All that ‘city glitter’ isn’t gold: How Cooper-Young said Hell-o
The “Hell-O” Strip runs along Southern Avenue long Southern Avenue between Cooper Street and East Parkway, covering seven blocks. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)
Sharron Johnson has lived on Philadelphia Street in Cooper-Young for 45 years.
For decades, she has driven along the southernmost boundary of the neighborhood, one of 5,500 cars that travel that section of Southern Avenue daily, according to Memphis city engineers.
Over the years, she had witnessed firsthand how neglected the area was, especially in the grassy area between the sidewalk and the street. That area, known as a utility strip, tree belt or hell strip (mostly by gardeners), is full of what Johnson calls “city glitter” — a combination of broken glass and litter.
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Nick Lingerfelt
Nick Lingerfelt has written for Focus Mid-South Magazine, StyleBlueprint, Salon and At Home Memphis & Mid South. When he was a student at the University of Memphis, he was editor-in-chief of The Daily Helmsman, the school’s student newspaper.
Also while a student at the U of M, he received the Otis Sanford Outstanding Journalism Student award and the 2nd Place Marc Perrusquia Investigative Journalism Award for a story about the demographic makeup of the school’s sports teams.
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