Photo Credit: WMC
Third Verse
Different Than the First

 
An interim director, James Rogers, has been appointed by Memphis mayor A C Wharton to the Memphis Animal Shelter. He has managment experience but no animal welfare experience. Rogers is a Memphis native and graduate of LeMoyne-Owen College. The City says they conducted a search but found no suitable candidates. City officials feel his management skills with people are what’s needed.

Memphis City Council: They voted to approve the funding and move up the start of work rehabilitating Elvis Presley Boulevard. More from WMC. They also approved a $10 million payment, half of a contract with MMI for the Pink Palance Museum’s renovation. Council members are angry that the City suddenly has a $47 million budget shortfall. The Council may be ‘forced” to put into effect a tax increase that was never assessed.

Mo’ Money Taxes: Co-founder Markey Grandberry is getting a divorce, which is revealing his “lavish” lifestyle. And Memphis police are asking for an unnamed television station to turn in customer files they collected when MMT allowed some to be thrown out.

Arlington: More on the public referendum on a municipal school district set for May 10.

Memphis City Schools: Parent are getting obfuscation and the run-around about why there children are on the wrong school busses. Between 80-90 students at Central High School got a one-day suspension for dress code and tardiness violations.

Memphis Fire Department: Firefighter Steve Payton is back on the job after two years, with back pay, because of City Hall errors. Sandra Richards, convicted of forging a will for State Representative Ulysses Jones, gave a deposition that is just loopy.

DeSoto County: Southaven’s accountant will examine and explain each department’s finances to Aldermen. While the Methodist Hospital is being built with private funds, the town of Olive Branch is also spending millions. The County approved three road projects funded by the State.

Nashville: The Metro Council has passed a resolution calling for the resignation of Davidson County Clerk John Arriola and for him to return the wedding fees he collected, nearly $120,000. District 4 residents are exploring a recall option against Councilman Brady Banks, who was arrested for soliciting prostitution.

Wolf River Conservancy: They are looking for volunteers for a tree planting next month. Their website.

Memphis Police Department: Thirty officers (out of approsimately 1600) have been forced back to work despite being on disability.

Business: Ashley Furniture HomeStore will give a 20% discount with a $20 donation to charity this Saturday. Fashion do’s and don’t’s for that important job interview. Fresh Market may be coming to Midtown; in the meantime they are feeling out neighborhood associations.

From the Commercial Appeal, they give you What to Do and People in Business. The Daily News covers Today’s Events and the Business Journal has People on the Move.

FedEx: They have extended their sponsorship of the PGA Tour through 2017. The company held a diversity forum yesterday; more.

ServiceMaster: They hope to bring 100 full-time jobs to the Mid-South.

Mississippi: The State Senate passed, despite failed amendments, a bill expanding charter schools in the state; more.

House of Mews: Even though their patron, Service Assurance, is being sold to Konica Minolta Business Solutions USA, they have been assured that financial support will not change.

Local Media: The Gannett newspaper chain, which publishes Nashville’s Tennessean among 80 other papers, will adopt the paywall model “by the end of the year”. More from Forbes. Thaddeus Matthews was denied an emergency injunction and remains off the air, though he still has an internet broadcast.

NEW! INTERNET EXCLUSIVE! How I Got Involved in Local Politics: Southaven’s Oriana Hill was dismayed that nothing was being done about Mayor Greg Davis’ official shenanigans, so she decided to take action herself. Read her exclusive story here!

MLG&W: Apparently there is no criminal penalty for wearing a utility uniform if you’re not an employee any more.

Beale Street Landing: “Major progress” has been made on construction.

Transition Planning Commission: The TPC is taking extra pains to minimise teacher and student transfers in the new system.

Civil Service Reform: The State Comptroller has turned in a report calling the State hiring system “unfair and outdated” and “fundamentally flawed”. The report. (PDF document) Haslam’s plan for reform is being criticised for not doing enough for veterans. More from the Associated Press.

