Here comes Trader Joe’s with a Friday opening in Germantown after lots of mystery and delays and changes for what is a pretty simple concept. For so many of us, this has been a long-hoped for goal. It’s kind of up there with smuggling in Coors beer from the west in the 70s before it became available everywhere and Coors had a brewery here.

2. Edmund Ford Jr. Sticks to Council, Commission Seats As He Pursues Transit Fee - Friday, September 14, 2018

Edmund Ford Jr. is pushing for a dedicated revenue stream for the Memphis Area Transit Authority and road projects while holding seats on the Memphis City Council and the Shelby County Commission.

And it could take him through the 90 days he has before he must give up the council seat, Ford said this week.

3. Return of Beale Street Cover Charge Adds Fuel to Debate - Friday, September 14, 2018

There are still some details left to work out about the return of the Beale Street cover charge.

The Downtown Memphis Commission and Memphis police have to set criteria for when to use the cover charge. There is also the question of whether it is a $10 cover with coupons from merchants or the $5 cover with no rebates that was in place before the council abolished the cover altogether.

4. Last Word: Selling Local Soccer, Football's Arrival and Luttrell's Vetoes - Tuesday, September 4, 2018

So the United Soccer League Memphis franchise is to be called Memphis FC 901. The branding was launched as the Labor Day weekend began with a video that is part Rogues nostalgia, soccer at school memories and a liberal dose of Grit ‘n’ Grind rhetoric from another sports franchise just down the street from AutoZone Park. The combination is another example of sports carrying the banner for the promotion of Memphis in general.

5. Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, New County Commissioners Sworn In - Friday, August 31, 2018

New Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris and the 13 members of the Shelby County Commission were sworn in together – to show unity between the two bodies of government – Thursday afternoon at the Cannon Center for the Performing Arts.

6. Last Word: Southgate Signs, Suburban Deadline and Kingsbury Allegations - Thursday, August 16, 2018

Seven months after it closed, the Kroger supermarket at the Southgate shopping center reopened Wednesday as a CashSaver grocery store in what has to be a blueprint for future efforts but is also nonetheless something that is not easily replicated. Showing the way on this has been The Works Inc. at its store at the South Memphis Farmers Market. We wrote about this earlier this year just as the Southgate solution began to take shape.

7. Last Word: Hotel on the Mall, The Twist in Council Day and Rallings on Surveillance - Wednesday, August 15, 2018

At this point, the second convention center hotel is a bit like the Pyramid was at one point. Before the first dirt was turned on the Pyramid in the late 1980s, there was the discussion about where it should go and there were a lot of ideas on that covering a lot of territory – so much so that then-Shelby County Mayor Bill Morris had a model of a pretty generic looking Pyramid on his desk that had some lego wheels attached to it.

8. Harris Claims County Mayor, Democrats Sweep Other Countywide Offices - Monday, August 6, 2018

State Sen. Lee Harris easily beat County Trustee David Lenoir to become the next Shelby County mayor in the Thursday, Aug. 2, county general election, leading a Democratic resurgence in county politics.

9. Harris Elected County Mayor, Bonner as Sheriff - Friday, August 3, 2018

State Sen. Lee Harris easily beat County Trustee David Lenoir to become the next Shelby County mayor in the Thursday, Aug. 2, county general election, leading a Democratic resurgence in county politics.

10. Turnout Growing With 2 Days to Vote Before Aug. 2 - Friday, July 27, 2018

With two days left in the early voting period, 63,244 citizens had cast ballots in Shelby County in advance of the Aug. 2 election day. The last day of the early voting period is Saturday, July 28.

11. Moves to Abolish IRV and City Runoff Provision Remain on November Ballot - Wednesday, July 25, 2018

After intense lobbying by advocates of instant runoff voting, Memphis city council members doubled down Tuesday, July 24, on their decision to put a referendum on the Nov. 6 ballot that would do away with the current city charter provision calling for instant-runoff voting.

12. Early Opening - Friday, July 13, 2018

Early voting in advance of the Aug. 2 Election Day opens Friday, July 13, at five locations across Shelby County. On Tuesday, 22 additional sites will be open through July 28. Between the Shelby County Election Commission and Chancery Court there were three other sets of early-voting locations and hours in a three-week period before Chancellor JoeDae Jenkins signed off Tuesday afternoon on a fourth set.

