The County Commission is considering switching the Shelby County Land Bank into a Shelby County Real Estate Department and giving the new office additional responsibilities. 

Shelby County Commissioner Edmund Ford Jr. said Monday, Jan. 29, that he plans to ask local election officials how to recall another county commissioner.

Children selected for the center will be awaiting juvenile court decisions or adjudications of their cases; the minors will come in groups of 16, with six cohorts a year at the facility. The County Commission also approved a Citizen Law Enforcement Review Committee. 

Topping the commission agenda Monday, Jan. 29, are final votes on a review board to hear complaints of misconduct by Sheriff’s deputies and deputy jailers as well as changing the county Land Bank to a “real estate department.”

Shelby County commissioners and about 40 other people including county finance and other division leaders met at Shelby Farms ahead of Mayor Lee Harris’ budget proposal.

Commissioner Mick Wright has a number of directives in mind for the coming year, including reducing crime and getting Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert’s office in line.

Judy Martin retired from the health department in 2020 after more than 1,500 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine expired; her lawsuit alleged Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris damaged her reputation with a social media post. 

MLGW’s water samples have come back clear. 

The Shelby County Health Department is charged with protecting and promoting environmental health, but advocates say the agency is not doing enough to keep the area’s air and water safe. 

For the first time in about a week, temperatures are expected to rise above freezing Jan. 21 and officials say that will likely reveal more water main breaks and help them gauge the full extent of damage.

Recent winter weather coupled with MLGW’s indefinite boil-water advisory is making life a little bit more challenging for restaurants as they have to figure out what to do about food, drinks and even the restrooms. 

MLGW’s water customers remain under a precautionary boil-water advisory.

Some of the 120 prosecutors working in the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office make as much as $70,000 more than their colleagues who work next to them.

“We will be working on this for the next few days,” MLGW President and CEO Doug McGowen said.

MLGW has recently added an online tool for customers to check and see if their neighborhood is at risk of contamination and under the boil-water advisory. Read this article for the link.

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Division 7 Judge Bill Anderson said there was about a foot of water at the front of his courtroom.

Dorcas Young Griffin will remain in an interim role as director of the county’s community services division in the move up to deputy chief administrative officer.

“I ask you to check on your family, friends, neighbors, and, of course, any pets. If you know someone that needs assistance, get them assistance,” said Greg Waymon of the city’s Office of Emergency Management. 

From clearing roads to holding court, snow days come with some serious considerations and lots of detail for local government services.

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation officials are investigating the death of an inmate at 201 Poplar.

Mid-morning Tuesday, TVA’s demand hit 31,000 megawatts, inching closer to the 2022 record that warranted the need for mandatory rolling blackouts. But as of Tuesday night, MLGW CEO Doug McGowen said no blackouts are planned.

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Schools, colleges remain closed Wednesday

The heaviest snowfall landed just east of Germantown.

The former county commissioner, city council member and Criminal Court clerk who died in 2013 was remembered Thursday, Jan. 11, as the marker bearing her name was unveiled outside the 99-year-old building.

Residents were able to get a county moratorium this past fall on projects such as the Millington-area solar farm that is expected to generate energy for a Facebook data center. 

The county’s health department is urging residents to be prepared to test themselves, isolate if necessary, seek treatment when needed and to consider wearing a high-quality mask in high-risk settings.