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Commercial Appeal Editor Louis Graham Resigns

The Commercial Appeal

CA Editor Louis Graham

The Commercial Appeal announced today that editor Louis Graham has resigned from the paper, and will be taking a position with ALSAC, the fundraising arm for St.Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Named editor in 2013, Graham worked his way up through from reporter to his current position over a 38 year career with the CA that started at the paper’s now defunct bureau in Jackson, Tennessee.

Graham will serve as executive director of enterprise content at ALSAC.

The CA’s Opinion and Engagement editor, Mark Russell, will serve as interim director until Graham’s replacement is found. Graham’s last day at the paper will be May 12.

Graham’s departure is the latest in a series of changes and layoffs since the paper was purchased last year by Gannett Co., Inc.

In January, the paper laid off all freelance writers. A little over a month ago, 14 staffers and reporters were laid off from the CA and 12 are reportedly still waiting to receive severance pay from Gannett.

Layoffs also occurred the same day at the the Knoxville News Sentinel and The Tennessean, both Gannett owned. The CA endured the most layoffs.

Last week, Memphis Newspaper Guild representative Daniel Connolly posted a scathing breakdown of the severance pay stall on social media that outlined the details of a bitter feud between the former employees and Gannett.

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MAS Adds New Services to Reduce Surrendered and Lost Pet Intake

Memphis Animal Services is adding extra services that aim to reduce two major contributors to the number of animals in the shelter — pets surrendered by owners and lost pets.

The MAS Safety Net Program includes initiatives that will alter the intake process for both.

For owners that are surrendering their pets, they may only do so by scheduling an appointment on either Wednesday or Friday. However, before the appointment, owners must go through counseling session via phone with an MAS employee who will educate the owner on potential alternatives to surrendering their pet.

If the owner wants to keep their pet, but is facing a hardship that prevents them from being able to provide for them, then MAS will help them acquire assistance with food and spay/neuter services.

“We see so often people who love their pets and want to be able to keep them, but they lack access to some resource allowing that to be possible,” said Alexis Pugh, MAS administrator. “The goal of this program is to, firstly, keep pets in those kinds of loving homes, and secondly, reduce intake and leave more room for pets coming from homes where they truly aren’t cared for.”

The second component of the Safety Net program involves utilizing the neighborhood-based social network platform Nextdoor to match lost and found pet postings in the same geographical area.

Starting May 8, a team of volunteers will review the previous day’s list of pets who were found stray and post each pet in the NextDoor neighborhood in which it was found, along with instructions for potential owners on how to reclaim that pet from MAS.

Additionally, MAS field officers will now be equipped with electronic tablets so entering pets’ photos and information into the MAS database can be done in the field, which will enable owners searching for lost pets to access a routinely updated database on the shelter’s website.

“Memphis Animal Services has consistently improved our save rate, or percentage of animals who leave the shelter with positive outcomes, over the last several years, jumping from 65 percent in 2015 to 74 percent in 2016, and up to 83 percent year-to-date in 2017,” said Pugh. “Our goal with these MAS Safety Net initiatives is to continue that upward trend to save as many lives as possible.”

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Memphis Gaydar News

Update on Bills Considered a Threat to LGBTQ Tennesseans

Tennessee’s 2017 legislative session spawned six bills identified as discriminatory towards LGBTQ citizens by advocacy organizations like the Tennessee Equality Project, OUTMemphis, and American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee.

Dubbed the “Slate of Hate” by TEP, the six bills featured resurrected attempts to undermine marriage equality as defined by the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v Hodges in new and inventive ways.
The session also hosted this year’s attempt to enforce which public restroom transgender adults and underage students can and cannot use.

With the 2017 session drawing to a close as early as next week, here’s a full breakdown of the status of each bill in the Slate of Hate.

SB30/HB33 discussed under SB1085/HB1111: Sponsored by Sen. John Stevens and Rep. Andrew Ellis Farmer
As introduced, requires that undefined words be given their natural and ordinary meaning, without forced or subtle construction that would limit or extend the meaning of the language, except when a contrary intention is clearly manifest.

Status: Passed by both Senate and House, the next stop is Governor Bill Haslam’s desk, where he will either sign it into law or veto it. Haslam has gone on record to say that he is deferring to the will of the legislators.

TEP is currently circulating a petition calling on Haslam to veto the bill, which they say has the potential to jeopardize same-sex couples’ marital or divorce statuses, and child custody matters. The full implications of the bill are largely unknown.