13. Strickland Moves to De-Annex Southwind, Rocky Point - Tuesday, July 10, 2018

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland says his administration is set to begin the process of de-annexing the Southwind/Windyke area and the Rocky Point area, both in eastern Memphis.

14. Early-Voting Challenge Touches On Other Issues of Open Government - Tuesday, July 10, 2018

The local Democratic Party’s political and legal challenge of early-voting sites and hours is also part of a larger challenge of how decisions are made in city and county government.

In one of the two Chancery Court lawsuits over early voting filed Friday, July 6, former city council member Myron Lowery and Shelby County Democratic Party chairman Corey Strong claim the election commission violated the state’s open-meetings law by meeting in secret to plan the addition of more sites for the July early-voting period.

15. Strickland Moves to De-Annex Southwind/Windyke, Rocky Point - Monday, July 9, 2018

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland says his administration is set to begin the process of de-annexing the Southwind/Windyke area and the Rocky Point area, both in eastern Memphis.

16. Bar Assn. Poll Recommends All Four Appointed Judges - Saturday, July 7, 2018

The Memphis Bar Association poll of the most qualified candidates in the special judicial races on the Aug. 2 ballot recommends all four of the judges appointed to those positions in the interim.

Just over 1,000 attorneys participated in the poll, which asked respondents to pick who is the most qualified among the contenders in those races as well as court clerks on the August ballot.

17. Bar Assn. Poll Recommends All Four Appointed Judges - Friday, July 6, 2018

The Memphis Bar Association poll of the most qualified candidates in the special judicial races on the Aug. 2 ballot recommends all four of the judges appointed to those positions in the interim.

Just over 1,000 attorneys participated in the poll, which asked respondents to pick who is the most qualified among the contenders in those races as well as court clerks on the August ballot.

18. Few Ripples to End City Hall’s Budget Season - Thursday, June 7, 2018

The Memphis City Council gave final approval Tuesday, June 5, to a $685 million city operating budget, an $87 million capital budget and a $3.19 city property tax rate.

The votes ended City Hall’s budget season with few changes to the budget proposed by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

19. City Council Approves $685M City Budget, Takes City Tax Rate to $3.19 - Wednesday, June 6, 2018

The Memphis City Council gave final approval Tuesday, June 5, to a $685 million city operating budget, an $87 million capital budget and a $3.19 city property tax rate.

The votes ended City Hall’s budget season with few changes by the council to the budget proposed by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

20. Council Gives Administration Nod, Honors 1968 Workers - Thursday, May 24, 2018

The painted image of the late Henry Loeb was mostly ignored Tuesday, May 22, at City Hall as the Memphis City Council honored surviving city sanitation workers from 1968 with its 25th annual Humanitarian of the Year Awards.

21. Last Word: A New Council Member, Law Without Signature and Corker Down Under - Tuesday, May 22, 2018

The Memphis City Council should be back up to full strength by the time Tuesday becomes Wednesday. Filling the Super District 9 seat left vacant by the resignation earlier this month of Philip Spinosa to join the leadership of the Greater Memphis Chamber is on the council’s agenda Tuesday afternoon – the last item on the agenda. But the council usually skips around.

22. Last Word: BSMF Notes, Political Dominoes and The Teacher Pipeline - Monday, May 7, 2018

Yes, it rained. There was even hail for a brief period. None of that appeared to make a dent in the run of the Beale Street Music Festival. We are still waiting on exact box office numbers. The park was sold out – Ticketfly and at the gate -- early Sunday evening. It wasn’t a sellout Friday and Saturday but ticket supplies were tight for Tom Lee Park with the festival estimating there were thousands more people Saturday than there were Friday. Much to be said for a lineup this year that managed to strike a balance between hipster, cutting edge nobody-knows-about-this-yet new and used-to-be-big-not-so-long-ago nostalgia.

23. Spinosa Takes Job With Chamber, Resigns from Council - Friday, May 4, 2018

Philip Spinosa, Jr. has resigned from the Memphis City Council and was named the new senior vice president of the Greater Memphis Chamber’s Chairman’s Circle.

