Howdy! It’s Tuesday, April 8, and Memphis Mayor Paul Young will present his budget proposal to the Memphis City Council today. He says he’s really hoping to avoid a property-tax hike. (Yeah, you and all of us, Mr. Young.)

The council will also take a final vote on a 4% increase in the hotel-motel tax to fund FedExForum renovations and Downtown safety.

Also today, the Bartlett Board of Mayor and Aldermen will discuss a new agreement between the suburb and Lakeland over wastewater collection. (Sexy stuff.) And the Memphis Grizzlies will play one of the worst teams in the East — the Charlotte Hornets. Surely, we can beat them, right?

THE NEED TO KNOW

Campus School Kimball, the second location for University of Memphis’ Campus School (top), will be located in St. George’s Independent School at 3749 Kimball Ave. (Courtesy University Schools - An Innovative School District)

New Campus School already full: The University Schools district will open a new K-12 school in the old St. George’s Independent School Memphis building this fall, and all 130 spots have been filled. But if your kid is on the 2,000-person waitlist, maybe you’ll have better luck next year. The school plans to grow to between 230 to 250 students by adding a classroom per grade, one year at a time. This will be the first new school since University Schools became its own school district outside of Memphis-Shelby County Schools. And the district’s director says there’s a high need for the elementary in the area.

Rainess Holmes made an appearance in Shelby County Judge Mark Ward’s courtroom on Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian file)

Guilty plea in Rhodes student death: Rainess Holmes pleaded guilty on Monday to aggravated burglary and second-degree murder in the 2021 killing of Andrew “Drew” Rainer. Rainer was a Rhodes College student who was shot during a home invasion. Rainer’s family packed the courtroom on Monday, and they had some words for Holmes. Holmes was sentenced to 20 years in prison and was given credit for the 3 1/2 years he’s already served. 

This 2016 illustration looks like cheese puffs, but this is what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says whooping cough looks like under a microscope. (Meredith Newlove/CDC via AP)

Whooping cough is here: With the recent measles news, it feels more like 1960 than 2025. And now a case of whooping cough has been confirmed in a student at Grahamwood Elementary School in Berclair. It’s the fifth case in Shelby County so far this year. To put that number in perspective, there were only nine cases in all of 2024. Also known as pertussis, this contagious disease can cause serious respiratory issues, pneumonia and swelling of the brain. Kids are typically vaccinated, but adults should be getting a booster every decade. (Who knew?)

Another Downtown shooting: On Friday night, just before 10 p.m., a man was shot near Front Street and Court Avenue during an argument with a driver, who then sped off down Front Street, according to the Memphis Police Department. The man remains in critical condition, and police are still searching for the shooter. Here’s a description of the shooter’s vehicle. On March 22, two rappers were shot, one fatally, near the Westin hotel by FedExForum in broad daylight.

MEET MEMPHIS

The “New Works by Marion Malone and Alicja Trout” exhibit comes from a mother and daughter duo. Malone, left, and Trout, right, both attended Fred Rawlinson’s watercolor classes. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)

Alicja Trout may be best-known as a musician (River City Tanlines, Lost Sounds, etc.). But she’s also a Memphis College of Art grad, and she’s got a new show with her artist mother, Marion Malone. The mother-daughter duo’s joint exhibition is on view now at Church Health. Trout has her mother to thank for her interest in watercolor. Malone studied art at the old Memphis State University and earned a degree in commercial design, but she took up watercolor as a hobby 13 years ago. She perfected her technique in classes led by local artist Fred Rawlinson. And Trout started taking those classes, too. Malone said she appreciates that art gives the two “common ground together.”

THE NICE TO KNOW

Tuomas Iisalo became interim head coach for the Memphis Grizzlies on March 28. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)

Where the Grizz stand right now: The Memphis Grizzlies have quickly fallen to No. 8 in the West, after holding No. 2 just a little over a month ago. Here’s the good news: The teams in the five through eight spots are actually tied, so the Grizzlies have a chance to move up. But if the Grizz start losing again, the team could find itself fighting to get into the playoffs through a play-in tournament. Our own Chris Herrington, a Grizzlies numbers nerd if there ever was one, explains how the team could find themselves in that five spot. Herrington also goes deep on what’s changed since interim head coach Tuomas Iisalo took over. Not only is Iisalo giving Zach Edey more playing time, he also seems to share Herrington’s “foul trouble” philosophy.

The Bunzl Distribution USA Inc. at 4025 Viscount Ave. is closing in late June 2025. (Courtesy Bunzl Distribution USA Inc.)

Forwarding address: St. Louis-based Bunzl Distribution USA Inc. is relocating its one-million-square-foot facility from Memphis to Piperton this summer. And that’ll affect more than 100 workers. Bunzl stocks and ships food-service products, like aprons, knives, deli supplies, cleaning products and other items. 

Drone footage taken before the weekend rain shows flooding at W.C. Johnson Park in Collierville. The flooding has closed the boardwalk until the water recedes and damage is addressed. (Courtesy Collierville Police Department)

Water over the bridge: Or, the boardwalk, rather. Part of the boardwalk at W.C. Johnson Park in Collierville was underwater this weekend, following heavy rains that flooded the nearby Wolf River. Parts of the trailhead remained underwater Monday, and the town expects some repairs will be needed. Flooding also closed the entire Germantown Greenway, where clean-up efforts are expected to begin today. 

Love’s Travel Stops and Country Stores Inc. has acquired 11 acres on Orr Road in Gallaway. (Courtesy Business Wire)

Love’s is in the air: Love’s Travel Stops is planning a new location — just across from the Fayette County Buc-ee’s. At first, this may sound like a dumb idea on Love’s part. Sure, the ubiquitous truck chain offers a good snack selection and cleaner-than-average bathrooms. But who’s going to go to a Love’s when you can get Beaver Nuggets across the street? Truckers, that’s who. Buc-ee’s famously does not allow trucks, so Love’s can presumably capitalize on that. 

Mark Billingsley plans to run for the Shelby County Commission’s District 4 seat in 2026. (The Daily Memphian file)

Billingsley wants back in: Mark Billingsley was a Shelby County Commissioner from 2014 to 2022, and now he wants to come back. On Monday, Billingsley, a Republican, announced his intention to run for Brandon Morrison’s County Commission seat, since she’s term-limited. Commissioners can only hold two consecutive terms, but there’s nothing stopping them from running again after a break. 

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Sure, it’s nice to see the sun again, but it’d be even nicer if we could pack away these jackets for good. Spring in Memphis is such a rollercoaster ride.

I’d just like to turn my heat off for good. Maybe next week?

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