Downtown
Trolleys missing from two Downtown lines for nearly a decade
Nine years ago this month all trolleys stopped running following a fire on the Madison line. Nine years later, the Riverfront loop and Madison Avenue line are still down.
Bill Dries
Reporter
Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for almost 50 years covering a wide variety of stories from the 1977 death of Elvis Presley and the 1978 police and fire strikes to numerous political campaigns, every county mayor and every Memphis Mayor starting with Wyeth Chandler.
There are 3833 articles by Bill Dries :
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April 2023
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State Government Bail limit bill awaits Lee’s signature
The bill requires trial court and general sessions court judges to set bail for certain violent felonies.
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Shelby County Harris, Wright pitch Regional One rebuild financing
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris takes a proposal to the County Commission next week to fund the county’s share of the $700-million capital project. Commissioner Mick Wright says he hopes that can be coupled with a property tax reduction.
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City of Memphis Election Commission subpoenaing Mayor Strickland in mayoral residency suit
The city administration has declined to take a side on whether it believes the five-year residency requirement is in effect. That puts the city between the Election Commission, which wants some kind of court ruling on what the requirement is, and two mayoral candidates whose attorneys say they will pursue who raised the residency issue in the first place.
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City of Memphis‘Decorum’ questions follow intense city council discussion on police reform
Citizens pushing for police reforms wanted quick action after the death of Tyre Nichols. Some on the council say they pushed too hard.
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Elections Daily Memphian to host Memphis mayoral debate
Five of the 11 declared mayoral contenders will debate crime, policing and criminal justice at the April 24 event at The Halloran Centre at the Orpheum, which will also be live-streamed on The Daily Memphian site.
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City of Memphis City Council member joining river parks organization
The first-term Memphis City Council member will lead implementation of a new environmental curriculum in the city’s riverfront parks.
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Behind The Headlines MATA’s dilemma: Capital projects are federally funded, while daily operations face shortfall
MATA CEO Gary Rosenfeld talked on “Behind The Headlines” about the balance between plans and what they cost to stay on the road.
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City of Memphis Strickland takes his last budget to City Council
Late Monday evening, a resolution on the city’s residency requirement for mayoral candidates was added to the council’s executive session. Council chairman Martavius Jones wants the city’s chief legal officer to take a stand on just how long a candidate for mayor must have lived in the city.
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City of Memphis Blackburn talks federal spending cuts in visit to Memphis
During a Monday, April 24, visit to Memphis, Sen. Marsha Blackburn talked about her endorsement of former President Donald Trump and took to Twitter to offer supporters a “Marsha, Marsha, Marsha pizza cutter.”
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Elections Mayoral hopeful: We need ‘to amp up’ MPD numbers, quality
Watch five mayoral candidates discuss local crime and criminal justice issues during last night’s Daily Memphian mayoral debate.
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City of Memphis Memphis mayoral debate among five contenders puts 2023 race in spotlight
The Monday debate at Halloran Centre, presented by The Daily Memphian, is about crime and criminal justice. The race to be the next mayor, however, is still a struggle largely taking place out of public view.
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City of Memphis Strickland won’t testify in mayoral residency suit
Meanwhile, some city council members are calling in city chief legal officer Jennifer Sink to take a stand on what the residency requirement is for those running for mayor.
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City of Memphis Party bus operators want to throw city council rules ‘overboard’
“Who’s to say there’s not going to be a hot tub rolling down the road next month,” said Ashley Coleman, owner of the pedal-powered bar Sprock and Roll.
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City of Memphis Council sends residency question to voters next year
A referendum ordinance on a two-year residency requirement cleared the Memphis City Council, which left open the question of the residency requirement for this year’s race for mayor.
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Shelby County Capital projects top Harris budget proposal to County Commission
The Wednesday, April 26, presentation by Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris includes a multi-year $350 million funding commitment toward a rebuild of the Regional One Health campus and money for new high schools.
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City of Memphis Strickland’s final budget proposal gives police and firefighters raises
The $792 million proposal is $42 million larger than the current city budget. Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland is not proposing a property tax increase but said the increase is funded by sales tax revenue, economic growth and the performance of the city’s investments.
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Shelby County Lee Harris’ budget includes one-cent drop in tax rate, $50 hike in wheel tax
Harris also outlined the funding and timetable for historic county capital projects — the rebuilding of the Regional One Health campus and new high schools in Cordova and Frayser.
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ElectionsQuestions about Memphis’ mayoral residency requirement answered
The City of Memphis’ five-year residency requirement for elected officials goes back to 1905. So why is it up for debate now? And when will we know who is eligible to run for Memphis’ next mayor?
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Bartlett Bartlett mayor says Union Depot and BlueOval bringing more, diverse housing
Bartlett Mayor David Parsons says Bartlett’s housing stock is about to start showing some diversity. The recently elected mayor talked about a changing housing market and Bartlett’s first mixed-use development on “Behind The Headlines.”
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City of Memphis Mayoral forum covers police reform, MATA and city funding for education
Six contenders in the race for Memphis mayor spoke at an event organized by Commit to Memphis at Mosaic Commons, also known as Mosaic Church in Midtown.
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May 2023
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Shelby County Shelby County Commission clears the decks for budget season
The Monday commission meeting has a short agenda with votes toward a new solid waste plan and funding for a new prekindergarten classroom in Millington.
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Elections Five-year mayoral residency requirement in effect, city attorney says
Memphis City Attorney Jennifer Sink has taken the stance the City of Memphis' five-year residency requirement for mayoral candidates is in effect.
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Shelby County Shelby County Commission votes on tax rate changes, Wanda Halbert
Mayor Lee Harris is proposing dropping the rate, but the votes weren’t there. Meanwhile, another effort to take a possible step toward ouster proceedings against County Clerk Wanda Halbert came up short.
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City of Memphis Memphis City Council pushes deadline with dual votes on redistricting options
The City Council has two very different options for redrawing its district lines for the October city ballot. Both plans are on the Tuesday, May 2, agenda for the first of three votes.
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