Norfolk Southern: The train derailment is still a month away from being cleaned up.
 

Tennessee: TVA has changed its policy on land and shorelines so that many marina owners are being hit by exhorbitant fees. People in the State’s film industry are lobbying for financial incentives to get more films made here.

Politics: The so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill has been stalled in the State House. More reports from the Chattanooga Times Free Press. TN Citizen Action turned in 6000 signatures opposing the new voter ID requirement. A bll to prevent alcohol sales through self-checkout lanes is moving through the House. The legislation. The bill that offers workers employee benefits will have Memphis, the only city that offers them, exempted. The mayors of the State’s “Big Four” cities are lobbying Nashville for increased self-control. Are the Girl Scouts a “radical group”?

Gasoline: Prices could go beyond $4/gallon this Spring. The current Memphis average is $3.49/gallon. (via MemphisGasPrices.com) Local businesses are trying to cope.

Chattanooga: Local leaders are searching for a “comprehensive answer” to address the city’s gang problem. A little advertised public meeting by Mayor Ron Littlefield over Westside was criticised when City Council members weren’t invited.

Second Amendment: Governor Bill Haslam expects passage of legislation allowing gun owners to keep guns in cars, but he expects a narrowed scope for the final legislation..

Republican Presidential Primary: Former US Senator Rick Santorum is leading the Republican field in TN. Democrats have launched a monkey-wrenching campaign named Operation Hilarity, to mess with open primaries (like Tennessee’s); an Obama SuperPAC is involved. Newt Gingrich will hold a national health care roundtable in Nashville on Monday, followed by a meeting with legislators and media.

Millington: There’s been a large reduction in speeding violations since the town installed red light traffic cameras and a speed van.

Online Exclusive: Rick Santorum’s Necessary Three Strategies: Our Tea Party contributor, Ed “Doc” Holliday is an enthusiastic Rick Santorum supporter now and he has three things he believes it’s necessary Santorum do right now to take his campaign to the White House.

Online Exclusive: Opportunity Lost: It’s one of the most referenced books on local politics and author Dr Marcus Pohlmann, of Rhodes College, introduces it and explains a little about why you should read it, too. It’s a touchstone for understanding Memphis and Shelby County racial politics in education.

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

Dinner Belles: What a marvelous idea! They and some friends took the idea of Youth Village’s Soup Sunday and recreated it with a small group of friends.

Rays of Wisdom: The Great Recession is making many investors eager to recover losses with unwise investments. (via the Daily News)

I Swear: The tale of the “Three-Legged Dog”. (via the Daily News)

H. Roy Berkenstock: The importance of protecting commercial intellectual property. (via the Daily News)

Tennessean: Do not repeal the motorcycle helmet law.

Commercial Appeal: Heaping praise on Michael Heisley. Public employees need to learn to listen.

Steven Wishnia: The Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association’s Plus-1 program helps families who can’t always afford utilities to keep the lights on. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Ben Thompson Can Change: A debt-based metaphor for relationships. And then, thoughts on metaphors!

Benito’s Wine Reviews: Musings on The Manhattan.

Best Memphis Burger: He yields to the clamor of the masses and tries the Brie Burger at Patrick’s Steaks & Spirits. But it still only got 3 stars.

Brain Release Valve: It’s a naughty joke at Rick Santorum’s expense. Don’t look if you know you’ll be offended.

Evilblog: He admits he’s a “terrible person” who is only back to blogging because of the Republicans. See?

FIX MEMPHIS: A map of all the greenways and blueways in Shelby County, in handy downloadable format. Oooh, tough love for the young set.

I Love Memphis: It’s her new favorite food of the week. The dunk of the year?

Joe Spake: He’s more than a little skeptical of the Unfriend Finder app on Facobook.

livinginmilliongton: Thoughts on County Commissioner Terry Roland’s privileged status in town government, and the fast track to Nashville.