Strong Mayors and Checks and Balances
Some years ago, before the current city and county mayors were in office, the separation of powers within local government blurred and it’s been difficult to put the genie back in the bottle...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 31, 2016 | City of Memphis Government, Shelby County government
Some years ago, before the current city and county mayors were in office, the separation of powers within local government blurred and it’s been difficult to put the genie back in the bottle...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 29, 2016 | Parks and Greening, Planning and Urban Design, Shelby County government
It was a night in early February in 2007 when our community’s pent-up energy behind a “green agenda” burst into the open. Inspired by the impact that was foreseen for...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 26, 2016 | Economic Development, Poverty
Large Metros Where the Poor Are Most Segregated: 1. Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis MSA 2. Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford MSA 3. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA 4. Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor MSA 5....
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 24, 2016 | City of Memphis Government, Criminal Justice, Economic Development
Memphis moved a step closer to marijuana enforcement sanity with the vote by Memphis City Council for an ordinance that would mean that Memphis Police Department would not arrest people...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 23, 2016 | Economic Development, Livability, Planning and Urban Design, Taxation
The following is a proposal we received from a concerned Memphian: Payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) is a program which reduces or eliminates property taxes for a period of time as...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 22, 2016 | Economic Development, Poverty, Transportation
(University of Michigan chart.) In the wake of recent events in Milwaukee, income and economic segregation there have garnered national headlines. This is a deep...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 19, 2016 | City of Memphis Government, Poverty
In the wake of our Wednesday post about the Blueprint for Prosperity, we were asked to follow up with a post of the recommendations by the Center for Neighborhood Technology. Here it is: A...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 17, 2016 | City of Memphis Government, Poverty
There has never been a time in the past 30 years when more organizations have set poverty reduction as a priority for their work. There are grassroots groups,...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 15, 2016 | City of Memphis Government
There has never been an arena built in Memphis with the same quality, acoustics, care, and comfort as the Mid-South Coliseum. It was the culmination of...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Aug 12, 2016 | Uncategorized
Thanks to Gatti, Keltner, Bienvenu & Montesi for sending this infographic.
Read Moreby Bill Day. Memphian Bill Day is two-time winner of the RFK Journalism Award in Cartooning. His cartoons are syndicated internationally by Cagle Cartoons. Cartoons Archive →
Since 2005, this has been Smart City Consulting’s blog with the aim of connecting the dots and providing perspective on issues and policies shaping Memphis. Editor and primary author is Tom Jones, columnist, author of two books, and consultant on public policy. Smart City Memphis was called one of the most intriguing blogs in the U.S. by the Pew Partnership for Civic Change; The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal wrote that “Smart City Memphis provides some of the most well-thought-out thinking about Memphis’ past, present, and future you’ll find anywhere,” and the Memphis Flyer said: “This incredibly well-written blog sets out to solves the city’s ills – from the mayor to MATA – with out-of-the-box thinking, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ideas. If you have questions, submissions, or ideas for posts, please email Tom Jones, at tjones@smartcityconsulting.com.