Restaurateurs seek data and dialogue from Health Department
The Memphis Restaurant Association wants to know why the Health Department rules continue to change for restaurants, and calls for better communication from health officials.
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 3909 articles by Bill Dries :
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November 2020
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Shelby County Shelby County Commission Scorecard: Monterey Estates, reserves and Shelby Farms Park
The Commission Scorecard looks at three votes by the body on issues that were more complex than the vote totals might reflect, starting with four new homes in Capleville.
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Elections Certified vote count changes no outcomes, reflects 65% Shelby County turnout
The two closest races on the Nov. 3 ballot got a bit closer but with nearly 80% of the votes cast during early voting, Election Day was a mere 14% of the countywide turnout.
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Shelby County Health officials: New restrictions a compromise to head off holiday surge
A group of two dozen business owners were critical of the new restrictions, telling county commissioners they will destroy businesses already on the edge. Some argued they are worse than the problems posed by the virus. Meanwhile, the first vaccine shipments could arrive in mid-December.
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Elections Alexander to Trump: ‘People remember the last thing you do’
The Monday, Nov. 23 appeal to Trump is Alexander’s second in four days and came hours before the Trump administration signaled it will begin work on the transition with President-elect Joe Biden and his team.
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Shelby County County Commission may offer first reviews of pandemic restrictions
The Monday commission session also features a move toward a new disparity study in awarding county government contracts and a decision on increasing county funding to the conservancy that operates and maintains Shelby Farms Park on county land.
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Podcast
ElectionsVoter alliance uses familiar political tools for nonpartisan outreach
The Shelby County Voter Alliance is working after its debut effort in the presidential general election cycle to hold the interest of voters through 2021.
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City of Memphis Motion filed to begin process of moving Forrest remains
No location has been decided on for the re-interment, according to SCV leader Lee Millar. But court documents suggest the remains and equestrian statue of Forrest removed from Health Sciences Park could be bound for a new National Confederate Museum in Columbia, Tn.
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Elections Alexander says presidential transition should begin
The U.S. Senator from Tennessee says there’s a “good chance” Biden is the next president.
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VIDEO
Shelby CountyPush for broader state mask mandate bridges the gap to a vaccine
The mayors of Bartlett and Germantown are pushing Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee for a statewide mask mandate. Short of that, they’re working to create a county-by-county mandate among West Tennessee mayors.
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State Government Harris: Pitch for West Tennessee mask mandate will be ‘a slog’
Mayors from the West Tennessee counties outside Shelby County heard a pitch from Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris and others Thursday for a regional mask mandate. Harris says Gov. Bill Lee is unlikely to order a statewide mask requirement. The regional effort will move to one-on-one talks.
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Shelby County New COVID restrictions coming as numbers rise
Increased restrictions designed to curb the rising COVID-19 numbers are likely coming soon, mayors were told Thursday.
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City of Memphis Smiley files ethics complaint over Ford outburst at council meeting
Council member JB Smiley is also seeking a change in council rules that would allow the chairman of the body to bar a council member who does what Ford did twice during Tuesday’s council meetings.
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City of Memphis City Council Scorecard: Chairman undercurrents, lots of gas
The Council Scorecard dives deeper into the political winds blowing in what turned into a race for council chairman and the mixed results in a set of proposed convenience stores with gas pumps.
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Shelby County Harris order begins county green fleet pilot
With $500,000 in federal grant money, the small-scale pilot includes electric vehicle chargers as well as a broader reconsideration of how county government makes the decision of which vehicles to purchase.
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Metro Convenience stores with gas pumps get split council verdict
A trio of proposed convenience stores before the Memphis City Council Tuesday, Nov. 17, went one for three. -
City of Memphis Council discusses violent crime task force, change in MPD leadership
The task force is among the recommendations in a violent crime blueprint touted by council member Jeff Warren for the past year. Meanwhile, the city should have a new police director by the spring and the head of the MPD is a key player in such a task force.
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City of Memphis Frank Colvett elected City Council chairman, followed by heated discussion
Frank Colvett won election as City Council chairman Tuesday over Martavius Jones. But Colvett’s selection did not come without some controversy.
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City of Memphis Council delays votes on Rust Hall lease, Downtown parking plan
Council members set votes for Dec. 1 after getting answers to questions about both proposals.
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Elections Voter alliance begins work for 2022 elections
A new Shelby County Election Commission report shows nearly 15,000 more voters on the rolls counytwide in the last two months leading up to the Nov. 3 Election Day. Meanwhile, the Shelby County Voter Alliance says its effort got 2,500 of those voters on the rolls. The alliance of 18 organizations has now set its sights on the 2022 countywide ballot.
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Elections Collierville runoff early voters get first use of new voting system starting Wednesday
The Shelby County Election Commission says its hand was forced by having to keep voting machines used in the November elections sealed until all results from that election are certified next week. Early voting in the two Collierville runoff elections starts Wednesday.
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City of Memphis Rust Hall lease, MLGW budget and Downtown parking overhaul top council agenda
The Memphis City Council agenda Tuesday also includes a new violent crime task force, a ban on bottled water at all city facilities post pandemic and the election of a new chairman for 2021.
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City of Memphis Discussions spur dialogue for change
A variety of community voices spoke out on police reform during two discussions last week.
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City of Memphis Differences emerge in police reform
Two conversations about police reform show the more detailed the proposed reforms become, the more differences they reveal.
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City of Memphis Fixing neighborhoods: Old lending practices fueled today’s problems
Memphis is ahead of the curve in reversing the results of old rules and regulations that encouraged segregation and created pockets of poverty. So changes in the federal fair housing policy have had little impact.
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