Is Memphis gentrifying like Nashville and Atlanta??

[Montezia]

I think Memphis SHOULD be seperate. If you have a gangrenous limb you have to cut it off in order to live. If Shelby County is doing so well it makes no sense to drag 2 cities down.

[mattec]

Originally Posted by Geneyus

The county residents, outside of Memphis city limits, would have issues with Memphis politicians being voted in and running the entire county. Memphis has more voters than the suburbs. People in the suburbs already complain about the Memphis City Council making decisions for MLGW, which affects the suburbs.

I do agree that it would probably be more efficient, due to fewer duplicate services.



Correct. Even with the great schools, I think a decent percentage of the population would look into moving outside of the county if there was a metro government. I worked closely with a municipal school system during the merger year, and it was a disaster for them. Getting issues fixed took several days in some cases, but with the municipal system, everyone was 5-10 minutes away.

Quite frankly, the Municipal school districts should have never been allowed, as they only furthered school segregation. But they would not be affected by a metro government, as the incorporated suburbs would remain, as is the case in Nashville. Actually, the suburbs would have a greater voice in Memphis under a metro gov and solve the MLGW issue as they'd maintain their town councils and get to vote in and be represented by the metro council. The only thing I think the suburbs would have to give up are their IDBs. I think it would be possible to create an equitable IDB structure beneficial for the new Metro Memphis/Shelby and the suburbs, and a single economic incentive board would stop companies from playing the different municipalities off of each other for sweeter tax breaks.

The target of a metro government would be the the creation of urban services and general services tax districts, which would allow the developed parts of unincorporated Shelby county to be appropriately taxed, while also ending the de-annexation crusade going on in Cordova and Southwind.

[mattec]

Originally Posted by Montezia

I think Memphis SHOULD be seperate. If you have a gangrenous limb you have to cut it off in order to live. If Shelby County is doing so well it makes no sense to drag 2 cities down.

Memphis is the economic engine of Shelby County (and the other surrounding counties). Without it, Collierville, Germantown, etc. wither and die.

[Mississippi Alabama Line]

Originally Posted by mattec

Quite frankly, the Municipal school districts should have never been allowed, as they only furthered school segregation. But they would not be affected by a metro government, as the incorporated suburbs would remain, as is the case in Nashville. Actually, the suburbs would have a greater voice in Memphis under a metro gov and solve the MLGW issue as they'd maintain their town councils and get to vote in and be represented by the metro council. The only thing I think the suburbs would have to give up are their IDBs. I think it would be possible to create an equitable IDB structure beneficial for the new Metro Memphis/Shelby and the suburbs, and a single economic incentive board would stop companies from playing the different municipalities off of each other for sweeter tax breaks.

The target of a metro government would be the the creation of urban services and general services tax districts, which would allow the developed parts of unincorporated Shelby county to be appropriately taxed, while also ending the de-annexation crusade going on in Cordova and Southwind.

You really need the whole area to be on the same page BEFORE going to a metro government. Louisville, KY and Nashville are different than Memphis Metro. Memphis is much more divided, in many different political ways. Incorporating a metro government structure will not solve that, it will just create a situation where money gets shifted around and that will cause even more friction between political groups.

People in Birmingham talk about a metro government too, but that's only so they can siphon money out of richer suburbs into the city. What do the richer areas get in return? I'll never get that answer because there isn't one.

That being said, I do agree with your last post - Memphis is the economic engine and should be treated as such. It cannot be allowed to die.

[TheGameHHH]

The day I see real gentrifying is when

1. Lamar is turned into a new Germantown Pkwy
2. Whole foods/Starbucks/Nordstorm Racks is built in areas such as Orange Mound and South Memphis
3. 95% of blight in those areas are demolished and rebuilt with higher income pricing and national chain restaurants
4. The day when you can walk in those areas at night without too much worry


All of the above will create jobs, not just retail and service jobs, but more Corporations will see fit to move to a progressive city. Until then, adding a mom and pop small restaurant in the Cooper Young area or somewhere in Cordova/Germantown is not really gentrifying. You have to start with the hardest and most blighted areas first to see real progress.

[jjbradleynyc]

Originally Posted by TheGameHHH

The day I see real gentrifying is when

1. Lamar is turned into a new Germantown Pkwy
2. Whole foods/Starbucks/Nordstorm Racks is built in areas such as Orange Mound and South Memphis
3. 95% of blight in those areas are demolished and rebuilt with higher income pricing and national chain restaurants
4. The day when you can walk in those areas at night without too much worry


All of the above will create jobs, not just retail and service jobs, but more Corporations will see fit to move to a progressive city. Until then, adding a mom and pop small restaurant in the Cooper Young area or somewhere in Cordova/Germantown is not really gentrifying. You have to start with the hardest and most blighted areas first to see real progress.

I think Memphis is moving towards this gentrification process--rather than away from it. I think Memphis will be a hot spot for development and urban renewal/gentrification in the next couple of years. The rise of interest from outside developers with big money on projects like Union Row and the Pinch District is a huge positive sign that the Memphis tides are turning towards potential spreading gentrification into its other neighborhoods, outside of midtown, south of downtown and downtown. We will see--but I am betting on Memphis to change for the better.