The latest upgrade of a Kroger supermarket in Memphis to be announced by the grocery giant’s Delta Division will be the Whitehaven store at 1212 E. Shelby Drive.

2. City Council Mulls Ending Auto Inspections - Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Memphis City Council member Lee Harris will propose Tuesday, May 21, exempting Memphis auto owners for two years from required auto emissions inspections.

3. Police Budget Passes Early Council Test - Thursday, May 09, 2013

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.

4. 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.

5. Parks Controversy Back to City Council - Wednesday, May 01, 2013

The committee recommendations are in for new names for three Confederate-themed city parks. And the long-running controversy about the parks is now back to the Memphis City Council.

The ad hoc committee of nine, which included several historians and two City Council members, held its final meeting Monday, April 29, and voted with little discussion on several ideas for what used to be known as Confederate, Forrest and Jefferson Davis parks.

6. Committee Split on Park Renaming Options - Wednesday, April 24, 2013

The nine-member ad hoc committee that is supposed to come up with recommendations for the Memphis City Council on what to call three Confederate-themed city parks displayed a clear rift Monday, April 22.

7. Council Ups Ante in Auto Inspections Standoff - Thursday, April 04, 2013

City funding of auto emissions inspections is still due to run out on June 30, the end of the current fiscal year at City Hall.

And Memphis City Council members are considering several options, including simply ending the inspections. The possible move comes after Shelby County government leaders announced last month the state has told them the state won’t assume responsibility for the auto inspections for at least a year, probably two. Until then, the auto inspections would apply only to Memphis vehicle owners and not those across the entire county.

8. Sammons Seeks Final Cut Numbers From Delta - Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Jack Sammons, the new chairman of the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority board, is no stranger to the flight from Memphis to Atlanta. Sammons long has been the board’s frequent flyer when it comes to business travel.

9. Aerotropolis Pitch to Council Receives Mixed Reaction - Thursday, March 21, 2013

After years of very general talk about the aerotropolis concept, Memphis City Council members are ready for leaders of the effort to bring it in for a landing in specific terms that work with plans in smaller areas of the district around Memphis International Airport.

10. Crosstown Project Has $15 Million City "Ask" - Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Leaders of the Crosstown Development Project are asking the city of Memphis for $15 million toward a $175 million project.

Memphis City Council members got a look Tuesday, March 19, at the “ask” as well as the finances and goals of the project centered on the old 1.5 million square foot Sears Crosstown building.

11. 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.

12. City Looks to 1998 Klan Demonstration as Guide - Friday, February 22, 2013

The planned Ku Klux Klan demonstration March 30 at the Shelby County Courthouse is a demonstration inspired by the ongoing controversy over a park named for Confederate General, Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard and slave trader Nathan Bedford Forrest.

13. 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.

14. Legislation Propels Parks Controversy to New Level - Thursday, February 07, 2013

As Shelby County suburban leaders were meeting in Nashville Tuesday, Feb. 5, with Tennessee legislators about possible moves toward some version of suburban school districts, the Memphis City Council was reacting to a pending bill in the state Legislature.

15. Council Approves Property Tax Collection Merger - Thursday, December 20, 2012

Timing did what decades of offers and counter-offers couldn’t do when it came to changing who collects current and delinquent property taxes for Memphis.

The City Council approved Tuesday, Dec. 18, an interlocal agreement for Shelby County Trustee David Lenoir to collect property taxes for the city.

16. Elvis Presley Boulevard Work Big Moment for Neighborhood - Tuesday, November 20, 2012

As early afternoon truck traffic on Brooks Road mixed with after-school traffic Friday, Nov. 16, on Elvis Presley Boulevard, a few tourists from the Graceland area mixed with several dozen local government and business leaders at the visitors center at the intersection.

17. Elvis Presley Boulevard Improvements Set to Begin - Monday, November 12, 2012

City leaders will formally break ground Thursday, Nov. 15, for improvements to the streetscape of Elvis Presley Boulevard between Brooks Road and Shelby Drive in Whitehaven.

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. and Memphis City Council member Harold Collins will lead the ceremony at the Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau Center at Elvis Presley and Brooks Thursday at 3:30 p.m.

18. Gay, Transgender City Workers Protected From Discrimination - Thursday, October 18, 2012

At the end of a long night at City Hall with a relatively short agenda, Shelby County Commissioner Sidney Chism told Memphis City Council members that their meetings looked like more “fun” than the commission’s meetings.

