The Early Word: Shelby Farms road talk is back; Tigers fans are besties
Good morning, Memphis! It’s Wednesday, Feb. 5, and there’s plenty of basketball to get you over the hump today.
The No. 17-in-the-country Memphis Tigers men’s team will play Tulsa at FedExForum, and the women’s team has an away match-up with Temple. Plus, the Memphis Grizzlies are up in Canada tonight for a game against the Toronto Raptors.
The Memphis City Council took no position Tuesday on a renewed push for a four-lane Shelby Farms Parkway through a part of Shelby Farms Park. The project was scrapped in 2023 after decades of delays, but the Greater Memphis Chamber is trying to bring it back, citing traffic congestion on Walnut Grove Road. Memphis Mayor Paul Young’s administration said Tuesday that it wasn’t opposed to the project but that its priorities are “on developing the core of the city.” Council member Dr. Jeff Warren said it sounded like the Chamber just wants to see more development on the park’s north end.
Thelma Scott, a 94-year-old retired teacher, has attended more than 1,100 Memphis Tigers games over the years. Her love for the team started way back in 1948, when she enrolled at then-Memphis State College. Scott has had season tickets for decades, but after her husband and many of her friends died, she wound up sitting alone at games. That’s where Carolyn Armmer, a 71-year-old retired postal worker, comes in. Armmer was working as an usher at FedExForum when she noticed Scott sitting alone. The two got to talking, and well, it was the start of a beautiful friendship that Geoff Calkins tells us about today.
Plus, DeSoto officials deny racism claims, FedExForum reno will take a hot minute and an NYC seafood joint is coming to Beale Street.
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Bianca Phillips
Bianca Phillips is a Northeast Arkansas native and longtime Memphian who’s worked in local journalism and PR for more than 20 years. In her days as a reporter, she covered everything from local government and crime to LGBTQ issues and the arts. She’s the author of “Cookin Crunk: Eatin’ Vegan in the Dirty South,” a cookbook of vegan Southern recipes.
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