Top 15 Blog Posts of 2016: Parks, Promise, and Progress
We wrote 153 blog posts in 2016, and we always look back to see which subjects you had the most interest in. Clearly, last year, that was parks, particularly the campaign to...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 13, 2017 | Arts and Culture, City of Memphis Government, Downtown Revitalization, Economic Development, Leadership, Livability, Neighborhoods, Parks and Greening, Planning and Urban Design, Poverty, Shelby County government, Taxation
We wrote 153 blog posts in 2016, and we always look back to see which subjects you had the most interest in. Clearly, last year, that was parks, particularly the campaign to...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 12, 2017 | City of Memphis Government, Economic Development, Parks and Greening, Talent
We’ve been revisiting the 15 most read blog posts of 2016. We’ve previously posted #6-10 and #11-15. Thanks again for your support for the past 13 years. The following are the top 5 blog posts. It’s worth noting that...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 11, 2017 | Uncategorized
We’ve been looking back at the 15 most read blog posts of the 153 we wrote last year. We’ve previously posted #11-15 and today, we’re posting #6-10. As we wrote previously, we appreciate you reading and commenting, and most of...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 9, 2017 | City of Memphis Government, Economic Development, Parks and Greening, Poverty
In the next three days, we’re looking back to our 153 blog posts from last year to see which one you liked the most, based on readership. To that end, we’re posting the 15 most read posts counting down from #15 to #1. Based on...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 6, 2017 | Economic Development, Poverty
Our media air waves and political squares are dominated by talk about all kinds of issues, but they are largely silent on the single issue that ultimately has the...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 4, 2017 | Criminal Justice, Poverty
For a moment, we thought we had entered a time warp. Another new year, another Willie W. Herenton bombshell to kick it off. The...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 30, 2016 | City of Memphis Government, Livability, Parks and Greening
The following is “The state’s long arm stops Memphis again,” from my 9:01 column published in The Commercial Appeal on October 26, 2016, followed by a June 24, 2015,...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 28, 2016 | Poverty, Transportation
In our last two posts, the first focused on public transit and the $7 billion, about 10% of the regional GDP, that largely flows out of our region as...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 22, 2016 | City of Memphis Government, Transportation
In the ranking of public transit in 72 cities with populations of more than 250,000, Memphis ranks #55 and among the 32 cities with populations of more than...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 20, 2016 | City of Memphis Government, Shelby County government, Transportation
In a region where incomes are too low, it’s self-destructive for the lack of effective regional public transit to contribute to the Memphis region...
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.