Spinosa will be taking over for Shea Flinn, who announced he would be vacating his position in March. Much like Spinosa, Flinn left his post on the council in 2015 to join the chamber.

24. Harris, Lenoir to Battle for County Mayor - Thursday, May 3, 2018

Republican David Lenoir and Democrat Lee Harris will meet in the Aug. 2 county general election to decide who will be the next Shelby County mayor. Lenoir and Harris won their respective primaries easily Tuesday, May 1, 2018.

25. Lenoir and Harris Advance in County Mayor's Race - Wednesday, May 2, 2018

Republican David Lenoir and Democrat Lee Harris will meet in the Aug. 2 county general election to decide who will be the next Shelby County Mayor. Lenoir and Harris won their respective primaries easily Tuesday, May 1, 2018.

26. Early Vote in Shelby County Primaries Tops 20,000 So Far - Tuesday, April 24, 2018

More than 20,000 voters cast ballots early through Saturday, April 21, in advance of the May 1 election, more than half in the Democratic county primaries.

According to the Shelby County Election Commission numbers, 12,001 of the 20,717 early voters cast their ballots in the Democratic primaries and 8,716 voted early in the Republican primaries through the last weekend of the period.

27. Local, State and Federal Election Cycles Blend On Last Weekend of Early Voting - Monday, April 23, 2018

Candidates in the August and November elections were out on the last weekend of early voting in Shelby County in advance of the May 1 election day for county primaries.

The events were a mix of candidates from all three elections on the calendar in 2018.

28. Cooper-Young Overlay OK’d With Footnote - Thursday, April 12, 2018

Memphis City Council members gave final approval Tuesday, April 10, to a historical overlay district for Cooper-Young – the first historic district status granted by the city in 20 years.

But the 7-3 vote on third and final reading will require approval of a companion ordinance further defining what can and cannot be built there or how properties can be changed so the local Landmarks Commission can properly enforce terms of the overlay district.

29. City Council Grants Historic Overlay Status to Cooper-Young - Wednesday, April 11, 2018

Memphis City Council members gave final approval Tuesday, April 10, to a historical overlay district for Cooper-Young – the first historic district status granted by the city in 20 years.

But the 7-3 vote on third and final reading likely isn’t the end of the discussion about how decisions will be made by the local Landmarks Commission enforcing terms of the overlay that govern what can and cannot be built there or who it can be changed.

30. Plan to Expand Pre-K Would Leverage Private Funds - Friday, March 23, 2018

After voters defeated two ballot questions in two years for sales tax increases – city and county – to fund an expansion of prekindergarten classrooms primarily in Memphis, the effort is back with a momentum that seemed unlikely five years ago.

31. Raleigh Town Center To Break Ground - Saturday, March 17, 2018

Construction on the new $28 million Raleigh Town Center begins this month, city of Memphis leaders announced Tuesday, March 13.

The city project is on the site of the demolished Raleigh Springs Mall on the southeast corner of Yale Road and Austin Peay Highway. It will include a new Raleigh branch public library, a new police precinct and traffic precinct, a city skate park and an 11-acre lake with a walking trail.

32. Raleigh Town Center To Break Ground - Wednesday, March 14, 2018

Construction on the new $28 million Raleigh Town Center begins this month, city of Memphis leaders announced Tuesday, March 13.

The city project is on the site of the demolished Raleigh Springs Mall on the southeast corner of Yale Road and Austin Peay Highway. It will include a new Raleigh branch public library, a new police precinct and traffic precinct, a city skate park and an 11-acre lake with a walking trail.

33. May Primaries Feature More Candidates, Women - Friday, March 2, 2018

The May 1 Shelby County primary ballot is set, with 33 Republicans and 50 Democrats seeking 23 county offices – specifically the right to advance as the nominees of their respective parties to the August county general election.

34. Last Word: Corker & Blackburn, More Frost and Dale Watson's Move to The Haven - Friday, February 23, 2018

It's possible around City Hall these days to get your RFQs mixed up with your RFPs. And there is a difference in requests for qualifications and requests for proposals. Usually RFQs come before RFPs – but there are exceptions – loopholes. The latest RFQ out of City Hall – album title or t-shirt slogan? – is for the adaptive reuse of the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art.

