I feel certain that I wrote last year about the problem regarding the line separating Shelby County from Fayette County out east.

The fact that I’m writing about it again is a testament to how ridiculous this whole matter continues to be.
Here is a short recap. There was always a line that showed the eastern edge of Shelby transitioning to Fayette. It was set so long ago, even I don’t remember when it was actually established. And I’ve been around to remember when Whitehaven and Raleigh were annexed by Memphis.

Then, last year at some point, it came to folks’ attention that the Shelby/Fayette line that had been there forever, well, somehow moved. Not by an earthquake. Not by the actions of some higher being. Just a shift in the line on a map having something to do with a federal census block versus its forever placement.

And while some blame the matter on just a mistaken reading of where the line belonged, others, like Lee and Amber Mills, expect something more nefarious.

As I suppose is necessary, the whole thing is stuck creeping its way through the Legislature, even though the local leaders in the two counties readily agree with the historical placement of the county line.

The people in the area between the right line and the wrong line have paid Shelby County taxes all along. Went to schools in the jurisdiction. Got utilities from Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division. Everything to show they are Shelby Countians until somehow the line got shifted, sending about 200 homes into the wrong county.

Now, even as things seem headed to a resolution, the area south of U.S. 64 is still in limbo — something about the language and the description not being correct or identical.

Oh, brother.

I have an idea. Someone in the Legislature propose putting the line back where it was before all this started, codify it from the north end of the county to the Mississippi state line, and let’s move on with having those people in the affected area back in Shelby County.

Like they always were. - Suburbs editor Clay Bailey

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