Author: Smart City Memphis

At their most basic, large public construction projects are living things.That’s why managing them is a lot like parenting. It’s always good to have some basic rules, but success is most often found in flexibility and individual...

Since the opening of Millennium Park in Chicago, parks have become the hottest urban amenity. But Char Miller, director of urban studies at Trinity University reminds us that this is the second golden age of parks. Bold civic...

Every day, I have the same thought.Sitting in the line of traffic in the construction chaos at Walnut Grove between I-240 and Shelby Farms Park, I look at the enormity of thus roadbuilding project and I say to myself: “I don’t...

We continue to solicit contributions from readers who have ideas for improving Memphis. This post is the latest in that series, and it comes from Dr. Aaron Shafer, a postdoctoral fellow conducting research at St. Jude...

Tennessee Commissioner of Economic and Community Development Matt Kisber acts these days like a new state law is the answer to the state’s dismal showing in the competition for the $1.3 billion Toyota plant earlier this...

Innovation is now viewed as America’s economic salvation. Every urban leader is trying to figure out how to get more of it. And they couldn’t find a better adviser than Richard Lester. As founding director of the...

If success is defined as the ability to know when to sell your stock at its highest value, Carol Johnson is public education’s version of Warren Buffett. Unquestionably, she’s making a change in her job at the exact moment when...

Where’s URS Corporation and NexGen Advisors when we really need them?Remember them. They were the consultants who produced the 97-page report on the city/county Payment-In-Lieu-of-Tax (PILOT) program that led to its much-needed...

We hope Memphis Mayor Willie W. Herenton read the front page of The New York Times yesterday, which bore a headline: “Call Snake Wranglers.”Apparently, based on the coverage of L.A.’s booming $125 a snake business, he isn’t the...

A new study from Americans for the Arts claims that each year in America the nonprofit arts and culture industry generates $166 billion in economic activity. Our guests this week are leading efforts to make sure their cities get...