19. City Council Mulls Future of Whitehaven Golf Course - Thursday, October 04, 2012

Memphis City Council members will take a second look at plans to close the Links of Whitehaven city golf course in November.

City Parks and Neighborhood director Janet Hooks told council members last month that Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr.’s administration wants to instead close the Davy Crockett city golf course in Frayser despite council approval this past spring to close the nine-hole Whitehaven golf course.

20. Building Business - Monday, September 17, 2012

Dr. Leonard Greenhalgh brought a wake-up call with him to Memphis at the end of August, when he came to the city as one of several featured speakers for the Memphis Minority Business Council Continuum’s 2012 Economic Development Forum.

21. 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.

22. Gas Tax Would Raise MATA Funding - Thursday, August 09, 2012

If Memphis voters approve a gas tax increase on the Nov. 6 ballot, the Memphis Area Transit Authority will have what it has for years said it lacks to provide better service – a dedicated source of continuing funding.

23. Proposed Gas Tax Advances to November Memphis Ballot - Wednesday, August 08, 2012

Memphis City Council members gave final approval Tuesday, Aug. 7, to a second ballot question for the Nov. 6 ballot in Memphis.

On an 8-3 vote, the council approved on third and final reading the referendum ordinance that puts a one-cent-a-gallon local gas tax to Memphis voters. The same ballot will also include a referendum on a proposed half percent local sales tax hike the council approved in July.

24. Changes Occurring Backstage At Elvis Presley Enterprises - Monday, July 16, 2012

It was about a month ago when the company that produced a digital hologram of the late Tupac Shakur that showed up to startling effect on stage at the Coachella Music Festival announced it was working on a similar hologram of Elvis Presley.

25. 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.

26. Feds Overlook Elvis Presley Blvd. Work - Thursday, June 21, 2012

A few hours after federal officials announced in Washington Tuesday, June 19, that the Harahan Rail Bridge boardwalk project had been awarded $15 million in grant funding, Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. asked Memphis City Council member Harold Collins how he was.

27. 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.

28. Council Lowers Property Tax Rate, Approves $609M Budget - Wednesday, June 06, 2012

Memphis City Council members approved a $3.11 city property tax rate Tuesday, June 5, to fund a city operating budget of $609,802,357 and Memphis City Schools to the tune of $64,819,307.

The split council vote came nearly 14 hours after the council’s day started at City Hall with a budget committee session in which the basic elements of the ultimate budget compromise were mapped out before noon.

29. 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.

30. 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.

31. 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.

32. 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.

33. Council Budget Committee Goes Into Next Week - Friday, May 25, 2012

The Memphis City Council budget committee has at least one more session. After a wrap-up this week, the committee scheduled a Tuesday, May 29, hearing at City Hall, 125 N. Main St.

34. City Debuts Transportation Commission - Friday, May 25, 2012

As Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. worked his way through a recent busy day, he walked briskly into his City Hall conference room where a group of seven people were waiting around the table.

“Welcome to the club,” he said to the first ever appointees to the new Memphis Transportation Commission, the group that will regulate all vehicles for hire in the city.

35. Bed Tax Hike Talks Turn To High Airfares - Thursday, May 17, 2012

This week’s discussion by the Memphis City Council about raising the hotel-motel bed tax sprouted wings and was bound early on for the much larger and emotional topic of high airfares at Memphis International Airport.

36. 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.

37. 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.

38. 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.

39. 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.

40. Council Approves Pink Palace Renovation and Elvis Presley Blvd Funding - Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Memphis City Council members approved Tuesday, Feb. 21, the terms of a $20 million multi-year renovation of the Memphis Pink Palace Museum and advanced $16 million in funding over two fiscal years starting this June for improvements along Elvis Presley Boulevard in Whitehaven.

41. Contest Offers Youth Apprenticeships With Celebs - Friday, February 17, 2012

Former NBA star Penny Hardaway, Fox 13 news anchor Mearl Purvis, radio disc jockey Stan Bell and Memphis City Council Chairman Harold Collins are among the local celebrities joining Coca-Cola and Walmart for a new Black History Month program urging African-Americans in Memphis to “pay it forward” to the next generation.

42. 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.

43. Annexation Returns to Forefront in Schools Discussion - Wednesday, February 01, 2012

It keeps coming back to the issue of turf between the city of Memphis and the six suburban municipalities.

The complex questions of who paid for what, how much they paid and who gets it predates the ongoing move to schools consolidation by years. And it has everything to do with whether Shelby County has one or multiple public school systems at the start of the 2013-2014 school year.

