Shepherd, an Emmy-nominated and NAACP Image Award-winning talk show host, sitcom actress and comedian, will co-emcee the Healthier 901 Fest at Shelby Farms Park on Saturday, Sept. 2. 

The choice is the first by the Greater Memphis Chamber. France was last honored in 1990 by Memphis In May. 

Chancellor Melanie Taylor-Jefferson proposed halting construction on the new Brooks Museum of Art Downtown, contingent on Friends for Our Riverfront posting a bond that would cover the cost of stopping construction.

The decision came as some Memphis-Shelby County School buildings are struggling with air-conditioning issues amid a summer of record high temperatures.

Retired Shelby County Criminal Court Division III Judge James Robert “Bobby” Carter Jr. was contracted by the city to perform an efficiency study on various court systems within Memphis.

Memphis has filed a motion to dismiss the $550 million lawsuit against the city and to strike allegations against Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis. 

The Daily Memphian invited the top Memphis mayoral contenders to tell us more about themselves and their candidacy in their own words.

Campaigns are anticipating a voter turnout of around 100,000 voters when all of the votes are counted Oct. 5. Some candidates believe one of them could win the mayors race with as few as 25,000 votes. 

Citizens at the meeting said issues they face include lack of accessibility, long wait times, lack of communication and broken-down buses.

The Chancery Court lawsuit seeks to stop construction on the new riverfront Brooks Museum, charging violations of the terms of the “public promenade” established when the city was founded in 1819.

If estimates hold true, TVA will experience the highest demand for electricity of the summer Thursday; it would also be the highest power demand during any August in more than a decade. 

The Tennessee Valley Authority’s board of directors will vote on a proposal to replace local combustion turbines with aeroderivative turbines, which are more modern, and help integrate renewable energy into the grid.

The amount is a record high for the program and comes as Moore Tech plans to start a new weatherization training program in November. 

A May event that doubled as staff appreciation as well as Memphis City Council chair Martavius Jones’ birthday party cost the city $1,800. 

The Memphis City Council voted down a ballot question that would have required MLGW employees to live within Shelby County. It gave final approval to a referendum on restoring the city court clerk as an elected office. 

Some MLGW customers will get multiple bills in a short period of time.

Memphis’ solid waste department is blaming a delay in bulk item pick-up on the amount of storm debris left on city curbs, but some say the problems predate the recent severe weather. 

The city is still debating how to fund renovations to both Simmons Bank Liberty Bowl and FedExForum. 

The resolution by council chairman Martavius Jones and council vice chairman JB Smiley Jr. asking the Memphis Police Department to ask Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner for the permanent cooperation was approved by the council on a 10-0 vote.

Memphis Mayoral contender J.W. Gibson is the latest in the race to challenger Floyd Bonner Jr. on recent deaths at the Shelby County Jail during Bonner’s tenure as sheriff.

Parts of the Shelby Farms Greenline — a more than 10-mile trail that connects Midtown to Cordova — are currently closed for about two weeks. 

The council has already approved two other charter referendums for the 2024 election year and has others waiting in the wings. If all are approved, it would make five ballot questions for Memphis voters next year.

The city and Nichols’ family have different viewpoints about the extent to which Memphis Police Department Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis is responsible.

Mayoral contender Van Turner also said Saturday the city’s “crime wave” has to be “met where it is.” Also, the special legislative session in Nashville could influence the Memphis mayor’s race.

The unofficial local holiday falls on Friday, Sept. 1, a date that corresponds to the city’s 901 phone area code. It’s a chance for groups to show off their civic pride and celebrate all things Memphis.