The Back Story Of Memphis’ Comp Plan, Part 2
The following is the closing post in our two-parter about the work by nationally known urban planner Toni Griffin that led to the launch of the Memphis comprehensive...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jun 14, 2017 | City of Memphis Government, Planning and Urban Design
The following is the closing post in our two-parter about the work by nationally known urban planner Toni Griffin that led to the launch of the Memphis comprehensive...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jun 12, 2017 | City of Memphis Government, Planning and Urban Design, Trends and Issues
Four years ago, the groundwork for a comprehensive plan for Memphis was laid by nationally known urban planner Toni Griffin. It’s the back story of...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jun 9, 2017 | Economic Development
We’ve written recently that Memphis needs a disruption strategy to expand the economy and to create more jobs. It seems clear that doing the same and expecting different results is not...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jun 7, 2017 | Leadership, Trends and Issues
One of our oft-used aphorisms is “every system is perfectly designed to produce the results that it gets.” Memphis is just such a system, and that’s why it’s...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jun 5, 2017 | City of Memphis Government, Shelby County government, Taxation
By Jimmie Covington Shelby County’s assessed value of property for tax purposes this year – which includes reappraisal figures – is up almost $2.1 billion from last...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jun 1, 2017 | City of Memphis Government, Federal Policy
While much of our attention is diverted by President Donald Trump’s controversy du jour, it’s easy to be distracted from the damage that would...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | May 30, 2017 | Economic Development, Regionalism
Brookings Institution’s Metro Monitor is a set of objective metrics aimed at guiding the efforts of leaders to advance regional...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | May 26, 2017 | City of Memphis Government, Parks and Greening
Some of us are children of the Sixties so our impulse when it comes to Confederate statues is to remove Jefferson Davis’ statue in a prominent downtown park – where he is...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | May 25, 2017 | Planning and Urban Design
I first met Gene Pearson and Tim Bolding about 35 years ago. I met Gene through his wife (at the time, his significant other), Louise Mercuro, and together, they made a...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | May 24, 2017 | Economic Development, Regionalism, Trends and Issues
Only a few metros in the U.S. are seeing real wages grow at a notable rate and the Memphis MSA is not one of them. That said, metros seem to be dividing into the “haves”...
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, City Journal columnist at Memphis magazine, author of two books and a museum exhibition, and consultant on public policy and strategic planning. He has written articles for MLK50, The Commercial Appeal, and USA Today. The blog was called one of the most intriguing blogs in the U.S. by the Pew Partnership for Civic Change; The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal said it “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 solve 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.