44. 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.

45. 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.

46. 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.

47. City Passes New Wrecker Rules - Thursday, November 03, 2011

Memphis City Council member Harold Collins says he has become “the wrecker city councilman” – the council member who garners the lion’s share of complaints about rogue tow truck operators and complaints from tow truck operators.

48. Council Approves New Tow Rules, Delays Hotel Motel Tax Discussion - Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Memphis City Council members approved a new set of rules for the city’s wrecker industry including background checks for drivers, a Memphis Transportation Commission to enforce regulations and no moving towed vehicles until police clear the vehicle for towing.

49. Council to Vote on Wrecker-Service Rules - Tuesday, November 01, 2011

Memphis City Council members take up the complex and emotional subject of wrecker-service rules again at the Tuesday, Nov. 1, council session.

Up for third and final reading is the ordinance that would change the procedures in a growing industry governed by a complex set of rules and long-held customs.

50. City Council Delays Vote on Wrecker Ordinance - Thursday, October 20, 2011

One of the most complex and technical parts of city government any Memphis City Council member can delve into is the rules that govern the city’s wrecker industry.

It was three months ago that council member Harold Collins undertook not just a look but a rewriting of those rules.

51. Council Looks Into NBA Revenue Lock Out - Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Memphis City Council members voted Tuesday, Oct. 18, to have their attorney “explore all options” for recovering any revenues lost in the National Basketball Association lock-out.

The resolution, proposed by council chairman Myron Lowery, is aimed at revenues from ticket sales at FedExForum, home of the Memphis Grizzlies, that are used to pay off the debt of building the $250 million arena.

52. Despite Low Turnout, Incumbents See Big Wins - Monday, October 10, 2011

Memphis voters kept the turnout in last week’s city elections at less than 20 percent. About 18 percent of the city’s 426,580 or so voters showed up for the Thursday, Oct. 6, elections.

Some politicos doubted turnout would move into double digits until the relatively healthy 7.6 percent turnout for early voters made it clear.

53. 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.

54. Council Continues Fiscal Policy Talks - Thursday, September 22, 2011

Nearly three months after a city budget and tax rate for the new fiscal year were set by the Memphis City Council, the council and Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. continue to debate and make decisions about long-term city fiscal policy.

55. 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.

56. Valet Parking Ordinance Proposed in City Council - Friday, September 02, 2011

Complaints of valet parking on some Downtown streets has prompted Memphis City Council member Harold Collins to propose a permit process for businesses wanting to offer the service to customers.

57. His Latest Flame - Monday, August 15, 2011

There is Elvis Presley Boulevard and there is Graceland.

The boulevard takes in much more than the considerable financial and cultural presence left by the entertainer who lived and died in rock ‘n’ roll’s house on the hill in Whitehaven.

58. City Considers Pension Overhaul - Friday, August 05, 2011

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr.’s administration has taken a tentative overhaul of the city’s retirement system to the Memphis City Council that would set a minimum retirement age for city employees, redefine line of duty disabilities and limit benefits for spouses of city employees.

59. 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.

60. 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.

61. 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.

62. Redrawn Lines Affect Council Contenders - Thursday, July 14, 2011

Mud Island has become a kind of safe harbor for candidates hoping to make it onto the Memphis City Council in the Oct. 6 city elections.

With Mud Island apparently still safely within council District 7, University of Memphis law school professor Lee A. Harris pulled his qualifying petition this week for the only council seat with no incumbent seeking re-election. He’s one of three citizens weighing the district race with Mud Island addresses.

63. Six Council Contenders In New Districts Under Redistrict Plan - Wednesday, July 13, 2011

A detailed examination of the proposed redistricting plan for the Memphis City Council by The Daily News shows six prospective council candidates would be drawn out of districts they are considering running in for the Oct. 6 elections.

64. Budget Issues Resurface at City Council - Thursday, July 07, 2011

The Memphis City Council this week ventured back into the just closed budget season via a city charter amendment for the November 2012 ballot.

A referendum ordinance by council member Kemp Conrad and council chairman Myron Lowery would require the city administration to submit a five-year operating budget plan to the council along with a five- to 10-year capital improvements budget plan and consolidate the two budgets into one presentation.

65. 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.

66. 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.

67. 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.

68. Wharton Makes Video Pitch to Public - Monday, June 13, 2011

As Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. searched among city council members and municipal union leaders for a budget consensus late last week, his administration was making another pitch – to taxpayers.

