There are 69 article(s) tagged Jeff Warren:
The council is on record opposing TVA’s plan to truck coal ash from the old Allen Fossil Plant to a landfill in Capleville. The Tuesday council committee discussion also ventured into TVA’s role in the Blue Oval City Ford battery plant.
The Memphis City Council and Shelby County Commission are already getting requests from groups that want a share of the money.
The measure is one of three proposals to limit and require local government approval and regulation of new oil pipeline projects. It’s broader than the other two measures delayed Tuesday over lingering legal questions.
The council votes to appoint a study committee to weigh whether the city should pursue drafting a charter that would consolidate city and county governments if approved by voters.
Council members put ARPA spending plans on hold to talk about a compromise that could increase the council’s share of ARPA funding from $13 million to around $20 million.
The resolution is not binding and the council cannot enact a mask mandate as it did previously because the state has blocked the ability for local governments to do so.
Council resolutions to call for no coal ash disposal within the city and over aquifers that supply the city’s drinking water will be voted on in two weeks.
The precinct site sold for $3.5 million after being appraised at $6 million, setting up a council debate about whether to take the best offer now or wait for a better one. Council approves centerpiece of Downtown parking reconfigurationRelated stories:
An attorney for Plains All American Pipeline told City Council members Tuesday the proposals are “anti-industry” and will be overturned if approved by the council and County Commission.
Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis briefs City Council members on the opening weekend of the new law.
On Tuesday, both sides in the pipeline dispute agreed to put their actions on hold until July.
The P.1 variant, a mutation of the Brazilian strain, can infect people who have already had COVID-19; the vaccine is thought to be less effective against it.
Opponents of the oil pipeline want to keep the dispute in local and state courts. But federal courts have helped to speed up the legal process for pipeline companies. Both approaches are in play behind a blossoming opposition movement that has linked arms with past environmental struggles in the city. Related story: Pipeline Players: Who's who in the controversy over the Byhalia Connection Pipeline
The moratorium is a reaction to plans for a smoke shop on McLean Boulevard across from Snowden School in Midtown.
A proposed change in the utility’s debt policy could allow it to build a power generating plant, which would be key if MLGW cuts its ties to TVA, and pay for the plant with the savings to come from it.
The indoor capacity of restaurants will increase from 25% to 50%, effective Saturday, Jan. 23.
The Memphis In May International Festival is calling off the Beale Street Music Festival in May as the Memphis City Council considers urging a Christmas week “safer at home” order.
A voting miscue Tuesday was reversed Wednesday with the passage of the resolution that directs the mayor to draw up a plan to end the use of any city money to buy bottled water.
The council voted unanimously Tuesday to urge a statewide mask mandate, and several council members said their earlier vote against the city’s mask ordinance was wrong.
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.
A variety of community voices spoke out on police reform during two discussions last week.
The violent crime task force is forming as Police Director Michael Rallings told City Council members Tuesday that more officers means less crime. The city has already this year set a record for the number of annual homicides.
Memphis City Council member Jeff Warren on The Daily Memphian Politics Podcast says there could still be an agreement on the next step in the MLGW-TVA issue. He also warns that the Tennessee Legislature could close the door on a possible MLGW exit from TVA if there isn’t a shorter timeline.
MLGW declared a moratorium on utility cutoffs in mid-March as the worldwide pandemic was declared. This month, when the moratorium was lifted, the utility received an overwhelming number of calls to work out payment plans and avoid cutoffs.
A city task force on public safety started its work this week with several calls for hiring local in the police and fire ranks. Meanwhile, an effort to remove from the Nov. 3 election ballot a proposal for allowing the city to hire police and firefighters who live outside the county may be picking up momentum.