Photo Credit: Main Street Journal
Decision Day

 
Voters in the City Council’s Seventh District decide between Lee Harris or Kemba Ford in today’s run-off election. The Shelby County Election Commission website is here.

COGIC: It wasn’t a lack of hotel space but our expensive airfare that kept COGIC from returning to Memphis? They have elected to keep their annual convocation in St Louis until at least 2013.

City Union Pay Cuts: Labor, lawyers and City officials were in Federal court to stop the 4.6% pay cut the City Council imposed earlier this year. A preliminary injunction may be granted by December.

Fire Department: City and County both require a personal visit at home from a supervisior if an employee calls in sick.

Shelby County Transition Commission: The commission guiding the merger process is tallking to Boston Consulting Group about assisting them.

Shelby County Commission: County money comes in and it goes out. The commission is discussing an expanded post-merger school board of 13 members. The County’s contribution to the employee pension fund might rise by $10 million next year.

Arkansas: Voter approved increases in gasoline taxes and bond sales to repair the interstate highways.

Tobey Skate Park: Memphis very first skate park was opened yesterday. Another story from the Commercial Appeal. More information from Skatelife Memphis.

Tennessee: The former director of the 24th Judicial District Drug Task Force, Steve Lee, has been indicted on charges of theft and official misconduct.

Greyhound: The downtown building is closed and up for sale now.

Business: From the Daily News, learn of Today’s Events. The Business Journal has People on the Move. And the Commercial Appeal deals with What to Do and People in Business.

Goodyear Tire & Rubber: The State has received a Federal grant of $3.4 million for retraining and re-employment of workers the Union City company let go.

International Paper: The company will sell two groups of unsecured notes to finance its purchase of Temple-Inland.

Macy’s: They saw a huge jump in 3Q profits, twice analysts’ estimates. They also raised their full-year outlook.

Evolve Bank & Trust: The West Memphis bank will bring its first branch to Memphis on November 17.

Lambuth Campus, University of Memphis: The Jackson, TN, campus is adding seven new degree programs in 2012.

Real Estate: More on the Memphis-area home sale decline. Education Realty Trust has three transactions in process; they also closed their common-stock IPO.

DeSoto County: Some people are just glad the elections are over. Walls mayor Gene Alday is moving to the State House.

Online Taxes: Both TN US Senators are supporting the Marketplace Fairness Act, which will make sure that online sales also have State sales tax collected. It means an additional $500 million for Tennessee alone; $300 million, according to the CA. Senator Lamar Alexander wrote the legislation.

City of Memphis: The mayor will soon decide which division directors will stay on.

NEW! INTERNET EXCLUSIVE: Mississippi Tea Party activist Doctor Ed Holliday supports the Republican presidential candidacy of Herman Cain and says he brings “Rock Splitting Politics” to the race.

Internet Exclusive: Meet Tennessee’s new Small Business Advocate, Lauren Plunk, whose job it is “to help owners of businesses with 50 or fewer employees work through whatever questions or issues they may encounter in dealing with government agencies”.

Veterans Day: There will be no City trash pickup on Friday. A rundown of closings and changes for the holiday.

Tow Truck Operators: Operators are blaming new regulations for an attack on an operator Monday.

US Senator Bob Corker: He introduced the Residential Mortgage Market Privatization and Standardization Act, which would phase out both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

FastBreak Courts: More on the $20 million Cordova partnership with Sprite/Coca-Cola and Campbell Clinic Orthopaedics to build seven-court basketball complex, which has an uncertain start date.

Southwest Community College: An explosion yesterday in a chemistry lab sent a professor and several students to the hospital. Mixing phosphoric acid and 2-methylcyclohexanal is blamed. Classes were cancelled and buildings evacuated. More from WREG and the Commercial Appeal.

Tuition: The Tennessee Higher Education Commission is considering a 5 to 8 percent tuition hike. The proposed details.

Rudy Gay Charity Exhibition Game: More reports on the game, and NBA strike diversion, from the Daily News.

First Responders: Hundreds of law enforcement and emergency responders had a training exercise yesterday, in a simulated explosion.

Local Media: Debuting this month in issues of the Tri-State Defender is Made in Memphis magazine, which focuses on home-grown business entrepreneurs.

Politics: Sales tax revenues grew 6.5% in the first quarter of the fiscal year. Memphis Democratic State Representative Karen Camper has been selected to attend a White House leadership conference.

Animal Rights: Local activists want the County Commission to spell out the minimum requirements for keeping a pet; more.

Agriculture: Even though prices have fallen dramatically from Spring’s highs, there are still good profits to make in cotton.

Memphis International Airport: A loaded handgun was discovered at a checkpoint. Almost 1000 handguns have been found nationwide at airport checkpoints, nine in Memphis. More from WREG.

Mississippi: The White House praised the defeat of the “personhood” amendment yesterday. More on the defeat from the Flyer. Supporters vow to continue their fight; more from WREG and the Commercial Appeal.

Internet Exclusive: In a long and well-researched article, blogger Stephen Ross (vibinc) argues that the Shelby County Commission didn’t choose the right Title X agency when it chose Christ Community Health Centers over Planned Parenthood. Read his passionate and detailed argument and see if you agree!

Internet Exclusive: Our regular contributor, Chuck Bates, has a powerful look at the Republican presidential primary, the Left-leaning press, and the shenanigans you can expect between now and November 2012. A must-read!

Joe Spake’s Daily Buzz: The rest of the day’s news, from all sorts of eclectic places.

Rays of Wisdom: In uncertain markets, learn to control those factors you can when investing. (via the Daily News)

I Swear: Baseball and smokeless tobacco. (via the Daily News)

G. Robert Morris: “Nothing good happens in business until someone sells something to someone else.” (via the Daily News)

livinginmillington: Some up-close observations of the resignation of Millington mayor Richard Hodges here and here.

Daily News Blog: Interesting timing at the Commercial Appeal. Is the current Memphis real estate market the “new norm”?

Neshoba Nights: Elliot Grace is six weeks old.

The Changing Newsroom: A few instructive highlights from the FedEx Social Media Summit.

John Branston: How a Memphis City Schools reports claims that 90,000 out of 103,000 MCS students are poor. (via the Flyer)

Commercial Appeal: The solution to next year’s gas price hikes is using biofuels, not gasoline. Arguing for one thing while not being seen to do it?

a belle, a bean, & a chicago dog: Why she’d be an awful House Hunters guest. Being a tourist in your own town!

A Merry Wife: Advice on finding the right backyard for your backyard wedding.

a semi-charmed kind of life: The popular “Couch to 5K” method of race training for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.

AlphaPatriot: Andy Rooney and liberal military service.

Bigger Than Your Head: The wine of the week.

Commontaries: Thoughts on Clear Channel, Bev Johnson and Bobby O’Jay. Is Wendi Thomas jealous of Kemba Ford’s looks?

dminmem: Hey! He’s famous!

Dinner Belles: Some cool weather food: chicken, white bean and green pepper chili and a turkey and bean chili.

Fertile Ground: The end of soccer season.

Wendi C. Thomas: Mississippi already has enough problems without inviting more with a “personhood” amendment/ (via the Commercial Appeal)

Geoff Calkins: The Pyramid gets a chance at a rebirth. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Because I Said So: He wants to pass his pride in Memphis on to his children. (via the Commercial Appeal)