Author: Smart City Memphis

Shelby County Schools Board chairman David Pickler must have graduated from the George Bush school of self-awareness. He too has a formidable talent for leveling criticisms of others that so clearly apply to himself.It’s a...

We’ve never visited a city such a penchant for the electrical/mechanical “tombstones” that dot the landscape as Memphis. They mar Tom Lee Park, they clutter up downtown corners and they create a bit of visual pollution that...

Design is ascendant, and today we will celebrate it by talking with Dr. Larry Thompson, president of Ringling School of Art and Design. Larry is staging the Sarasota International Design Summit October 9-11. Prior to coming to...

We subscribe to a John Calipari theory of economic development – it’s all about talent – and a Fred Smith model of public investment – it’s all about entrepreneurship.Everything else is pretty much a distraction.Memphis...

Former County Commissioner Michael Hooks and former State Senator and county mayor’s aide Roscoe Dixon have now entered the Byzantine world of federal sentencing, and the different points of entry into that system – the former...

Memphis College of Art President Jeff Nesin, our dear friend, emailed the following advice, and we wanted to share it with you:As all of us are acutely aware, today marks the fifth anniversary of the September 11 hijackings and...

Do universities have hidden value to cities? We know about their role as employer, as purchaser of local goods and services, as producer of smart people, and as a source of research. But our guests today are mining their value...

It is a fundamental characteristic of government that it is reactive in nature. Nothing quite proves it as well as the recent rhetoric about Memphis’ crime rate, replete with press conferences about Operation Safe Community,...

Here’s the test. Check out these two photographs. One shows the construction site for Shelby County Schools.The other shows a construction site for Memphis Division of Housing and Community Development.Guess which is...

From The Nation blog:Congress is about to return to Washington this week after taking a long summer break for campaigning and before taking a long fall break for campaigning. During the brief period of governing that will be...