend - Thursday, January 13, 2011

Perhaps more so than in any other city because of its prominent place in the history of the American civil rights movement, Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Memphis serves as a strong reminder of King’s legacy of service to others and his powerful advocacy for social change through nonviolent action.

77. Collierville Office Building Sells for $1.3M in Foreclosure - Tuesday, December 28, 2010

472 W. Poplar Ave.
Collierville, TN 38017
Sale Amount: $1.3 million

Sale Date: Dec. 14, 2010
Buyer: First Citizens National Bank
Seller: Ralph Henson, trustee
Orig. Borrower: Loyal Featherstone Realtors Inc.
Orig. Lender: First Citizens National Bank
Orig. Loan Amount: $1.6 million
Orig. Loan Date: March 7, 2007
Orig. Maturity: March 7, 2008

78. Collierville Office Building Sells for $1.3M in Foreclosure - Thursday, December 23, 2010

First Citizens National Bank has bought a low-rise office building at 472 W. Poplar Ave. in Collierville at a foreclosure sale. The sale was due to Loyal Featherstone Realtors Inc.’s default on a $1.6 million loan. First Citizens paid $1.3 million for the property.

79. Hall Takes Marketing Talents to Leadership Memphis - Thursday, December 23, 2010

In his roles through the years with organizations such as Hands on Memphis, Youth Villages and the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce, Memphian Ken Hall has served as a key thread in the city’s civic fabric.

80. Connection Challenge - Thursday, December 09, 2010

The search is on for dozens of connections among Shelby County’s major greenways and greenlines, which will enhance the area’s overall “green print.”

The recent openings of the Wolf River Greenway’s first mile and Shelby Farms Park’s pedestrian/bicycle bridge were reminders of an emerging off-road trail network that is still under development.

81. Boy Scout Bash - Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Thousands of Boy Scouts, parents, leaders and guests from the tri-state area descended on the Paul Battle Jr. Arena and the Tunica Exposition Center in Tunica over the weekend to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouting.

82. Election Guide 2010 - Monday, October 18, 2010

A rundown of the key issues and races that voters will decide when they go to the ballot  for early voting through Oct. 28 or on Election Day, Nov. 2.

GOVERNOR'S RACE

Tennessee voters choose a successor to Gov. Phil Bredesen in the Nov. 2 elections. Here’s a summary of where Democratic nominee Mike McWherter and Republican nominee Bill Haslam stand on the major issues:

83. Going Pink - Thursday, October 14, 2010

For 20 years, the massive, brightly-colored “CMOM” building block letters on the lawn of the Children’s Museum of Memphis on Central Avenue have stood testament to the private nonprofit’s mission to inspire a passion for learning in the city’s youngest citizens.

84. Early Voters Face Slate of Local, Statewide Races - Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Shelby County voters begin making their choices Wednesday as early voting in advance of the Nov. 2 Election Day gets under way.

Early voting sites, 21 in all, open Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. – all at the same time and with the same hours through Oct. 23, the end of the early voting period.

85. Despite Economy, Americans Don't Want Farm Work - Tuesday, September 28, 2010

VISALIA, Calif. (AP) – As the economy tanked during the past two years, a debate has raged over whether immigrants are taking jobs that Americans want. Here, amid the sweltering vineyards of the largest farm state, the answer is no.

86. Winbranch Apartments Sell for $2.4 Million - Tuesday, September 21, 2010

3595 Millbranch Road
Memphis, TN 38116
Sale Amount: $2.4 million

Sale Date: Sept. 7, 2010
Buyer: Winbranch Realty Partners LLC
Seller: LBUBS 2004-C4 Millbranch Road LLC
Loan Amount: $975,000
Loan Date: Sept. 7, 2010
Maturity Date: Sept. 1, 2011
Lender: The Leshum Group LLC

87. Rice Returns to Memphis For Book Tour - Friday, September 17, 2010

Before she was the U.S. national security adviser and later secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice was a child growing up in Birmingham, Ala., who loved music, ice skating and history.

