Hey all you fun-gis (and gals)! Today is Thursday, May 26, and the five-day Memphis Mushroom Festival kicks off today at Meeman-Shelby Forest Park with guided mushroom hunts, cooking demos and a whole lot more.

Don’t forget to tune in to the Verzuz battle between Memphis rappers 8Ball and MJG and Port Arthur, Texas’ UGK tonight at 7 p.m. The event will stream on the Verzuz Instagram page and on Triller.

THE NEED TO KNOW

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has signed a bill that could impact the ownership and operation of Germantown’s namesake schools. (Abigail Warren/Daily Memphian file)

Lee signs 3Gs bill: On Wednesday, Gov. Bill Lee signed into law a bill affecting ownership and operation of four Memphis-Shelby County Schools, including Germantown’s namesake campuses (the “3Gs”). The bill codifies an attorney general opinion stating one district cannot open and operate schools within the boundaries of another school system. Although it’s been signed into law, legal challenges are expected.

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said he’s considering running for a third term if Memphis voters approve extending term limits for the office of mayor and city council members. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian file)

Third time’s a charm? Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland says he’s considering running for a third term next year if Memphis voters approve a ballot question this August extending term limits for the office of mayor and city council members. “Serving in this role for nearly two terms has been the honor of my life, and there is still much to be accomplished. Over the next several days, my family and I will seriously consider the opportunity,” said Strickland. The mayor has apparently had a change of heart since the last time Memphis voters addressed term limits at the ballot.

The proposed $604 million mixed-use development in the Pinch District will include 13 properties within the development zone. (The Daily Memphian file)

No progress for Pinch: Developer Tom Intrator will just have to wait until next month for an answer from the Memphis and Shelby County Board of Adjustment on whether or not he can build six buildings with a maximum height of 420 feet as part of his proposed Pinch District development (that’s almost as big as the city’s tallest building!). The board removed the variance item from its agenda following the recusal of two board members. Meanwhile, the board gave the green light to a new day care center in Uptown. 

Sexual abuse victim Jules Woodson, center, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, is comforted by her boyfriend Ben Smith, left, and Christa Brown while demonstrating outside the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting Tuesday, June 11, 2019, in Birmingham, Alabama. (AP File Photo/Julie Bennett)

Survivor hotline: On Wednesday, the Southern Baptist Convention announced a new hotline that allows victims of sexual abuse within the SBC to anonymously submit their allegations. The announcement came after the fallout from a Guidepost Solutions report detailing the SBC’s cover up of two decades of abuse within church ranks. Today, the SBC is expected to release a previously secret list of abuse offenders. 

Day care closed after toddler death: Education Is The Key Children’s Center in North Memphis forfeited its license earlier this week and is now closed following the death of a toddler. A one-year-old child was found dead in the day care’s vehicle in the afternoon of May 19, after having been left there since the morning on a 91-degree day.

MEET MEMPHIS

Effective July 1, Germantown Fire Department assistant chief of operations Eric Grizzard will take the helm as chief of the department. (Courtesy City of Germantown)

Eric Grizzard will become Germantown’s next fire chief, succeeding John Selberg who is retiring from Germantown to become Collierville’s fire chief. Grizzard currently serves as the Germantown Fire Department’s assistant chief of operations, and he’s been with the department for 17 years. “He has a high emotional IQ and very strong sense of empathy when dealing with others,” said Gallatin Fire Chief Jeff Beaman, who was formerly Germantown’s assistant chief and Grizzard’s supervisor.

THE NICE TO KNOW

Walt Phelan recently opened Purple Church Recording, a recording studio on Cleveland Street near Crosstown Concourse. (Houston Cofield/Special To The Daily Memphian)

Crosstown’s Purple Church: There’s a new recording studio in the Crosstown neighborhood, and it’s named after an infamous, now-defunct Memphis strip club. “Memphians love nostalgic stuff,” said Purple Church owner Walt Phelan. He opened the Purple Church, which he says “two steps above a home studio” at 437 N. Cleveland St. in December. “I’ve been in large studios, but I was looking for a sweet spot between home recording and a professional studio,” said musician J.B. Horrell with local band Aquarian Blood, who recorded there.

Patrick and Deni Reilly will open Cocozza, the Italian-American restaurant they operated from The Majestic Grille, at 110 Harbor Town Square this fall. (Justin Fox Burks/Courtesy of The Majestic Grille)

On top of spaghetti: A new Italian-American restaurant is opening in Harbor Town, and it already has a following. Patrick and Deni Reilly of Majestic Grille will open Cocozza, the pop-up restaurant they ran out of the Majestic space during the early months of the pandemic, as a full-service restaurant in the old Movie & Pizza Co. space. in Harbor Town Square this fall, serving dishes from Deni Reilly’s Italian-American upbringing in New Jersey. Meanwhile, Sundays will no longer be fun days at Majestic Grille.

In September, FedEx announced it would enter a pilot program with California-based Aurora Innovation Inc. to test autonomous driving technology. (Courtesy FedEx)

Self-driving FedEx trucks: FedEx is testing autonomous driving technology in a pilot program with California-based Aurora Innovation Inc. Since September 2021, the companies have made weekly deliveries in Texas between Dallas and Houston, a nearly 500-mile round-trip journey. If self-driving cars make you nervous (they certainly do me), know that during the pilot phase, there’s a safety driver co-piloting each trip.

Telisa Franklin speaks at an April 30, 2021, press conference announcing the new home of the Juneteenth Celebration at Health Sciences Park. (Patrick Lantrip/Daily Memphian file) 

PURE moods: PURE Academy high school in Whitehaven received approval for an expansion from the Memphis City Council on Tuesday. The approval followed a mediation between the boarding school and neighboring property owners initially opposed to the development. In other council action, the body approved a paid Juneteenth holiday for city employees, and they made a final move on a trust fund for the Soulsville TIF — tax increment financing — district.

A real positive: Residents of Bartlett will see a small property tax decrease soon. On Tuesday, the Bartlett Board of Mayor and Aldermen unanimously adopted a $184 million budget for the 2023 fiscal year, along with a coinciding drop in the property tax rate. “I think the citizens will look at the drop in the property tax rate as a real positive,” said Bartlett Mayor A. Keith McDonald. 

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Memphians have been raving about the Chicago-style, deep-dish pizza at the new Rotolo’s Craft & Crust. Their hearty “Simple-Man” pie even won the heart of our own Jennifer Biggs, who says she’s never really been a deep-dish fan. But one commenter on I Love Memphis’ review of Rotolo’s complained that the pizza wasn’t quite Chicago enough. So Memphian Thomas Whitehead offered a tip instead to make their deep-dish pizza authentically Memphis.

Now I’m craving pizza (and Biggs says Rotolo’s has vegan options), so I know what I’m having for dinner soon. See you later!

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