The bill in the Tennessee General Assembly seeks to allow the open carrying of handguns in the state.

MLGW President and CEO J.T. Young on “Behind The Headlines” says the new contract with a consultant involves Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland as a mediator between the utility board and the council. 

The four-hour online joint meeting of the two legislative bodies Thursday, March 25, was mostly questions and answers. The group agreed to start talking about proposals to change incentives at the second April 15 session with plans for a third joint meeting.

Waste Pro, the company at the center of sanitation complaints in Cordova, is looking to end its contract with the City of Memphis. Meanwhile, Mayor Jim Strickland said there’s been no formal notice to the city and the city moved to end the contract with a 20-day notice last week to either fix the problems or consider the contract ended.

New numbers reported March 25th gave the day a positivity rate of 3.6%.

Terminating the city’s contract with Waste Pro USA to pick up garbage in Cordova, Hickory Hill and parts of East Memphis would be a pretty straightforward process based on the last trash contract the city terminated.

Waste Pro is the second private contractor in three years to have the solid waste contract for parts of Cordova, Hickory and East Memphis, known on solid waste routes as Area E.

Mayor Jim Strickland is taking responsibility for garbage pickup problems and says he is working to address the shortcomings. 

Jesuit priest who lived with Poor Clares remembered for his service to poor, allegiance to Jesus

Here are the key figures and organizations involved in the Byhalia Connection Pipeline project and its opposition. 

Related story:

Rocky legal terrain lies between Byhalia pipeline positions and reality

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 Council Scorecard looks at the surprise that led to the defeat of an ordinance banning retail dog and cat sales in the city and the parliamentary maneuver that means there won’t be any move to reconsider the vote.

Greater access through more public sites and pop-up events combined with higher vaccine allotments from the state and declining wait times are three reasons attributed to the changes in recent weeks.

A judge has decided she wants to hear from attorneys representing a community group that opposes a controversial oil pipeline project proposed for South Memphis.

The Shelby County Health Department reported fewer than 50 new coronavirus cases Friday, but reported five new related deaths.

Memphis Light, Gas and Water’s Gift of Comfort program helped 86 families with their bills in March.

Panelists made up of community leaders, law enforcement and city leaders spent Thursday interviewing seven finalists for the police director’s job. 

On “Behind the Headlines,” Shelby County Commissioner Tami Sawyer and Memphis City Council member Martavius Jones discussed their hopes for joint sessions on economic development reform. The two meetings come with a lot of advance planning.

But members stop short of reviving the consultant’s contract for the next step in the review process and sending it back to the City Council. The council’s rejection of the contract last year stalled the process.

In addition to the Wells monument, the council approved two new sewer fees and a TIF agreement for Downtown.

Questions about opinions and litigation Tuesday in council committee turned into a rallying cry for some to join a legal fight in the name of the city’s underground water source.

The final vote Tuesday shifted dramatically after the owner of a Petland store in Wolfchase that prompted the ban ordinance complained he had been harassed by city inspectors who cited him for three violations last Friday.

Long-term plans for the cemetery would make it a tourist stop highlighting the accomplishments of the African Americans who are buried there.

The council delayed a decision on the compromise Tuesday, March 16, to see if the MLGW board should or would act first. Getting the process back on track involves questions about the city charter and the separation between city goverment and the city-owned utility.

The council could take the first of three votes Tuesday, March 16, on a ban of retail sales of dogs and cats as a national pet store chain has moved into Wolfchase. The council could also try to regulate where pipelines are located as a first step toward stopping the Byhalia pipeline project.