35. County Primary Ballot Includes Partisan Match-Ups, Automatic Wins - Monday, February 19, 2018

Two Democratic county commissioners effectively won re-election to new terms of office at the Thursday, Feb. 15, filing deadline for candidates on the May 1 county primary ballot. And a third faces independent opposition in the August county general election.

36. Two County Commissioners Re-elected At May Ballot Filing Deadline - Friday, February 16, 2018

Two Democratic county commissioners effectively won re-election to new terms of office at the Thursday, Feb. 15, filing deadline for candidates on the May 1 county primary ballot. And a third faces independent opposition in the August county general election.

37. Council Debate on MLGW Rates Reveals Trust Issues - Thursday, February 8, 2018

It began after the Tom Lee storm last Memorial Day weekend – a burst of sudden, intense winds that knocked out power to 188,000 homes and businesses as well as toppling the circa-1950s obelisk memorial to Tom Lee Downtown.

38. Council Reopens MLGW Rate Hike Consideration, Approves Term Limit Referendum - Thursday, January 25, 2018

Memphis City Council members decided Tuesday, Jan. 23, to take a second look at the gas and electric rate-hike proposals they rejected two weeks ago, but put off any new votes on the matter until February.

39. Council Reopens MLGW Rate Hike Consideration, Approves Term Limit Referendum - Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Memphis City Council members decided Tuesday, Jan. 23, to take a second look at the gas and electric rate hike proposals they rejected two weeks ago. But they put off any new votes on the matter until the first council meeting in February after what is expected to be a lengthy discussion in committee earlier that same day at City Hall.

40. Shelby County Prekindergarten Push Remains in General Terms for Now - Saturday, January 13, 2018

Nearly six years after voters defeated two ballot questions in as many years that would have provided a tax revenue steam for universal prekindergarten, the pre-K quest is back.

The return of a coordinated civic and political push for pre-K comes about five years after a combination of state and federal funding as well as a shift of county government’s early childhood Head Start contract to Shelby County Schools.

41. City Council Rejects MLGW Gas, Electric Rate Hikes - Thursday, January 11, 2018

Memphis City Council members voted down proposed electric and gas rate hikes Tuesday, Jan. 9, but left the door open to reconsider that.

Approval of Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division’s annual budget, which is based in part on such rate revenue, was delayed for two weeks.

42. Council Preparing Plan to Provide Pre-K Funding - Thursday, December 21, 2017

The Memphis City Council has been out of the school funding business for just under a decade.

And there doesn’t seem to be a consensus among council members to change that by committing continuous funding from the city property tax rate, but they are about to meet with Shelby County commissioners, nonprofits, foundations and philanthropy groups about mapping out funding for pre-kindergarten classrooms.

43. Council Delays MLGW Rate Hike Vote to Wednesday - Wednesday, December 20, 2017

Memphis City Council members meet again Wednesday, Dec. 20, to vote on Memphis Light Gas and Water Divisions proposals to raise water, gas and electricity rates starting next month.

The council was debating the 1.05 percent water rate hike proposal at its regularly scheduled Tuesday session when chairman Berlin Boyd announced the meeting would recess until 4 p.m. Wednesday at City Hall. It came as council members had a lot of questions about possible alternatives to the rate hikes across all three sectors of the publicly-owned utility.

44. RCV Goes To Ballot, Term-Limit Change May Join It - Thursday, December 7, 2017

Memphis City Council members gave final approval Tuesday, Dec. 5, to a November 2018 referendum that would repeal the use of ranked-choice voting (RCV) in some city council races starting with 2019 city elections.

45. City Council Gives Final Approval to RCV Repeal Referendum in November - Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Memphis City Council members gave final approval Tuesday, Dec. 5, to a November 2018 referendum that would repeal the use of ranked-choice voting in some city council races starting with the 2019 city elections.

46. Extension of Council Term Limits Proposed - Tuesday, December 5, 2017

Earlier this year some Memphis City Council members and Shelby County Commissioners began talking about changing the limits of two consecutive terms in office that each legislative body has in place.

47. County Primary Filing Opens With Paperwork Flurry - Monday, November 20, 2017

A total of 37 prospective candidates in the May 2018 county primaries pulled qualifying petitions last week on the first day of the filing period Friday, Nov. 17.

