Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris’ “healthyShelby 19” inititative to promote physical, dietary and mental fitness is set to kick off. 

Some issues county government would like to address in education in 2019 are pre-K initiatives, workforce development and school facilities. 

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland stuck to the basics in 2018 – the “brilliant at the basics” four-word slogan of his 2015 campaign for mayor and the motto of his three-year-old administration.

A bottle of bubbly is all but required for New Year’s Eve, but you don’t have to drink it straight if you prefer it extra. A Champagne cocktail is always appreciated, and we have a few for you to try.

The Crosstown Arts Theater and South Main Artspace Lofts both opened this year. Besides being spaces built with artists in mind, the spaces also have something else in common – the projects were designed by Memphis architecture firm Looney Ricks Kiss.

Penny Hardaway was the most compelling Memphis sports figure of 2018. But here are 10 more who shaped the year. 

Legendary figures have made the AutoZone Liberty Bowl special for 60 years.

Just one year ago, Memphis Tiger basketball was an embarrassment. New coach Penny Hardaway has changed everything. 

An outpatient surgery center that employs 22 people is closing in mid-January.

City Hall is looking for mandatory jail time for road-rage convictions in the 2019 session of the Tennessee Legislature and a sports book on Beale Street as well as making it easier to get title to tax-delinquent property for tax sales.

Years are arbitrary units of time, and a lot of what was most interesting in Memphis in 2018 are ongoing changes or trends that don't stop because a calendar flips. With that in mind, this year-in-review often doubles as a kind of year-in-preview: A Memphis 10 look back at some of the most significant Memphis stories and developments (often literally) of 2018, and beyond. 

According to 2018 TNReady test scores almost 80 percent of Shelby County Schools' third-graders are not proficient in reading. Read901, convened by Literacy Mid-South, is working to get 90 percent of third-graders reading at grade level by 2025.

Marshall University defensive coordinator Adam Fuller was officially named University of Memphis defensive coordinator, according to a university release Saturday. 

Instead of sitting out, Missouri quarterback Drew Lock relishes the chance for one final game.

The Grizzlies lost another big lead and then let a close game slip away, as they fell to the Boston Celtics 112-103. 

Dozens of former Tiger athletes have come from as far away as Australia and South Africa on the international front and New York and Florida in the U.S. to call Memphis home.

There were more than votes to count in the 2018 local elections. There were voters, early voting locations and lawsuits – six of them – against the Shelby County Election Commission.

The Shelby County Commission will hold a comprehensive discussion on Juvenile Court at its next committee meeting in January. 

Facial, hand and neck tattoos aren’t nicknamed “job stoppers’’ for nothing. And there’s nothing subtle about Robert Fortner’s face tattoo. Still, the self-described “misfit’’ has work that fits him like a glove over his heavily inked hands. He is a partner in what is arguably the most Bohemian bar in Memphis.

Kyrie Irving had 26 points and 13 assists, Al Horford added 18 points, including a pair of key 3-pointers in the closing 1:32, and the Boston Celtics rallied for a 112-103 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night.

In the South, we eat lunch every day except Sunday, when our midday meal is dinner. At my grandmother’s table, Sunday dinner was fried chicken or pot roast, both served with an assortment of vegetables, biscuits or cornbread to go with it all.

Frazer and Dana Gieselmann have had their share of grief and loss the past few years, but they haven’t let their circumstances stop them, instead turning their hardships into doing something good for the community.

Former U.S. Attorney Ed Stanton is the independent monitor who will report to U.S. District Judge Jon P. McCalla on steps the Memphis Police Department is taking to end surveillance of protesters after violating a 1978 consent decree barring such surveillance.

After a lackluster first half, Memphis put on an offensive display to coast to an easy 96-65 win over Florida A&M in the Tigers final game before conference play

Clubhouse and office renovations are slated for AutoZone Park to accommodate the Memphis Redbirds and the inaugural season of Memphis 901 FC, the city's new soccer team.