Happy birthday to us! It’s Wednesday, Sept. 17, and The Daily Memphian is seven years old today. That’s right, in late 2018, just a little more than a year ahead of the worldwide pandemic, we launched this nonprofit, digital newspaper. And thanks to you, dear reader, we’re still here. So, thank you!

Now for another shameless plug, tomorrow is our annual Small Business Seminar. The panel features three local business owners, including the husband-and-wife duo who founded concierge medical practice Züpmed, and tickets are still available. 

But enough about us: Downtown’s Center City Development Corp. meets today, and they’ll consider new pole banners that would span the full length of the Main Street Mall. The proposal says the banner designs will “highlight Downtown Memphis’ unique identity,” whatever that means.

THE NEED TO KNOW

Members of the Ohio National Guard patrolled the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 15. (Jose Luis Magana/AP)

What we can learn from the D.C. deployment: President Donald Trump mobilized hundreds of National Guard troops in Washington, D.C., a little more than a month ago. And late last week, he confirmed that the next deployment is coming to Memphis. So, what can we learn from what’s happened in D.C.? Records show a “few cases” where troops detained people until police arrived, and those arrested were typically young, Black men. Those D.C. troops have often also been tasked with blight control, and that’s something Memphis Mayor Paul Young hopes to see here. As for whether the guard’s presence will actually drive down crime and keep it down, one former police director has his doubts.

‘A force multiplier’: Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said Tuesday that he wants the National Guard to help free up Memphis police officers to do other police work. But he said he still doesn’t know when the Memphis deployment is happening. He wasn’t sure of how many troops are coming either, but he has a rough idea. Clearly, there are more questions than answers at this point, and our own Jody Callahan dives into more of the unknowns, including possible jurisdictional issues around arrests. 

The Parkview building in Overton Park has been completely restored. (Courtesy Forge Partners)

The Parkview is back: Years after new owners evicted senior citizens living at Midtown’s Parkview senior living tower, the 126-unit building has been completely restored with market-rate apartments, a coffee bar, an arcade and more. Ownership group Forge Partners says they’re preparing for new residents to move in soon. Read more on that in Inked, plus news of a mother-and-son interior design studio opening at Regalia Shopping Center.

QUOTED

“There’s never been a time where I feel like getting a bunch of police in one area actually helps [reduce] crime.”

— Julius Lassiter, University of Memphis student
Opinions on whether or not the National Guard is needed in Memphis — or if their presence will even make a difference — are all over the place. On Tuesday, our reporters talked to a few residents to get a feel for what people are thinking. We’d like to know how you feel about it, too, so go vote in our poll.

THE NICE TO KNOW

The Midtown Chick-fil-A will reopen on Thursday, Sept. 18, after several months of renovations. (Courtesy of Midtown Chick-fil-A)

Chicken biscuits and jams: Chick-fil-A is probably just as well-known for causing traffic jams as they are for fried chicken biscuits and sandwiches. But maybe that’s changing at the Midtown location on Union Avenue. The store is reopening tomorrow after being closed for months, as the company extended the drive-thru line and made other improvements to alleviate traffic backups. (Now, can y’all do that at the one on Poplar Avenue near Clark Tower, please?)

”Children of Men” stars Clive Owen, (center left) and Clare-Hope Ashitey (center right). (Courtesy Universal Pictures)

Throwback Thursday: As he does every week, columnist Chris Herrington has recommendations for which new movies might be worth your time. But this week, his top recs are old films making a one-night-only (Thursday) return to the big screen. There’s “Children of Men,” a 2006 dystopian thriller about a mostly infertile world, and 1993’s stoner cult-classic “Dazed and Confused.” (Alright, alright, alright!) Herrington reminds us why these films matter.

Round and round: The path to Arlington’s Hawthorne development may be getting better — in a roundabout way. The town’s Planning Commission approved a plan for the realignment of Summers Road, including a new roundabout. The road updates are intended to help traffic flow into the future Hawthorne mixed-use development. The $500 million to $700 million Hawthorne project includes nearly 84 acres of residential and 25 acres of commercial property.

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Slowdown Dry Goods has jokes, but I swear the air smelled like watermelon ice this past weekend.

Okay, I’m off to eat birthday cake for breakfast. Kidding, I’m just having a boring old smoothie. But someone eat some cake for us!

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