She’s written a memoir, “Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family,” that describes the upbringing of that girl who would later become the 66th U.S. secretary of state and the first black woman to hold the position.

88. Collierville Company Buys Office on White Station - Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Fairway Investments LLC has bought one lot at 1724 S. White Station Road in White Station Freeway Subdivision from First Citizens National Bank for $430,000. The deal was financed with a $387,000 loan through First Citizens.

89. Haslam Rejects Wamp Claim on State Income Tax - Thursday, July 29, 2010

KNOXVILLE (AP) – Bill Haslam on Wednesday dismissed as "100 percent not true" claims by rival Republican gubernatorial candidate Zach Wamp that he would be likely to push for a state income tax if poor economic conditions persist.

90. Dancin' in the Streets - Friday, June 25, 2010

Broadcasting for NBC’s “Today” show live from Memphis, weather anchor Al Roker attempted a few flamenco steps Thursday morning but left the real dancing to the children of the New Ballet Ensemble and School.

91. Springdale Fights Back - Monday, June 21, 2010

In the mile of Springdale Street between Chelsea and Jackson avenues there are five churches. That’s not counting the churches on side streets.

On Eldridge Avenue, one of those side streets, between two tiny churches is a pair of identical small houses – both boarded up.

The one closest to the corner has faded blue spray paint stenciled across the plywood.

In inner-city Memphis, the stenciling is as familiar as gang graffiti. It’s the mark of the Memphis Police Department’s Blue CRUSH campaign.

Five years into the crackdown guided by a devotion to crime statistics, crime is down in Memphis.

But the statistical drop in crime has come with lingering questions and concerns in Springdale and other neighborhoods with Blue CRUSH houses.

“Once we board them up, we really have to depend on the community to let us know if drug dealers have broken back into them,” Shelby County District Attorney General Bill Gibbons said. “If we don’t know about it, sometimes drug dealers can get right back in there.”

In the neighborhoods, homeowners lament that street level dealers are easily replaced and soon released from jail to resume their place in the neighborhoods – now with a criminal record that makes a move away from drug dealing even more unlikely.

Last year, a team from Memphis that included a police officer, a state prosecutor, a federal prosecutor, a University of Memphis researcher, the head of the Memphis Leadership Foundation and the pastor of one of those five churches along Springdale went to several cities to get training in a new anti-drug strategy.

“We were really interested in changing people’s lives, not locking them up,” Springdale Baptist Pastor Derrick Hughes told The Memphis News. Hughes wasn’t sure at first if he would be part of the Drug Market Intervention (DMI) program.

“It sounded as if possibly it was just another program that was going to possibly just put criminals in jail without rehabilitation,” he said. “And I wanted to make sure that if we were going to be a part of something that it was going to look at rehabilitating the person, changing lives, changing them from a holistic point of view as well as a spiritual point of view.”

Gibbons said some of his prosecutors and some police brass also had their doubts as they looked for an area to test out DMI Memphis style.

“It was based primarily on looking at crime patterns and in particular drug activity in that area,” he told The Memphis News. There was plenty of open drug dealing in the Springdale area.

Drug Market Intervention is picking several street level drug dealers in a community, confronting them with the evidence against them and telling them they have one more chance to get out of the business. The police are involved in making a decision not to prosecute a few as they target dozens of others in an area.

Others on the team are community leaders from the neighborhood. And some are with proven programs to provide job training and other help in getting a legitimate job.

High Point, N.C., was the first stop for the Memphis group because it is the birthplace of DMI. It seems an unlikely example for Memphis with a population of fewer than 100,000. But in 2003, High Point had several open air drug markets. The city’s new police chief, James Fealy, attacked them using what became the DMI strategy.

