Downtown: Why are there so few street food vendors in Memphis and they only seem to sell hot dogs?

Memphis City Council: More on the changed plans at the Fairgrounds. Also, more on the details of the new City budget.

Tennessee National Guard: The 1174th Transportation Company has ended its deployment and are returning home shortly.

Stella Marris: Is Steve Cooper making his move to turn his restaurant into a topless club?

Sinkhole! A massive sinkhole opened up on I-240 near Walnut Grove. More from Eyewitness News, Fox13.

Memphis City Schools: More on the change of school bus companies, from First Student to Durham School Services. Parents of charter school kids showed up at a City Council meeting to protest threatened funding cuts by the school system to charter schools; more from Fox13. Mitchell High School security officer Antonio Matthews has been charged with statutory rape under color of authority; more from WREG, Eyewitness News, Fox13. Matthews’ arrest throws a cloud on the MCS proposal for their own police force.

West Tennessee: The Dyer County Courthouse Easter Egg Hunt will be Saturday, April 3. Beware, the TN Highway Patrol is conducting safety checks along Route 78 this week! (stories via the Dyersburg State Gazette) Bongard’s Creameries bought a facility in Humboldt that will lead to 89 new jobs.

Mississippi: The Legislature again failed to extend the session to await Federal funding. The budget is threatened.

Business: The hotel sector may be looking up. Memphis looks to be in the second tier of high jobs growth in the coming years. Our trade deficit with China is costing millions of jobs. Dr Mitch Steiner, CEO of GTx, speaks on the Ipsen partnership.

Cook Systems International is opening a Nashville office. J. M. Smucker is closing their Memphis plant; more in the Commercial Appeal.

From the CA: Done Deals, What to Do and People in Business.

Delta Air Lines: The FAA is assessing Delta a $1.45 million fine for inspection mistakes made by Northwest Airlines.

Planned Parenthood of Greater Memphis: Pending State approval, they will move into a new building at Poplar and Hollywood.

Google Fiber: The push to get Memphis chosen is still on!

Shelby County General Sessions Court: General Sessions Clerk Otis Jackson, who is also running for County mayor, is coming under fire for expenses in his division. More from Eyewitness News.

Plough Foundation: They have donated $4.5 million to the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center for construction and a dedicated laboratory. More from the Daily News.

DeSoto County: Baptist Memorial Hospital - DeSoto nurses set a high standard for themselves and their peers. Southaven will hire a private firm to help them apply for a State grant for an emergency community shelter. Tree experts are working to save the old oaks of the Hernando town square. A proposed police / tactical training site is upsetting neighbors in Horn Lake.

Real Estate: Signs the commercial market is turning around. The Memphis Area Association of Realtors is holding an “open house” to entice homebuyers in the final weeks of the homebuyers tax credit. Crye-Leike is apparently getting a pass for suddenly demolishing the old Anderton’s facade.

Glankler Brown: R. Grattan Brown looks back on fifty years with the firm that bears his name.

David Kernell: His lawyer appeared in court today to argue for suppressing some evidence in the case. Trial is still scheduled for April 20. Kernell is accused of hacking into Sarah Palin’s email. More in the Daily News. More in the Commercial Appeal, and again.

NEW! Main Street Journal: Jonathan Devin takes us inside The Grove as Faith Baptist goes to camp.

Memphis v. Nashville: Beginning Monday, the Metro Transit Authority will offer free bus service in the “urban core” of Nashville.

Biking: Beginning on July 1, a new law concerning bike riders stopping at red lights takes effect.

The Wharton Administration: Mayor A C Wharton says the City is completing the paperwork on work around the Graceland area and hopes to start soon.

“Americans Feeding Americans”: This “historic” collaboration between Feed the Children and New Bethel Temple helped thousands of needy Memphians on Wednesday. More from WREG, Fox13.

Klondike: Life during wartime at Saints Court Apartments.
 

Memphis Police Union: Union president J. D. Sewell was fired from the Police Department for interfering with a police investigation. More from WREG, WMC, Fox13.

