Patron Saint of Lost Causes Becomes Guardian Angel of Big Causes
It’s as easy to imagine Memphis without FedEx as St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Both are here because of fortuitous – if not providential – twists of...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Feb 8, 2012 | Politics and Government
It’s as easy to imagine Memphis without FedEx as St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Both are here because of fortuitous – if not providential – twists of...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Feb 6, 2012 | City of Memphis Government, Politics and Government
It seems the perfect time for City of Memphis to decide what it wants to be when it grows up, and specifically if this means growing out. Normally, the...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Feb 3, 2012 | Uncategorized
Our friend, Chip Pankey, also an award-winning photographer with a great eye for his hometown, shared this photo of Abe Schwab Dry Goods Store on Beale Street. There’s no question that it’s distinctly Memphis) as is...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Feb 1, 2012 | City of Memphis Government, Politics and Government, Tennessee Legislature
Anti-Memphis suburban politicians –the political equivalent of The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight – have done it again. They regularly manage to yank defeat from the jaws of victory. ...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 30, 2012 | Uncategorized
Apparently, there is no hunger more intense than being power hungry. It’s proven on a daily basis by Tennessee Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris and his sycophant, Tennessee...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 27, 2012 | Uncategorized
Our friends, Louise Mercuro and Maggie Conway, took this photograph at Park and Airways and it’s distinctly Memphis. Their comment: “Don’t tell Memphis that it isn’t an innovative and creative...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 26, 2012 | Uncategorized
Here’s an email that we got from a reader who always has sound insights into our airport: Another week goes by and yet another CA article about service cuts at Memphis International…. With theAmsterdam flight...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 25, 2012 | Leadership
Posted June 1, 2011, and unfortunately, even more relevant today as Tennessee Representative interferes in local affairs yet again to serve a narrow – and narrow-minded –...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 23, 2012 | Economic Development
There was little time for a celebration following the Greater Memphis Chamber’s announcement about $1.2 billion in private investment and 14,000 new jobs. The day after the...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Jan 20, 2012 | Education
So, let’s take Collierville Mayor Stan Joyner at his word. His obsession with a municipal school district for his town is not “separatism,” he said, although it does seem...
Read More
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.