Economic Crossroads: A New Future or a New Normal?
Despite hopes to the contrary, it does in fact appear that predictions that the Memphis region is still two years away from rebounding from the Great Recession are...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 19, 2015 | Economic Development, Leadership, Trends and Issues
Despite hopes to the contrary, it does in fact appear that predictions that the Memphis region is still two years away from rebounding from the Great Recession are...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 15, 2015 | Education, Trends and Issues
As we enter a new year, the two things that Memphis and Shelby County governments spend the most money on dramatically illustrate the choices before us as a community. They are education and...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 12, 2015 | Leadership, Livability, Trends and Issues
The Memphis region’s latest jolt in yet another report showing that our economy is struggling was issued late last week by the Milken Institute. We’re still...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 8, 2015 | Economic Development, Planning and Urban Design, Trends and Issues
Everyone these days has their own list of moonshots – inspired by the description by the Greater Memphis Chamber’s Chairman’s Circle of its own priorities – and we’re no different. In truth, what we call moonshots might be...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 6, 2015 | Economic Development, Planning and Urban Design, Trends and Issues
There is more talk about moonshots here these days than at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral. Once the Greater Memphis Chamber’s Chairman’s Circle used the term, moonshots, to describe its ambitions, it has become a...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 31, 2014 | City of Memphis Government, Criminal Justice, Downtown Revitalization, Economic Development, Livability, Politics and Government, Poverty, Regionalism, Talent, Transportation
Earlier this week, we posted the most read blog post of 2014: Creating a Culture of Opportunity for Memphis. You can read it here. The rest of the top 10 posts: #2 — It’s...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 29, 2014 | Economic Development, Poverty
Posted September 17, the following commentary was by far the most read and circulated post of 2014: The young man – African American, 23 years old – sits at a picnic table behind a Germantown assisted living facility with his...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 22, 2014 | Economic Development, Taxation
Greater Memphis Chamber President Phil Trenary, who’s clearly the right person at the right time for that organization, has said rightfully that the way to reduce poverty in...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 18, 2014 | Economic Development, Taxation
We write regularly about how the tax holiday program for corporations in Memphis and Shelby County is broken and how, despite our largesse in doling out approximately $80...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Dec 15, 2014 | Economic Development, Education, Shelby County government
Every time a PILOT is approved, it gives away property taxes that would otherwise go to schools. That’s because almost 60% of the Shelby County property tax rate is allocated for...
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by 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.