And the first contenders through the doors at the Shelby County Election Commission in a period that extends to a February deadline confirms a few trends.

48. Lane Touts Luttrell Endorsement in Sheriff's Race - Friday, September 8, 2017

Republican contender for Shelby County Sheriff Dale Lane is touting the support of every suburban mayor in the county, current Shelby County Mayor and former sheriff Mark Luttrell, and former county mayor Jim Rout.

49. Confederate Monuments Controversy Comes to City Hall - Tuesday, August 22, 2017

The question of timing in removing two Confederate monuments from city parks arrives at City Hall Tuesday, Aug. 22.

A Memphis City Council resolution that would instruct the city administration to immediately remove and/or sell Confederate monuments in city parks is scheduled for discussion at the 2:15 p.m. executive session and could be added to the council agenda or voted on later at the first council session in September.

50. City Council To Take Up Monument Removal Resolution - Saturday, August 19, 2017

Memphis City Council members will discuss and possibly vote Tuesday, Aug. 22, on a resolution that directs the city to act on the “immediate removal and/or sale of Nathan Bedford Forrest statue from Health Sciences Park and statue of Jefferson Davis and related artifacts from Memphis Park.”

51. Monument Effort Reflects Differing Strategies - Friday, August 18, 2017

The call to remove Confederate monuments in Memphis city parks is increasingly meeting with local officials pointing toward Nashville and state officials. And local activists are pointing to a clock.

52. Last Word: Monuments Pace Quickens, Campaigning on Opioids and High Heels - Thursday, August 17, 2017

The financial services company that is a crucial tenant for the Bakery project between the Medical District and Downtown is Orion, which would move to the space in and around the old Wonder Break bakery building on Monroe from its Bartlett HQ.

53. Resolution, Dollar-Figure Miscues Raise Sanitation Workers’ Grants by $20,000 - Thursday, July 27, 2017

After all of these years, maybe what happened Tuesday, July 25, to the city’s plan to pay the 14 surviving sanitation workers from 1968 a grant of $50,000 each was part of the larger narrative of the enduring turmoil of that historic time.

54. Raleigh Springs Town Center ‘On Track and On Budget’ - Saturday, May 6, 2017

It’s the end of an era with the final demolition of Raleigh Springs Mall underway, and city and community leaders hope it’s the beginning of a brighter future with the much-anticipated Raleigh Springs Town Center set to rise in its place.

55. Money Behind New Zoo Parking Terms - Thursday, April 13, 2017

In the third attempt to bring an end to the Overton Park Greensward controversy last summer, Memphis City Council member Bill Morrison decided it was best not to try to reach agreement on all points, but on most points.

56. Task Force Backs 3 De-Annexations, 3 Referendums - Monday, April 10, 2017

A task force on de-annexation is recommending referendums in three recently annexed areas of Memphis, an automatic de-annexation of three other sparsely populated areas on the city’s borders and keeping a part of Raleigh proposed by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland for de-annexation.

57. De-Annexation Task Force Recommends 3 Referendums, 3 Automatic De-Annexations - Friday, April 7, 2017

A task force on de-annexation is recommending de-annexation of three recently annexed areas of Memphis, an automatic de-annexation of three other sparsely populated areas on the city’s borders and keep a part of Raleigh proposed by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland for de-annexation in the city of Memphis.

58. Riverside and Cooper Bike Lanes Draw Complaints - Wednesday, March 29, 2017

Out of 10 repaving projects the city is considering for bike lanes by this fall, the two that got the most attention at an open house Monday, March 27, were the Riverside Drive and Cooper Street bike-lane proposals.

59. Greensward Compromise Text, Discussion Differ on Cost Split - Thursday, March 23, 2017

At the end of a surprising day at City Hall, Memphis City Council member Worth Morgan was anticipating what might happen in the three weeks until the next council session to the compromise for zoo parking in Overton Park.

60. State: Planned Parenthood Condom Funding Required - Saturday, February 4, 2017

The Tennessee Department of Health says Shelby County government is required to fund a grant to Planned Parenthood for the distribution of free condoms as part of larger effort to combat the spread of the HIV virus.