69. City Council Delays Budget Approval - Thursday, June 09, 2011

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. said Tuesday’s 13-hour City Council budget marathon proves the city will get its economic house in order over several years instead of in the next fiscal year alone.

70. City Council Rejects 18-Cent Property Tax Hike - Wednesday, June 08, 2011

The city of Memphis operating budget for the fiscal year to come July 1 is $11 million from being balanced.

The Memphis City Council voted on a series of 16 budget amendments Tuesday, June 7 in a marathon council session that began at 9 a.m. with the budget committee and ended shortly after 10 p.m.

71. Wharton Backs Tax Hike and Fee Increase Package - Wednesday, June 08, 2011

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. is backing an 18-cent city property tax hike to balance the city’s budget.

Wharton backed the proposal by Memphis City Council member Harold Collins as well as a set of city fee increases proposed by council member Edmund Ford Jr. as the council budget committee held a set of last-minute budget hearings Tuesday, June 7, at City Hall.

72. Council Prepares for Long Budget Session - Tuesday, June 07, 2011

Memphis City Council members have a long day ahead Tuesday, June 7, at City Hall with lots of numbers and important decisions.

The council will either finish its budget season Tuesday or could go into an overtime period that could stretch past the July 1 start of the new fiscal year.

73. Council Continues Mulling Budget - Thursday, June 02, 2011

It’s not the best way to go about setting a city budget. But it does happen from time to time. With the July 1 start of the fiscal year now weeks away, the Memphis City Council is without a clear consensus on any one way to balance the city’s budget, which is $22.7 million in the red by the administration’s count.

74. Mayors Launch Office of Sustainability - Tuesday, May 24, 2011

When Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. and Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell launch their joint office of sustainability this week, it will be the latest move in a continuing realignment of both local governments.

75. 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.

76. New School Merger Option Emerges - Friday, January 21, 2011

A second quicker path to school consolidation opened this week, the same night the Memphis City Schools board made a bigger splash by voting down a compromise offer from the Shelby County Schools system.

77. MCS Board Votes Down Schools Standoff Compromise - Wednesday, January 19, 2011

The Memphis City Schools (MCS) board voted down a compromise proposal Tuesday from Shelby County School officials.

The 2-7 vote against the compromise sets the stage for the Shelby County Election Commission to meet Wed. and set a date for a March referendum on the MCS charter surrender approved by the board in December.

78. Council Approves $3M in Triangle Noir Funding - Thursday, January 06, 2011

Memphis City Council members have appropriated $3 million in federal funding to begin demolition of the Cleaborn Homes public housing development.

The demolition work, slated to begin in February, is part of a more ambitious 10-year $1 billion development plan called Triangle Noir. While the council approved the funding, some council members said they want to see a new name for the plan, which would take in the area south of FedExForum and move into South Memphis.

79. Standoff Continues Between School Systems - Monday, January 03, 2011

The standoff between Shelby County’s two public school systems never really went on the back burner during the Christmas and New Year’s holiday break.

It just wasn’t as visible as political leaders outside the two school systems tried to find some middle ground between special schools district status for Shelby County Schools and a charter surrender for Memphis City Schools.

80. Elected Officials Ponder Future of MCS - Thursday, December 23, 2010

Local elected leaders outside the Memphis City Schools system have wasted little time in setting the stage for possible scenarios that would follow a charter surrender by the school system next year.

81. Council Marks Year’s End With Full Agenda - Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Memphis City Council members end their year Tuesday with an agenda that includes final approval of the Power Center planned development in Hickory Hill.

The council meeting begins at 3:30 p.m. at City Hall, 125 N. Main St.

82. City, County Schools Summit in Works - Thursday, December 09, 2010

The Memphis City Council might need a big room if everybody shows up for the summit it is trying to organize on the standoff between the county’s two public school systems.

The list includes council members, Shelby County Commission members, both school boards, Shelby County’s state legislators and at least two mayors.

83. Council Moves To Set Up School System Summit - Wednesday, December 08, 2010

Memphis city council members are setting up a summit meeting to talk about the political standoff between the county’s two public school systems.

Council members approved a resolution Tuesday calling for a meeting of the two school boards, the council, the Shelby County Commission, both mayors and Shelby County legislators to Nashville.

84. City Council Kills Nondiscrimination Ordinance - Monday, November 29, 2010

With no debate or discussion, a nondiscrimination ordinance for city government died on the second of three readings.

The Memphis City Council voted down the proposal, which would have banned city government from discriminating in hiring and employment on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression. It got six votes, one short of the seven necessary to pass, on second reading.

