Memphians Awake To A New City
Thumbnail: Memphis wakes up from a year-long sleep and discovers a new city. Hyatt Centric Hotel is a milestone that is hopefully a harbinger of more to come for downtown.
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | May 3, 2021 | Downtown Revitalization, Economic Development
Thumbnail: Memphis wakes up from a year-long sleep and discovers a new city. Hyatt Centric Hotel is a milestone that is hopefully a harbinger of more to come for downtown.
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 28, 2021 | Parks and Greening, Shelby County government
Thumbnail: Despite the pandemic, Shelby Farms Park is recording record attendance. Facing climbing numbers of park users while revenues were devastated, Shelby Farms Park Conservancy Executive Director Jen Andrews has weathered the storm and the park is pointed to a stronger future.
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 27, 2021 | Uncategorized
Posted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 26, 2021 | Economic Development, Taxation
Thumbnail: In the midst of the vigorous defense of the present PILOT programs by economic development officials, the inconvenient truths about the economy should be our wake-up call. Among the 53 largest metros, Memphis continues to lag in performance, as it has for at least 20 years.
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 23, 2021 | City of Memphis Government, Criminal Justice
Over the past three decades, U.S. cities have allocated larger and larger shares of their budgets...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 21, 2021 | City of Memphis Government, Criminal Justice
Thumbnail: The appointment of Cerelyn Davis as the new police chief in Memphis is historic in selecting an African Woman, the first outsider in 50 years. More to the point, it could be historic in bringing new ideas and new voices into law enforcement strategies in Memphis.
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 19, 2021 | City of Memphis Government, Economic Development, Shelby County government
Thumbnail: In their joint meeting last week, a majority of Memphis City Council members and Shelby...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 15, 2021 | Education, Tennessee Legislature
Update: The bill described in this post did not reach the Senate floor today and it appears to...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 12, 2021 | Trends and Issues
Thumbnail: Hatred and fear are the engines for the political posturing of the far right. The most...
Read MorePosted by Smart City Memphis | Apr 8, 2021 | Shelby County government, Taxation
This post is written by Jimmie Covington, veteran Memphis reporter with lengthy experience...
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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.