61. Strickland Proposes 7 Areas for Possible De-Annexation - Friday, February 3, 2017

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland wants to at least discuss de-annexing seven parts of the city and reducing the city’s square mileage by 8 percent and thus increasing the city’s population density.

62. Strickland Proposes 7 Areas For Possible Deannexation - Friday, February 3, 2017

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland wants to at least discuss de-annexing seven parts of the city and reducing the city’s square mileage by 8 percent and thus increasing the city’s population density.

63. Strickland Says City Willing to Discuss De-Annexation of "Six to Seven" Areas - Thursday, February 2, 2017

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said his administration will recommend six to seven parts of the city that could possibly be de-annexed when a de-annexation task force meets Thursday, Feb. 2, at City Hall.

64. Arrests, Metal Barriers, Lawsuits All Played Role in Greensward Parking Compromise - Thursday, December 29, 2016

Spring at City Hall is budget season and it can be stormy for a new mayor, not to mention a city council with six new members. But that wasn’t the case in 2016.

The real spring political storm was the Overton Park Greensward – specifically overflow parking from the Memphis Zoo on the greenspace south of the zoo.

65. Last Word: An Early Voting Challenge, Raleigh Settlement and Rocky Top Tumult - Friday, November 4, 2016

Early voting in Shelby County ended with some lines Thursday at several of the 21 sites. We should have the final turnout numbers Friday morning and you can get the totals first @tdnpols, www.twitter.com/tdnpols.

66. Council Passes Pot Ordinance 7-6 - Wednesday, October 5, 2016

The Memphis City Council gave final approval Tuesday, Oct. 4, to an ordinance that gives Memphis Police the discretion to write a ticket with a $50 fine for possession of a half ounce or less of marijuana.

67. Local Task Force Prepares For Return of Deannexation Issue - Monday, August 22, 2016

You might call it round two of the deannexation battle.

In Nashville Monday, Aug. 22, a summer study committee of legislators picks up where the debate on a deannexation proposal during the Tennessee Legislature’s regular session ended earlier this year.

68. Mediation Confidential - Saturday, August 6, 2016

One of the two mediators in the Overton Park Greensward controversy says although there was no settlement produced by the mediation in June, the process nonetheless paved the way for its resolution in July.

69. Willmarth to Lead Facilities Management at Trezevant - Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Brian Willmarth has joined Trezevant as director of environmental operations. In that role, he oversees maintenance, housekeeping and plant operations at the continuing care retirement community. He also oversees Trezevant’s construction and renovation projects. 

70. Last Word: Return of the Balloon Note, SCS and Migrant Teens & Greensward Doubts - Thursday, July 21, 2016

One of the prime culprits in the housing bubble burst that played a role in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression is back – the adjustable rate mortgage.

Numbers from Chandler Reports, the real estate information company that is part of The Daily News Publishing Co. Inc, show the number of such loans has spiked in the first half of this year and are the highest they’ve been since 2008, the year after the bubble burst nationally.

71. Morrison Orchestrates Overton Park Compromise - Thursday, July 21, 2016

Before the Tuesday, July 19, Memphis City Council vote approving the Overton Park compromise, council member Worth Morgan commended fellow council member Bill Morrison for taking up the torch of trying to find a consensus between the Memphis Zoo and the Overton Park Conservancy.

72. Last Word: Greg Davis Gets A New Trial, Overton Park Compromise Done and Tesla - Wednesday, July 20, 2016

The one-time mayor of Southaven is getting a new trial on embezzlement charges.

A Mississippi Appeals court agreed Tuesday with attorneys for Greg Davis, who argued he could not get a fair trial in DeSoto County on the felony charges because of pre-trial publicity.

73. City Council Approves Overton Park Compromise - Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Memphis City Council members unanimously approved Tuesday, July 19, the plan to create 415 new parking places for the Memphis Zoo at its front entrance and end zoo overflow parking on the Overton Park Greensward by January 2019.

74. Last Word: Behind Grit N Grind, Brooks at 100 and Massacre - Monday, May 9, 2016

This is a 12-month-a-year basketball town. There’s the season, possibly a post season, which by NBA standards is a second season. (Yep, they are still playing.) And then there is the rest of the year when whatever has been about to boil over behind the façade of sports clichés finally begins to spill out into the open.

