Author: Smart City Memphis

There is an aphorism in local government that goes like this: “There’s always money for anything the mayor wants to do.” It doesn’t matter if the deficit is growing, it doesn’t matter if the budget is out of balance and it...

If officials in the Capitol are confused about the role of Homeland Security and the role of FEMA, they’re not alone. The same goes here.In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, elected officials sought to reassure us that we...

Last week, the Tennessee Film Commission held a hearing in Memphis that focused on the need for tax incentives for film companies in our state. Chief among the witnesses was Linn Sitler, executive director of the Memphis and...

In a week when the Shelby County Board of Commissioners took a landmark vote to end “business as usual” and enact a moratorium on development, it was disappointing to see more of the same on two other fronts — the Memphis...

Mr. Rove, meet Mr. Haldeman. Or Mr. Adams. Or Mr. Lance. Or Mr. Sununu.Karl Rove continues to hang on for dear life following yet another date with the grand jury to testify about his Valerie Plame leak. Even owning the...

From the Globe and Mail, Toronto: It’s time to shift the focus from blaming individuals for being fat to understanding how the environment we live in discourages healthy living, a scientific think tank has...

Sixteen bullet points makes for a full Memphis agenda. (See “Kicking the Addiction to Tax Freezes.”) But here are four more to make it 20.Examine City, County and MLGW Compensation and Pension Systems and Report...

Sometimes the best thing you can do is to admit that an idea, although well-intended, just doesn’t work. One of those ideas is the observation platform built at the tip of Ashburn-Coppock Park at the current southern terminus of...

In the beginning was the dial-up. Then dial-up begat DSL, and DSL begat the cable modem. And now, we have arrived in the land of milk and honey…and Wi-Fi.The problem is that Memphians will probably have to travel to other cities...

The danger in being an opinionated member of a fact-finding task force is that sooner or later you do actually run the risk of coming face to face with the facts. That seems to be the source of the palpable discomfort displayed...