Break out your calculators and pocket protectors, Memphis. It’s budget time! Today is Monday, May 6, and the Memphis City Council begins city budget hearings today as members consider Memphis Mayor Paul Young’s proposed property-tax and solid-waste fee increases.

The Shelby County Commission also meets today, and they’ll consider County Clerk Wanda Halbert’s $2.4 million ask for pay raises and new technology. For a look at what’s coming up in the days ahead, check out This Week in Memphis.

THE NEED TO KNOW

Twin sisters Leslie Holland, left, and Lisa Sloan. Sloan died four years after her car was hit by two drag racers on Poplar Avenue. (Courtesy Leslie Holland)

Racing is a drag: A new law awaiting Gov. Bill Lee’s signature would bump drag racing up from a Class A misdemeanor to a Class E felony, meaning anyone caught racing cars could face up to six years in prison. That would be a welcome change for families, like that of Lisa Sloan, who died as a result of injuries sustained after her car was hit by a drag racer on Poplar Avenue in 2017. “A misdemeanor is not an impediment. It is not stopping anyone from drag racing,” said Leslie Holland, Sloan’s twin sister. And the local lawmakers behind the new change have more in mind to curb drag racing in the future. Speaking of Sloan, her alleged killer — Cordero Ragland — is due in court this week for aggravated assault and drag racing associated with the Sloan incident. The lengthy delay in the drag racing case is in part due to Ragland’s extensive criminal history.

Memphis Mayor Paul Young pitched a 75-cent city property-tax hike on Tuesday, April 23, as he presented his first proposed budget to the Memphis City Council. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)

Where city and county property taxes go: Memphis Mayor Paul Young’s proposed 28% property-tax hike has been met with mixed support, and critics are questioning why the city administration can’t trim the fat as opposed to raising taxes. So, The Daily Memphian’s Samuel Hardiman broke down the numbers on where city — and county — property taxes go. (Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris also proposed a new budget last week, but his doesn’t include a tax hike.) One plan in the proposed city budget: $17.6 million in bond spending for the Mud Island Amphitheater’s renovation. Young said the city has “aspirational” plans for the aging amphitheater renovation, and he met with concert entertainment company Live Nation last month.

The expression of Gregory Livingston (middle) remained unchanged when a jury convicted him in the 2021 killing of Alvin Motley Jr. (Julia Baker/The Daily Memphian)

Livingston convicted: Gregory Livingston, the former security guard accused of fatally shooting Alvin Motley Jr. in 2021 during an altercation over loud music at an East Memphis Kroger gas station, was found guilty of first-degree murder on Friday. He was sentenced to life in prison. Motley’s father, who said his son was legally blind due to a genetic disorder, said he was pleased with the verdict.

Jail fire injures inmates: Four Shelby County Jail inmates were noncritically injured on Friday night after objects were set on fire and thrown into a housing unit. The main door to the housing unit at 201 Poplar was tied closed from the inside using bedsheets to prevent corrections deputies from entering. Shelby County Sheriff’s Deputy Chief Anthony Buckner said the incident speaks to the need for a new jail to replace the aging facility and also highlights its staffing shortage.

QUOTED

“I would anticipate that ... we’re going to have to build another [Old Dominick] production facility.”

— Mike Monroe, president of Old Dominick Distillery
Local distiller Old Dominick made 20,000 cases of spirits in 2023, and its goal is to hit 50,000 cases in four or five years. When that happens, Monroe says they’ll need to expand, but he expects to keep the Downtown location for tasting tours. The company is also facing some changes after its original Master Distiller Alex Castle announced she was leaving the business.

THE NICE TO KNOW

Flames and fireworks surrounded the electronic duo Odesza at Riverbeat on Friday, May 3, at Tom Lee Park. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)

Didn’t miss a (River)beat: The first-ever Riverbeat Music Festival is a wrap. Mempho’s new first-weekend-in-May fest in Tom Lee Park happened in place of the long-standing Beale Street Music Festival, which Memphis in May International declined to host this year amid a strained relationship with park management. As our own Chris Herrington points out, the fest went off without many hitches, except for some rain and a lightening delay on Sunday (Memphis in Mud is still in full effect). And the organizers fell short of the park’s new capacity, likely losing money in year one. As for the music, Herrington was there all weekend and recapped Friday’s headlining show by EDM duo Odesza and Saturday’s reunion show by 1990s hip-hop acts, The Fugees. Re-live the weekend in photos with galleries from from Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

“Our field, radiology, leads all other medical fields in the use of AI; 75% of all FDA-cleared algorithms are in radiology,” said Dr. Andrew Smith, the new chair of diagnostic imagining at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)

AI for good: We hear a lot about AI stealing work from artists or taking over the music industry. Or heck, taking over the human race, a la “The Terminator.” But St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is using AI for good. Dr. Andrew Smith, the new chair of diagnostic imaging, is working to get the department grounded in artificial intelligence, part of a widespread AI investment at the hospital. Thanks to his work, St. Jude will be able to measure and locate tumors using AI.

Juvenile Court employees were given an hour to remove items from the building May 1. The building is indefinitely closed following mold, asbestos and lead that was discovered. (Aarron Fleming/The Daily Memphian)

When your job actually makes you sick: Prior to the Shelby County Juvenile Court being shut down for mold, asbestos and lead abatement, the court clerk said employees at the 1930s-era building were getting sick. Complaints from employees led to testing, and now the court is shut down indefinitely. (Who knew the old ‘this job makes me sick’ excuse could actually work?) While the court is closed, most dockets are being heard virtually, but the court is in the process of finding a temporary space, including a possible move to the old Commercial Appeal building. 

When in a pickle … Pickleball 901’s plans to open a permanent location in Collierville’s Carriage Crossing fell through, but that won’t stop the company from bringing the popular sport to the shopping center. Now, they’re planning to open a pickleball pop-up spot in Carriage Crossing’s former Bed Bath & Beyond. In other Carriage Crossing news, the owners of popular Memphis eateries Pyro’s Pizza and Wolf River Brisket Co. are planning to open a live music venue/sports bar/restaurant called Nashoba in the shopping center this summer.

THIS WEEK’S WEATHER

Don’t even bother trying to make your hair look cute until Thursday because we’re in for wet and muggy weather.

You’re caught up from the weekend now. Hope this day is great!

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