For the first time since March 2020, all Shelby County Schools students were expected to return to in-person classes amid rising COVID-19 cases. 

Gas stations and used-tire shops no longer fit within the long-range plans for 21 commercial districts across Memphis, according to a new recommendation from the Division of Planning & Development.

Students who do not comply and do not qualify for an exemption are to be sent home.

The TBI began an investigation into the improper use of confidential information by someone in the district attorney’s office. 

As Memphis’ pandemic-delayed Africa In April festival starts Friday, supporters say it’s time to honor one of its early organizers, Adjua Naantaanbuu. 

Shelby County commissioner’s exploratory committee for Memphis mayor is another indication that county Mayor Lee Harris will seek re-election next year.

The specialized school will offer students the opportunity to earn an associate degree. 

The proposed development would be on the same intersection as Collage Dance Collective and the Binghampton Gateway Center.

Federal investigations are ongoing and concerns have been raised over the transportation agency’s lack of protocols and transparency. 

As Shelby County Schools students gear up for in-person school Monday, Aug. 9, the district is revving up a new fleet of buses. 

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.

The Memphis City Council members changed their minds about a used car lot in Raleigh. And, the council will vote on a pair of resolutions asking the TVA to avoid moving coal ash from the old Allen Fossil plant.

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 outline includes major funding for an expansion of broadband to parts of the city where connections were a problem as schools went to virtual learning last year.

Two resolutions come up in council committees Tuesday, Aug. 3. One urges TVA to keep coal ash from the old Allen Fossil plant out of the city, another seeks to have the ash taken outside the eight-state region where a system of aquifers provides water for Memphis and other cities.

The Hernando DeSoto Bridge reopened to all traffic — eastbound and westbound — 84 days after is was closed when Arkansas bridge inspectors noticed structural damage to a box beam on the north face of the span.

A week after welcoming the public back to its sessions at City Hall, the Memphis City Council is reinstituting pandemic measures starting with the Tuesday, Aug. 3, committee sessions and the full meeting of the council later in the day.

The first step would be a commission to draft a charter for a combined city of Memphis and Shelby County government covering Memphis and unincorporated Shelby County but not the six suburban towns and cities. 

Decision on masking mandate rests with the county mayor’s office. Aside from a tweet endorsing the CDC guidelines Wednesday, Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris refused comment.

A comprehensive traffic study is planned for incorporated Cordova, but crime was the main topic of discussion Tuesday evening. 

The surprise announcement last week at City Hall of a plan to truck the waste to a landfill near Memphis International Airport drew immediate criticism from City Council members. TVA isn’t pulling the plan but says will seek more public input.

The initial estimate was a late July reopening for the Hernando DeSoto Bridge. TDOT officials also upped the number of replacement plates to be installed aside from the damage that prompted the closing of the interstate bridge from 16 to 17.

Car lots and gas stations are getting more scrutiny from the Memphis City Council. But the idea of a proposed used car lot on Old Austin Peay Highway becoming a bike and kayak rental business instead is a new twist. 

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.

Related stories:

Council approves centerpiece of Downtown parking reconfiguration

Coal ash from old Allen plant would go to airport area