How are you, Greater Memphis? It’s Thursday, Jan. 11, and the Land Use Control Board will consider a closure for part of November 6th Street and a nearby alley Downtown as part of the 100 N. Main redevelopment. 

Want to win two tickets to see the Memphis Tigers basketball team play South Florida on Thursday, Jan. 18? Enter to win before midnight on Monday. 

THE NEED TO KNOW

Collierville Schools Board member Keri Blair has resigned after being arrested for shoplifting. (Greg Campbell/The Daily Memphian file)

Five-finger discount: Sure, many people have “accidentally” entered the code for conventional produce rather than organic at self-checkout, or unintentionally skipped an item entirely. But now-former Collierville Schools board member Keri Blair is accused of stealing much more from the self-checkout at the suburb’s Target. Blair, who was elected just over a year ago, has resigned from the board after she was arrested for allegedly shoplifting $728 worth of goods on seven occasions during a 25-day period. (If you think stores aren’t recording you at those kiosks, think again.) 

“After the tragic death of Tyre Nichols and public scrutiny of the SCORPION unit, we made it a priority ... to develop a practical resource [on] ... specialized units in police agencies,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. (Ziggy Mack/The Daily Memphian file)

How-to guide for police: The U.S. Department of Justice released a 72-page guide on the use of specialized police units on Wednesday, the one-year anniversary of Tyre Nichols’ death. The guide came out of a DOJ review of the City of Memphis and the Memphis Police Department following Nichols’ fatal traffic stop by officers from a now-defunct specialized MPD unit. But the information in the guide, which includes tips on hiring for and developing the culture of such units, was based on input from law enforcement, academic institutions and advocacy organizations across the country. Attorneys Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, who are representing the Nichols’ family in a lawsuit against the city, said they were thankful for the DOJ’s work.

Supporters of federal education funding held signs during a committee hearing on Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023. (Ian Round/The Daily Memphian file)

More questions than answers: A new report on whether the state should reject federal education funds includes a long list of unanswered questions. A committee has been studying what would happen if Tennessee rejected federal money to relieve the state of the “strings” attached to those funds. The committee’s report, released this week, appears to caution against rejecting the funds because no state has ever done so. It also notes that many federal rules wouldn’t be lifted even if the state rejected the money. Tennessee schools received $1.3 billion in recurring federal funds in 2023, and Memphis-Shelby County Schools was the 10th-most dependent on federal support.

Free COVID-19 testing is available at local pharmacies through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Bridge Access Program. (Andrew Harnik/AP file)

Mask up: It seems like the entire city has come down with some kind of sickness over the last few weeks. Now, the Shelby County Health Department is confirming an uptick in COVID-19 cases following the winter holidays. The most common variant in the U.S. now is JN.1, an omicron subvariant that now makes up more than 60% of cases. If you haven’t yet gotten your booster, the health department says it’s time.

QUOTED

“If something isn’t done to get the crime epidemic under control, I fear for Memphis’ viability as a city where businesses choose to locate or remain.”

— Richard Smith, CEO of FedEx Airline and International
Smith and other Memphis business executives drafted a letter to Gov. Bill Lee and others seeking help with Shelby County’s crime problem. The executives are calling for changes to state sentencing laws, the appointment of outside judges to try criminal cases in Shelby County and other measures.

THE NICE TO KNOW

University of Memphis guard Jahvon Quinerly grabbed a rebound and looked to kick off a fast break against UTSA on Jan. 10. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)

Same story, different day: The Memphis Tigers basketball team came away with a 107-101 overtime victory over the UTSA Roadrunners on Wednesday night. But, as has been the case with the Tigers lately, that win didn’t come easily. UTSA, a team that hadn’t even beaten anyone in the top 200 of KenPom, was the aggressor for most of the first half. “We should’ve lost this game, with the way that they shot the ball,” said coach Penny Hardaway. While the Tigers games have been stressful for fans, our own Tim Buckley reasons that “at least they keep you in your seats until the very end.” In broader Tigers news, The Daily Memphian’s Geoff Calkins sat down with Laird Veatch, the University of Memphis director of athletics, to discuss stadium renovations, Fred Smith’s $50 million gift and the Tigers’ support of Mikey Williams throughout his legal battle. By the way, Hardaway says he has no regrets over supporting Williams, even though the player ultimately decided not to be a Tiger.

The City of Bartlett is opting out of the Memphis Public Libraries system. (Michael Waddell/Special to The Daily Memphian)

Bye, bye, Bartlett: The last of the suburbs still connected to Memphis Public Libraries has decided to cut ties with the city’s system. On Tuesday night, the Bartlett Board of Mayor and Alderman voted to go with Avenu Insights & Analytics, managers of the Germantown Community Library, as its new library manager. The issue that prompted the change is a shortfall of $36,000 in undelivered books over the past fiscal year. The BMA also voted in favor of the YMCA taking over the Bartlett Recreation Center, which lost an average of $333,000 annually over the past three years under City of Bartlett management.

Memphis Grizzlies forward Vince Williams Jr. walked the court against the Philadelphia 76ers during an NBA summer-league game July 5, 2022, in Salt Lake City. (Jeff Swinger/AP file)

We believe? The Memphis Grizzlies waived center Bismack Biyombo on Wednesday and signed former two-way player Vince Williams Jr. to a standard contract. That’s a bit of “good news, bad news”: Williams has been killing it on defense, but Biyombo’s departure will leave Memphis thin in the frontcourt. Looking at the bigger picture, the Memphis Grizzlies left for a three-game road trip last weekend with star player Ja Morant in tow, and they’re returning without him (on the floor, anyway) for a high-profile, three-games-in-four-nights homestand beginning Friday. But despite not having Morant for two of those three road games, due to his season-ending shoulder injury, the short-staffed Grizzlies pulled out three wins. The Daily Memphian’s Chris Herrington admits that the postseason is still a longshot for the Grizz, but he has a few reasons to believe.

The Vic on Union will downsize to four stories, but the exterior design will remain the same as this original rendering. (Courtesy Huntington Properties)

Scaling back: The Vic on Union apartment development is downsizing from five to four stories and delaying the closing on its 12-year payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT), due to financing challenges. Huntington Properties was awarded a PILOT for the project in 2022, and construction was supposed to begin last May. But the developer says project costs have doubled recently, and construction has not started yet. On Tuesday, the Downtown Memphis Commission’s Center City Revenue Finance Corp. approved moving the PILOT closing back 12 months.

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

The Bartlett Police Department has a tip for you: Save your Stanley money, and buy some fresh tires. 

By the way, if you aren’t following @bartlettpolice on Instagram, it’s worth your time. They’ve got jokes — and a beaver.

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