75. Raleigh Mall Demolition Signals Change After Delays - Monday, May 9, 2016

The crowd of several hundred people on the south end of the Raleigh Springs Mall Saturday, May 7, was larger than the crowd inside the mall to shop.

They came to watch the beginning of the end.

76. Demolition Begins On Raleigh Springs Mall Property - Saturday, May 7, 2016

With the business end of a Volvo crawler excavator, Memphis City Council member Bill Morrison kicked off the start of demolition Saturday, May 7, at the Raleigh Springs Mall.

77. Last Word: Mall Demo, Defining 'Fringe Element' and Herenton's New Path - Friday, May 6, 2016

Once upon a time there were three “town centers” planned by the city of Memphis.

City facilities like libraries and police precincts would be the anchors and encourage private retail development in them.

78. Raleigh Mall Demolition Begins Saturday - Friday, May 6, 2016

The city begins demolition of the Sears Auto Center Saturday, May 7, at the Raleigh Springs Mall even though the city is still in court with the owners of the main mall building itself in eminent domain proceedings.

79. Council to Explore Separate Benefits for Cops, Firefighters - Saturday, February 6, 2016

Memphis City Council members voted Tuesday, Feb. 2, to form a task force to explore a separate benefits package for police and firefighters.

The resolution by council member Edmund Ford Jr. is the first move toward a different set of benefits, which would serve as a recruitment tool to bolster the ranks of both departments.

80. Council to Explore Separate Benefits for Cops, Firefighters - Thursday, February 4, 2016

Memphis City Council members voted Tuesday, Feb. 2, to form a task force to explore a separate benefits package for police and firefighters.

The resolution by council member Edmund Ford Jr. is the first move toward a different set of benefits, which would serve as a recruitment tool to bolster the ranks of both departments.

81. Tentative Pinch Development Plan About to Emerge - Wednesday, February 3, 2016

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Bass Pro Shops have agreed on a tentative and general plan for future development of the Pinch District, according to Memphis City Council member Berlin Boyd.

82. City Council Approves Colonial Conversion, Vintage Trolley Purchase - Wednesday, January 20, 2016

One of two golf courses at Colonial Country Club would give way to houses under a planned development approved Tuesday, Jan. 19, by the Memphis City Council.

The council approved a development that would turn the north course at Colonial into either a mix of single-family homes, townhouses and cottages or a mix of housing for senior citizens.

83. Voters Fill in City Hall Blanks In Last Election of Busy 2015 - Monday, November 23, 2015

The 2015 election season was put to rest last week: A low-turnout set of five Memphis City Council runoff elections filled in the blanks of what will be a different City Hall starting in 2016.

With a 4.8 percent turnout across the turf of five single-member City Council districts, voters in the Thursday, Nov. 19, non-partisan council runoff races defined the new council that takes office in January. The 13-member body will include six new faces.

84. Council Runoff Elections: Morgan Tops Springer, Boyd Over Anderson - Friday, November 20, 2015

With a scant 4.8 percent turnout, Memphis voters filled in the blanks at City Hall Thursday, Nov. 19, by electing four new members to the Memphis City Council and returning an appointed incumbent.

Thursday’s winners join new council members Martavius Jones and Philip Spinosa in taking office January 1, making six new faces on the 13-member council.

85. Caissa Public Strategy Works Behind The Scenes for Clients - Monday, October 26, 2015

The word public, by its definition, seems to say out in the open.

For Caissa Public Strategy, that’s not how it works. In fact, the Memphis-based firm likes to work in the shadows, so to speak, where the agency helps its clients grow and protect reputations.

86. Five City Council Races Destined for Runoffs - Friday, October 9, 2015

The identity of the Memphis City Council that will take office in January with six new members was still in flux at the end of a very long and frustrating Oct. 8 election night.

The races for four of those six open seats and the seat now held by an appointee to the council are going to a Nov. 19 runoff election – one week before Thanksgiving.

87. Memphis Chamber Backs Wharton in Mayor’s Race - Friday, August 21, 2015

The political action committee of the Greater Memphis Chamber is backing Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. for re-election.

Wharton faces a strong challenge in his re-election bid from Memphis City Council members Harold Collins and Jim Strickland. And a key issue in the hard-fought campaign is the city's pace of economic development during Wharton’s tenure.