David Kennedy, director of the Center for Crime Control and Prevention at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, replicated DMI in other cities with money from the federal Bureau of Justice Assistance. The BJA funded the training of the Memphis team and came here.

Kennedy’s philosophy is specific to open air drug markets. It doesn’t pretend to eliminate all drug dealing.

“Open air drug markets are found primarily in our cities and in African-American neighborhoods,” Kennedy wrote in a 2008 article for the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Journal. “Although we are loathe to admit it, this issue is soaked in race.”

Kennedy said police complained to him that the families of the drug dealers and others in the surrounding communities knew they were selling drugs, did nothing to stop it and profited from it.

But Kennedy said those living in the communities countered that police were only interested in locking up as many people as they could as part of a conspiracy to destroy the community.

Kennedy said each side had a point and each side was wrong.

“The crime is real and overwhelmingly the arrests are legitimate. But we are destroying the village in order to save it,” he wrote. “And none of this gets rid of the crime. The drug markets and violence continue to exist.”

Kennedy didn’t try to tackle the long-standing racial issues and their lengthy back story. The conversations that formed the basis for the DMI strategy were about drug markets.

It was hard for some on the Memphis team to believe that hardened drug dealers would respond when the threat of arrest, prison time, drive-by shootings and gang turf tripwires hadn’t discouraged them from the life.

Nevertheless, when they returned to Memphis, the planning began for several months of undercover drug buys in the Springdale area by the police Organized Crime Unit. For months, the officers bought repeatedly from dozens of street dealers in a two-mile radius of Springdale. And they recorded the drug buys on video – not just one buy but multiple buys.

Prosecutors reviewed the cases against more than 60 men and women and prosecuted 51 of them. Five were indicted on federal drug charges. Six others – five men and a woman – were the first candidates for the Memphis DMI program.

“It was taking a look at individuals who obviously were involved in drug trafficking, but a little more on the periphery – not an extensive drug record,” Gibbons said.

A few days after New Year’s Day, police descended on the Springdale area serving the arrest warrants and putting up a fresh crop of plywood with blue stenciling on the drug houses in the area. The neighborhood grapevine buzzed anew about the heavy police presence.

It was still buzzing when on the coldest day of the year – Jan. 8 – the Memphis group knocked on six doors in the Springdale area. The temperature never got near freezing and was in single digits part of the day.

No one inside the six houses knew they were coming. No one approaching the doorsteps knew what the reaction inside would be.

It was the first indication the six people involved and inside those homes had that they had sold drugs to undercover Memphis police officers and had been recorded on video making multiple drug sales to the officers.

The father of one of the six was among those who had been arrested.

When the DMI team knocked on his door, his grandmother answered.

“He did not want his grandmother to know why we were standing at the door,” Peggie Russell, the DMI coordinator and a University of Memphis researcher and community resource specialist, said. “He said, ‘It’s OK grandmother.’”

Howard Eddings, president of the Memphis Leadership Foundation, said the young man didn’t deny he was a drug dealer.

“He wanted to basically shut the door,” Eddings told The Memphis News. “She might not have known exactly what he was doing. She was an older lady. He didn’t like the fact that we were knocking on her door.”

He and the other five got a letter asking them to come to Springdale Baptist Church a few days later. If they came, the letter from Police Director Larry Godwin said they would not be prosecuted this time.

For Hughes the pledge was crucial. He wanted to be able to say, “I give you my word, you will not be arrested,” with certainty and conviction.

Five of the six showed up at Hughes’ church where the congregation and other community leaders were waiting in the sanctuary. On the walls were posters of the 51 defendants who weren’t getting the chance they were about to get. The posters included the possible prison sentences those defendants faced.

The five “guests” sat in a reserved front row with a friend or family member.

Their faces blurred in a video of the event, they listened as Assistant District Attorney Amy Weirich told them, “We’ve had it,” and called their names individually. “The Memphis Police Department is tired of picking up dead bodies in the street.”

