Hey, there. Today it’s Wednesday, April 15, and it’s going to be a busy day.
The Shelby County Commission will meet in committees and, as I have mentioned recently, it’s budget season for local governments. More on that in a minute.
We also have a Downtown board meeting virtually to discuss money for a new axe-throwing venue, and the Economic Development Growth Engine for Memphis & Shelby County taking up PILOT applications for a countertop manufacturer on Summer Avenue and the local expansion of DHL Supply Chain.
THE NEED TO KNOW
Like trying to make plans with your flakiest friends: With Gov. Bill Lee talking about reopening Tennessee’s economy in phases beginning in May, the state could be on track for fewer restrictions in just over two weeks. But, the coronavirus model local leaders are using anticipates a Shelby County peak in late May or early June. So, what does that all mean? At a briefing yesterday, Memphis COO Doug McGowen said reentering society would be a progressive process: “It won’t be a light switch and everything gets suddenly turned back on.”
What about schools? Glad you asked. The governor is expected to make an announcement about the state’s schools today and, again, with his plan to reopen Tennessee beginning in May, might students actually return to classes before the end of the school year? The house’s education committee chair is dubious.
Back to budgeting: Though one can quibble over where the trouble really began — coronavirus or before — the end result is the same: Shelby County is looking at an upcoming budget that will need cuts. And, the current goal is simple: avoid layoffs for county workers.
Wake up with The Early Word
Start your day with our morning digest of all the news you need to know.
Bunches of bunches: The company that tracks human mobility (using cellphone data) downgraded Shelby County to a “D-” this week — and that has local experts concerned, as we won’t see the impact of our current behavior until two weeks hence. “Compared to national norms, people in Shelby County have made less than a 40% decrease in their ‘bunching up’ behavior.”
New jobs: Amazon has hired 2,000 new employees in Tennessee in the past month. The company is also planning to add another 1,500 new jobs in the state.
MEET MEMPHIS
Jeff Mayo
Jeff Mayo has been with Arlington Community Schools since its inception, and now he is poised to become the next superintendent of the district when the present school year is over. The current superintendent, Tammy Mason, plans to retire June 30. Mayo previously was the district’s chief of staff and began his career in education as a teacher at Mt. Pisgah Elementary School.
THE NICE TO KNOW
March showers bring May flowers: Scott Briggs is a repeat Yard-of-the-Month winner in his neighborhood, and now he’s using that expertise to make some green. Briggs was a bartender at BarWare in the time of B.C. (before COVID-19) but was laid off a week before the rest of Memphis shut down. As he brainstormed his next move, he had one prerequisite in mind: Whatever the job was, it had to be safe since he doesn’t have insurance. He landed on Laid Off Lawn Care.
Attorneys take a hit: Baker Donelson, a Memphis-based law firm with 21 offices around the country, has instituted a 20% pay cut firmwide as well as a furlough of some employees. The firm’s expectation is that the cuts are temporary.
More air, less bed-and-breakfast: Airbnb may have also run into some headwinds recently. But the company thinks it will recover A.C. (After COVID-19) because more guests will prefer smaller, more private places to hotels. Locally, Airbnb owners should be preparing for one of their most profitable times of the year right now but, instead, units are sitting empty, costing them thousands of dollars.
Remembering Rudi: I would guess that most of us either knew Rudi Scheidt or knew of him by the charitable gifts he made and the institutions his name graces. Rabbi Micah Greenstein eulogized Scheidt, calling him not just “a world-class humanitarian but also a uniquely Memphis humanitarian.” And Susan Adler Thorp recently talked about Scheidt’s love for all types of music and the surprise party he would throw himself each year, with the surprise being which musicians — opera singers? rappers? — would be there when the curtain went up.
WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
U of M president M. David Rudd expects students will be back on campus in the fall, though classes may look a little different. In the meantime, the school has your new Zoom backgrounds ...
Have a great Wednesday!