Memphis Stops Child Abuse: This new project is a collaboration of area non-profits and some government agencies to create a website to coordiante a number of activities tied to preventing child abuse.

Financial: More on the Wells notice sent to subsidiaries of First Horizon National Corporation.

Shelby County Commission: An ordinance to fine people that have repeated false-alarm calls is moving along.

Red Light Traffic Cameras: The Sheriff of Unicoi County (Johnson City) is opposed to them. (via the Johnson City Press)

Tennessee: The State is sending out over 800 layoff notices to State employees this week; more from the Tennessean, the Commercial Appeal. The Department of Agriculture is accepting applications for the USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.

Politics: The bill to change standards for certificates of birth for stillborns unanimously passed the State Senate. The legislation for the hospital coverage fee (ie. “bed tax”) was submitted yesterday; further reporting from the Knoxville News-Sentinel. The TN Medical Association supports the fee. The “bottle bill” appears to be dead.

The Health Freedom Act was amended technically and then “rolled” for a week. Tea party onlookers weren’t happy but don’t understand they won. More in the Tennessean, the News-Sentinel.

Governor Phil Bredesen offers some support to opponents of health care reform. Criticism of Rep. Mike Turner’s “racist” comments continues. Congressmen Steve Cohen and John Tanner bring home the bacon to West Tennessee.

Governor’s Race: Republican candidate Ron Ramsey is reminding voters his family goes back to the original Tea Party. More on the coal industry’s donations to Ramsey’s campaign. Did Ramsey influence coal industry legislation? Republican Bill Haslam has a program to provide “seamless transition” from college to work. He also released his list of “young professional” supporters. Democrat Kim McMillan’s light-heared jab. Republican Zach Wamp is getting out-of-state support for his candidacy. Republican Bill Gibbons is proud he was the first Jogglebugger. The candidates often give up sleep, but don’t mind.

Tea Party Convention: The man who fronted part of the money for Sarah Palin’s speaking fee at the Nashville tea party convention earlier this year is now suing organiser Judson Phillips.

Oakland: Mayor Bill Mullins, running for re-election, touts his accomplishments. Mullins’ trial for official misconduct and evidence tampering starts today. Questions and answers from a T.E.A. Party forum for mayoral candidates: Theresa Kelley and Scott Ferguson. (all stories via the Oakland News) Former police officer Joshua Smith appeared in court yesterday.

Steve’s Nude Memphis Blog: A tale of Saturday night in a redneck/biker bar.

That’s My B: Part three of the epic retelling of the wedding weekend.

Shaun Fossett: What hyperlocal news is and why it requires special handling from local news TV stations.

North Mississippi Commenter: His ten most influential books.

Left Wing Cracker: He defends Del Gill and thinks he’s got a point.

Just A Girl in the World: A report from the Sweet Potato Queens’ Million Queen March. And afterwards.

Gilmour Girl Goes Memphis: A report from the bacherlorette party.

I Love Memphis: Reviews of Al Rayan on Cleveland and one of the Mosa restaurants. Also, if you want to go local with your coffees, check out McCarter.

I’ll be the one in heels: Rules for Facebook friendships.

Jen-sized: Why Tina Fey’s misstep bugs her so much.

Egotistical Whining: Some thoughts on modern masculine culture.

ForkBombr: A question for the day, on newspapers.

Cwabs! This would have been his ninth wedding anniversary.

Can’t Stop: Did you know runners can overtrain?

Barefoot in Memphis: They share their Universal Self-Care plan.

Blue Collar Republican: Democrats are now working to discredit the tea party movement.

John Harris: The director of the Tennessee Firearms Association supports the bill to clarify “gun carry in restaurants”. (via the Tennessean)

Jackson Sun: Chastising legislators for not changing the State’s open container law.

Commercial Appeal: A strange way of looking at the mess that Derrick Rose and John Calipari left behind at the U of M. Applauding Mayor Wharton for business-like vision.

Sanford Johnson: He calls for a strengthening of Mississippi’s charter schools. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Wendi C. Thomas: She repeats some now-discredited stories while noting change brings tensions and anger. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Because I Said So: Signing up for an exercise boot camp. (via the Commercial Appeal)