Bill Dries
Reporter
Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for more than 40 years.
There are 3660 articles by Bill Dries :
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September 2018
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State Government Democratic U.S. Senate contender Phil Bredesen met a crowd of 500 at Rhodes College Thursday, Sept. 13, that consisted mostly of supporters on what was originally planned as a debate with Republican rival Marsha Blackburn. Blackburn would not commit to the debate. -
Metro Blackburn removes photo with U of M spirit squad after request from athletics officials
Republican Senate nominee Marsha Blackburn removed a picture Monday, Sept. 17, of her with the University of Memphis Spirit Squad posted on her campaign Facebook page. -
City of Memphis Ford, Fisher on different sides of instant-runoff voting
Most of the 50 citizens at a Hickory Hill town hall meeting Monday, Sept. 17, came to talk and complain about city garbage and trash pick-up. There were so many complaints the host, City Council member Patrice Robinson, began setting up a meeting just to talk about the city’s solid waste services, which are in the process of changing. -
Shelby County Summers out, Morris in as new Juvenile Court coordinator
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris is making a change in who runs the county’s memorandum of agreement with the U.S. Justice Department for changes in Memphis-Shelby County Juvenile Court. -
City of Memphis Airways Middle School zoning change leads with billboard
Few items to be voted on at City Hall kindle controversy like the prospect of a new billboard. The controversy usually pits council members who see billboards as blight and oppose any proliferation of them against members who see them as a money-maker for property owners who lease their land for billboard use. -
Education Suburban school system leaders say students must go beyond academics
Two months into his job as superintendent of Millington Municipal Schools, James “Bo” Griffin goes into all four schools in the system at least once a week. -
Public Safety Strickland pledges to get to bottom of officer-involved shooting
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland addressed the city Friday morning, saying there have been 40 incidents in which the Memphis Police Department investigated and disciplined officers for violating policies surrounding the use of body and vehicle cameras, vowing to get “to the bottom of this” shooting of 25-year-old Martavious Banks. -
Second convention hotel set for Civic Center Plaza
The city’s second convention center hotel will be constructed on Civic Center Plaza across from City Hall and next to the Downtown Memphis Commission offices, Jonathan Tisch, the chairman and CEO of Loews Hotel & Co., said Friday. -
Shelby County Four potential new voting systems for Shelby County get road test
Three of the four voting systems certified by the state of Tennessee for use in elections would enable voters to get a printed copy of their choices and then complete the voting process by running that printed copy through a scanner. -
City of Memphis City ready to re-institute Beale Street Bucks cover charge for security
The first weekend the Downtown Memphis Commission and Memphis Police Department considered reinstituting a cover charge on Beale Street did not occur. -
City of Memphis Facebook finds, removes more fake Memphis Police Department accounts
Facebook has deactivated six fake accounts connected to the Memphis Police Department, according to the nonprofit Electronic Frontier Foundation, and sent a letter to police brass last week warning them that the fake accounts violate Facebook's terms of service. -
City of Memphis City Council to discuss bus lanes on Second and B.B. King, vote on de-annexations
Second Street and B.B. King Boulevard between Union Avenue and A.W. Willis Boulevard would each have a lane just for buses and other mass transit under a proposal to be discussed by a Memphis City Council committee Tuesday, Sept. 25. -
City of Memphis New South City homes begin rising on site of Foote Homes
The last of the brick two-story apartment buildings that were the Foote Homes public housing development are down to a few slabs of concrete overgrown by grass and bushes. And new wooden frames are starting to rise near the corner of Lauderdale Street and Vance Avenue. -
Education Burt named new SCS chief academic officer
Antonio Burt, principal at one of Shelby County Schools’ first Innovation Zone schools and leader of priority and I-Zone schools, is the new chief academic officer for SCS. -
City of Memphis Council approves de-annexations of Rocky Point, Southwind/Windyke
The Memphis City Council gave final approval Tuesday, Sept. 25, to the de-annexations of the Rocky Point and Southwind/Windyke areas of the city. -
City of Memphis City working group looks for direction on EDGE
The city’s working group on economic development is about to compare notes on the attributes of a “perfect” economic development organization. -
Metro Early-voting sites, hours set
All of Shelby County’s 27 early-voting sites will open on Oct. 17, the first day of the early-voting period before the Nov. 6 election. Early voting runs through Nov. 1. -
City of Memphis Dulberger says EDGE small part of economic development
The leader of the city-county Economic Development Growth Engine says EDGE is willing to change, but Reid Dulberger was quick to add that changes to the formal approach to growing the Memphis economy won’t address the dominant challenges. -
City of Memphis Police shooting reaction goes beyond call for TBI investigations
Memphis police brass were about four minutes into Power Point slides at a Tuesday, Sept. 25, City Council committee session before council members shut down the presentation that tallied the hours of police camera recordings and number of cameras in patrol cars. -
City of Memphis Report finds broader economic development plan needed
The city-county Economic Development Growth Engine organization known primarily for granting tax incentives to businesses coming to or expanding in Memphis should be empowered to pursue a broader economic development strategy, according to a new report that compares EDGE to efforts in four other cities. -
City of Memphis Foote Homes to South City continues story of change
The path to end the city’s large public housing projects was a 20-year journey that brought city leaders to a tent last week near the corner of Vance and Lauderdale.
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October 2018
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City of Memphis SafeWays partners with MHA
The crime prevention nonprofit group SafeWays is partnering with the Memphis Housing Authority to work in eight public housing high rises and communities as well as mixed-income communities on what were once MHA developments. -
City of Memphis Kennedy Park segment of Wolf River Greenway opens
Most Memphians who use Kennedy Park know it primarily for its softball and baseball fields. That changed Wednesday, Oct. 3, as the latest stretch of the Wolf River Greenway opened where an almost impenetrable combination of undergrowth and dredge material once hid the Wolf River there. -
City of Memphis Mississippi River Park nears November re-opening
Treehouses taking shape in Mississippi River Park by the Wolf River Harbor will get signs before the park’s Nov. 9 opening saying they are suitable for children ages 5-12. -
City of Memphis Convention center rebid one piece in Downtown changes
Construction contractors get a detailed look Friday, Oct. 5, at changes to the $175 million renovation of the Memphis Cook Convention Center.
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