Russell remembers some denying they had done anything wrong. Then police showed the video.

They watched video of themselves selling drugs numerous times to undercover police officers.

The woman’s denials stopped.

“She got caught during the first time. I don’t necessarily know that we believed it was the first time,” Eddings remembered. “But she was so embarrassed as a mom who had small kids who was put in the spotlight. … All of her junk is coming to the forefront.”

Russell said some of the others were telling those who came with them that they had no idea why they were summoned to the church.

“You’re sitting there and you’re telling your family member, ‘No, I didn’t do it,’” Russell said. “Then the tape started rolling … and you see yourself. It’s reality. You can’t hide it. I think that was a turning point for most of them.”

Hughes told the group of five that the church cared about them and was willing to help.

Some of his congregants spoke up too.

“Our congregants said, ‘Listen, we’re tired of watching you sell drugs. We’re tired of being afraid of coming in and out of our communities. We want our community back,’” Hughes recalled. “During the call in, some of our residents had an opportunity to look in their faces and say, ‘We are tired of the way you’ve been running down our communities. This used to be a wonderful community where people had pride, where people had hope. … Now a lot of us are afraid.’”

After the tough talk and the confrontation came a commitment to work with the five DMI candidates. Eddings emphasized there are no guarantees.

“We were careful not to promise them that we were going to get them jobs or that even if we could get them a job that it was going to pay them something comparable to what they were making on the street,” he said. ”We said the opposite. We can’t do that at all. But one thing we do know for sure. If you stop doing what you’re doing, you don’t go to jail.”

Russell, who gets much of the credit for pushing to give DMI a try and has become the program’s de facto coordinator, described the response as “something totally new.”

“It’s not about those five,” she said. “They are supposed to stay out of trouble for two years to make the necessary transition in their lives. But it’s really about the Hollywood Springdale community, changing the response of the community to open air drug sales.”

Eddings was surprised by the response.

“Most of these guys’ mamas know what they’re doing. But to know now that other mamas and other grandparents and other church leaders and the community have their eye on you, it has a different motivation,” he said. “Some of these guys are hardened. They’ve been doing it for a while and they’ve been out there on the streets. So, not much embarrasses them. But I could tell by looking at them and even some of the denials.”

The Memphis Leadership Foundation already works with convicted felons trying to make the difficult transition after prison. There are even fewer guarantees for those with a substantial prison record.

Marcus, who didn’t want his last name used, vented about how hard it’s been to find a legitimate job since he did prison time in 2006 for felony drug dealing.

“It’s not like people want to sell drugs,” he began. “On a lot of applications they are saying they don’t discriminate. They’re lying. … They’re ready to end the session right then. They might tear up the application in your face.”

If drug dealers like him bring blight to areas like Springdale and violence and a hard life for law-abiding citizens, Marcus said society has responded with its own brand of hardness.

“They ain’t reaching out anymore,” he said. “They expect for the world to be better because we’re building more jails. We’re putting more cops out. If somebody killed me today – the person who killed me, they want to put him in jail. But why put him in jail when y’all treating this man he killed like he’s a nobody anyway.”

Eddings said with criminal records or without, street level drug dealers have problems as they get older because they have no legitimate work history. He started to say there aren’t transferable skills before thinking about it.

“Actually, some of the skills do transfer. They’ve just got to get access,” he said. “It’s really a reshaping, a little bit more recognition that they need to deal with in terms of how they see themselves and how they can use those skills that they utilize on the streets to do something positive and pursue a legitimate way of life.”

The young man Eddings is working with seems not to have hit the wall that Marcus is at yet.

“He is simply trying to figure out how to put one foot in front of the other. They go from having some source of income to having no source of income,” Eddings told The Memphis News. “We’re convincing him now that getting his GED ought to be a decision that he ought to make. He’s been a little slow in that.”

Hughes said he would get the occasional dope boy showing up at his church before DMI.