88. Strickland's Memphis Mayoral Bid Heats Up - Friday, July 24, 2015

Just hours after he dropped out of the race for Memphis Mayor, James Harvey endorsed mayoral contender Jim Strickland at the opening of Strickland’s Poplar Plaza campaign headquarters.

89. Memphis Mayoral Field Set at 10 - Friday, July 24, 2015

Shelby County Election Commissioners have certified the Memphis election ballot for Oct. 8.

These are the names to appear on that ballot for the 15 elected offices.

The commission met hours after the noon Thursday, July 23, deadline for candidates to withdraw from the ballot if they wished.

90. Impasse Season Meets Budget Season at City Hall - Monday, May 25, 2015

When the Memphis City Council’s three-member impasse committee approved a 3 percent pay raise for Memphis police officers Thursday, May 21, it spoke volumes about the budget season at City Hall.

91. Council Impasse Panel OKs 3 Percent Police Pay Hike - Saturday, May 23, 2015

A panel of three Memphis City Council members meeting Thursday, May 21, unanimously approved a 3 percent pay raise for Memphis police officers in the fiscal year that begins July 1.

The council impasse committee approved the last best offer of the Memphis Police Association over the last best offer of the administration of Mayor A C Wharton Jr., which was for no pay raise.

92. Council Impasse Panel OKs 3 Percent Memphis Police Pay Hike - Thursday, May 21, 2015

A panel of three Memphis City Council members meeting Thursday, May 21, unanimously approved a 3 percent pay raise for Memphis police officers in the fiscal year that begins July 1.

The council impasse committee approved the last best offer of the Memphis Police Association over the last best offer of the administration of Mayor A C Wharton Jr., which was for no pay raise.

93. Wanda Halbert to Run for City Court Clerk - Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Memphis City Council member Wanda Halbert will not seek re-election in this year’s city elections and will instead run for City Court Clerk.

Halbert planned to pull a petition Monday, April 20, for the challenge of incumbent clerk Thomas Long.

94. Halbert Passes on Council Re-election Bid To Go For City Court Clerk - Saturday, April 18, 2015

Memphis City Council member Wanda Halbert will not seek re-election in this year's city elections and will instead run for City Court Clerk.

Halbert plans to pull a petition Monday, April 20, for the challenge of incumbent clerk Thomas Long.

95. Events - Thursday, February 26, 2015

The Daily News will host the 2015 Women & Business Seminar and panel discussion Thursday, Feb. 26, from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Brooks Museum auditorium, 1934 Poplar Ave. The seminar will be followed by a wine-and-cheese reception with the panelists. Visit seminars.memphisdailynews.com.

96. Raleigh Springs Mall Tests Town Center Concept - Thursday, February 19, 2015

The idea that a declining shopping mall can be redeveloped and reinvigorated as a “town center” with local government offices as a catalyst for private developers appears to be on its way to a meeting with reality.

97. Council Critical of Wharton Debt Restructuring - Wednesday, February 18, 2015

First reviews from Memphis City Council members Tuesday, Feb. 17, to Memphis Mayor A C Wharton’s plan to restructure the city’s debt payments were harsh and skeptical.

Wharton wasn’t present in council committee sessions Tuesday as council member Jim Strickland played audio of Wharton in 2010 telling council members that the restructuring of city debt then was a “plain vanilla” transaction.

98. Harris Goes to Nashville - Friday, January 9, 2015

At his last Memphis City Council session, Lee Harris reflected this week on his three years on the council and the group of politicians he joined.

99. City Pension Change Outlined for 2015 - Thursday, March 20, 2014

The administration of Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. made its formal proposal of a “long-term solution” and change in the city’s pension plan to a 401(k) style plan this week with specific terms Wharton has long said would be included.

100. Council Approves Plan for Raleigh Springs Mall - Saturday, March 8, 2014

Memphis City Council members approved an urban renewal plan Tuesday, March 4, for the Raleigh Springs Mall that will start the process of locating city government offices at the mall, starting with the Memphis Police Department traffic precinct. The resolution, sponsored by council member Bill Morrison and approved without debate, also sets the stage for a public hearing on the larger plan.