85. 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.

86. Ware Turns Self In On Misconduct Charge - Monday, November 15, 2010

Memphis City Council member Barbara Swearengen Ware turned herself in to authorities Friday afternoon on an official misconduct charge.

87. Lowery Named New Council Chairman - Thursday, November 11, 2010

Myron Lowery is the new Memphis City Council chairman for 2011 and Bill Morrison is slated to be vice chairman. Lowery was the only nominee at Tuesday’s council session, as was Morrison.

88. City Anti Discrimination Ordinance Clears First Reading - Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Memphis city council members approved an anti-discrimination ordinance on the first of three readings Tuesday. And they requested a study of city hiring policies to determine if there is discrimination in city government hiring practices.

89. New Chairman, Anti-Discrimination On Deck for Council - Tuesday, November 09, 2010

Council member Bill Boyd is favored to become the next City Council chairman when council members vote Tuesday.

Boyd is favored due to tradition because he has served for the last year as council vice chairman. The chairmanship rotates on an annual basis by council custom.

90. Real Estate Recycling - Monday, November 08, 2010

If sustainability is defined as reuse of land and/or structures for new purposes, Hickory Hill may be the capital of the concept in Memphis.

Consider New Direction Christian Church, which found a home in a vacant big box store and now plans to transform a vacant and blighted apartment complex into a charter middle and high school with a performing arts center. The bulldozers began demolishing the Marina Cove apartments complex last month.

91. Swearengen Ware Faces Council Suspension - Friday, October 29, 2010

For the fifth time in the Memphis City Council’s 42-year history, one of its sitting members has been charged with felony misconduct.

And the charge against council member Barbara Swearengen Ware raises the same questions the other cases did about whether an indicted council member should remain in elected office.

92. Lott Residency Questions Linger After Confirmation - Friday, October 01, 2010

Martha Lott begins serving Friday as head of the city’s General Services Division. But how long she will remain in the post is an open question.

93. Wharton Flips Switch On Tiger Lane - Thursday, September 09, 2010

With a crowd of several hundred watching, Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Wednesday evening flipped the switch on the lights for the new Tiger Lane project at The Fairgrounds.

It lit up a set of streetlights and parallel lower trails of blue lights that mark the parking and tailgating areas along the green space.

94. Time to Shine Lights on Tiger Lane - Wednesday, September 08, 2010

The $15 million Tiger Lane project at the Mid-South Fairgrounds will get a “blue” opening Wednesday evening.

The blue isn’t from the University of Memphis Tigers’ opening loss of the football season. It is strings of blue lights from the East Parkway entrance to the western wall of the Liberty Bowl stadium.

95. City Works to Resolve MCS Funding Issue - Tuesday, September 07, 2010

The Tennessee Supreme Court has made its long-awaited decision in the Memphis school funding case. The decision is not to hear the appeal of the city of Memphis.

It’s been two years since the Memphis City Council cut funding to Memphis City Schools. The school system sued, claiming the funding cut violated the state law requiring a “maintenance of effort” in local funding. Countersuits followed.

96. Multi-Phase Plans Under Way for Former Marina Cove - Thursday, September 02, 2010

The multi-phase Power Center Academy Towne Center to be built on what is now the Marina Cove Apartments in Hickory Hill could have a construction contractor by the end of the year.

In a matter of weeks, Power Center Community Development Corp. and Askew Hargraves Harcourt & Associates Inc. (A2H) will begin talking with potential contractors.

97. Power Center Partners With A2H On Marina Cove Project - Wednesday, September 01, 2010

A Hickory Hill community development corporation unveiled a five phase plan Tuesday evening for developing the old Marina Cove Apartments.

Power Center CDC, founded by New Direction Christian Church, developed the plan with Askew, Hargraves Harcourt & Associates Inc.

98. MCS Court Ruling Reopens City Budget for Discussion - Monday, August 30, 2010

Consider the city budget approved by the Memphis City Council in June now officially reopened for discussion.

Last week’s decision by the Tennessee Supreme Court that there would be no appeal of the two-year school funding lawsuit reopened the budget books. It has also put new emphasis on two years worth of bickering about exactly how much Memphis City Schools would be entitled to if it won.

99. Court Ruling Renews School Funding Issue - Friday, August 27, 2010

There is the installment plan and there is a special tax bill.

Those are two options the city of Memphis faces as it prepares to pay the Memphis City Schools a tab the school system puts at $57 million.

100. 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.