“Very rarely. I did hear one or two stragglers you come across who say, ‘Yes, I do want to change.’ Often times, it’s usually because of a pending trial or they are in trouble,” he said. “Since that time, we’ve had a lot of people coming, wanting to change their lives.”

Gibbons is reviewing some neighborhoods where DMI might go next but he’s not saying where because of the undercover police work involved. He wants to see it replicated based on lessons learned in Memphis and he hopes to get a federal grant to hire a full-time coordinator.

The sixth man given a chance in the DMI program didn’t come to the church and was prosecuted. He pleaded guilty to five counts of selling drugs and was sentenced to four years in prison and fined $10,000. But the sentence was suspended and he was put on a diversion program.

Weirich recalled Criminal Court Judge John Fowlkes asking the man why he didn’t respond. He told Fowlkes, “It sounded too good to be true.”

92. Baseball Temple Can Be Memphis Institution - Monday, June 07, 2010

At some point, the Memphis Redbirds will be sold with the terms including a requirement that the new owner keep the team in Memphis.

What started in the late 1990s from the messy end of the old Memphis Chicks at the Mid-South Fairgrounds grew quickly. The move to the Redbirds with a new stadium Downtown at Third Street and Union Avenue was fueled by a lot of civic emotion and a desire to keep the city moving forward.

93. New York Company Buys Gardenwood Apartments - Tuesday, June 01, 2010

4975 Hoover Drive
Memphis, TN 38128
Sale Amount: $2.9 Million

Sale Date: May 17, 2010
Buyer: Gardenwood Apartments LLC
Seller: Bank of America NA
Loan Amount: $2.2 million
Loan Date: May 17, 2010
Maturity Date: N/A
Lender: Bloomfield Capital Partners Fund III LLC

94. Four G’town Parcels Sold Back to Lender - Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Four parcels totaling 27 acres in Germantown have been sold back to the lender, First Citizens National Bank of Dyersburg, for $3.3 million following a foreclosure.

95. Crews Buys Collierville Hampton - Tuesday, May 25, 2010

1280 W. Poplar Ave.
Collierville, TN 38017
Sale Amount: $5.1 Million

Sale Date: May 11, 2010
Buyer: SGR LLC
Seller: Collierville Hotels GP
Loan Amount: $3.8 million
Loan Date: May 11, 2010
Maturity Date: May 11, 2015
Lender: First Citizens National Bank

96. How to Build a Government in 71 days - Monday, May 24, 2010

The idea of consolidation is a political perennial in Memphis, but the details of merging Memphis and Shelby County governments are much more elusive.

The Metro Charter Commission’s formation last year represented the most meaningful move toward consolidation in almost 40 years.

97. Crews Buys Collierville Hampton Inn for $5.1M - Thursday, May 20, 2010

An entity called SGR LLC, whose principal is Jason Crews, has bought the Hampton Inn at 1280 W. Poplar Ave. in Collierville for $5.1 million from Collierville Hotels GP. The sale closed May 11.

98. Governor Candidates Place Focus on Economic Development - Friday, May 14, 2010

Contenders for Tennessee governor differ on plans for the state’s next wave of economic development.

As most of the them are airing a new bank of television ads talking about job growth, Democratic nominee Mike McWherter and one of the three Republican contenders, Chattanooga Congressman Zach Wamp, have taken slightly different positions.

99. Service, Care at Heart of Work For Rotter - Friday, May 14, 2010

Cary Rotter’s goal is simple: to provide elderly clients and their families with the best possible in-home care.

But the Memphis Comfort Keepers president and owner said he faces many challenges in bringing that goal to fruition, the greatest of which is hiring the right people.

100. Council to Talk Numbers Tuesday - Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. is scheduled to take his first budget proposal to the Memphis City Council Tuesday.

Before Wharton gives his budget address at 3:30, council committees will have already started considering some city fee increases. Wharton said soon after taking office in October that the fee increases were likely.