SB771/HB8888: Sponsored by Se. Mae Beavers and Rep. Mark Pody
As introduced, requires students in public school and public institutions of higher education to use restrooms and locker rooms that are assigned to persons of the same sex as that indicated on the student’s birth certificate.

Status: Failed in Senate Education Committee, unlikely to return this year.

SB127/HB54: Sponsored by Sen. Mark Green and Rep. Jason Zachary
As introduced, prohibits state and local governments from taking discriminatory action against a business based on that business’ internal policies. Basically, if a business discriminates towards an LGBTQ individual, then they are protected in the state of Tennessee.

Status: Deferred to State Committee subcommittee for the first of 2018. Though it’s not an absolute guarantee, legislators will often defer a bill to next year’s subcommittee when they want it to die quietly.

SB752/HB892: Sponsored by Sen. Mae Beavers and Rep. Mark Pody
As introduced, enacts the “Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act”, which states the policy of Tennessee to defend natural marriage between one man and one woman regardless of any court decision to the contrary.

Status: Deferred to a Civil Justice Subcommittee for the first of 2018. (See above)

SB1153/HB1406: Sponsored by Sen. Joey Hensley and Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver
As introduced, repeals statute that deems a child born to a married woman as a result of artificial insemination, with consent of the married woman’s husband, to be the legitimate child of the husband and wife.

Status: This bill has been parked for a while in a Senate Judiciary Committee, and likely won’t be heard again this session.

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State Outsourcing Contract Signed Early, Seen As ‘Betrayal of Public Trust’

Micaela Watts

On April 19, campus workers and union representatives waited outside of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center to confront Terry Cowles, who was meeting with university officials to discuss details of the proposed outsourcing.

State officials have already signed a controversial contract to outsource work in state-owned facilities, a move some watching the issue called a “betrayal of public trust” as the signing came days before it was even supposed to be presented.

According to a public document released by the state’s Central Procurement Office, the state of Tennessee signaled that the contract for outsourcing custodial and maintenance services in state-owned facilities would be presented to commercial real estate giant Jones Lang La Salle (JLL) on April 24.

David Roberson, a Department of General Services spokesperson, confirmed with the Memphis Flyer that the contract was signed on Friday, April 21, three days ahead of the date the contract was to be presented unsigned to JLL. Roberson said the jump ahead of schedule was nothing unusual.

“I’m not sure that’s a tremendous difference, between late Friday afternoon and 9:00 a.m. on a Monday morning, are you telling me that’s a bad thing?” asked Roberson.

The union representing public university workers, United Campus Workers (UCW), contend that yes, it is a bad thing.

“This move is consistent with their pattern of doing things in secret,” said UCW spokesperson Thomas Walker, who added that the hastened timeline doesn’t necessarily put UCW in a different position, but it further signals “a betrayal of public trust, accountability, and democracy”.

Though Governor Bill Haslam has repeatedly said that outsourcing state facilities will save the state upwards of $35 million a year, the outsourcing plans have been met with increasing bipartisan criticism, and multiple protests by students at potentially affected universities.

Just days before the contract was signed, 42 Tennessee legislators signed a letter addressed to Terry Cowles, Director of the Office of Customer Focused Government (OCFG), the office that oversaw the outsourcing plan, urging Cowles to halt the process until economic impact statements have been reviewed by legislators in both rural and urban districts.

For urban areas such as Memphis and Knoxville, the impact of outsourcing will be felt most heavily by campus workers, and state-run detention centers. In rural areas, state park employees will likely be the most affected category of public workers.

The shared concern by both factions is a reduction in wages and benefits, but OCFG spokesperson Michelle Martin is adamant that it won’t be the case.

“Contractors weren’t even allowed to bid unless they could match wages and benefits of the state’s employees,” said Martin.

Martin emphasized that in the case of public universities, the institutions would still have complete discretion on whether or not they would opt to contract with JLL.

“It’s really about whatever makes the most sense for these institutions,” said Martin.

While this has been a stressed point throughout the privatization process, UCW is quick to draw attention to lines in the state’s own request for proposals, which they feel are largely unanswered at this point.

[pdf-1]
In the past, the repeated figure for savings through outsourcing has been $35 million a year. But without economic impact statements requested by both Democratic and Republican lawmakers, that figure is uncertain, though Martin explained that the $35 million is an estimate figure, and is drawn from a scenario in which all state facilities participate fully in outsourcing their non-specialized workers.

Like the $35 million, the state’s own timeline for contracting with JLL is also an estimate, at least according to Roberson.

“These dates aren’t promises, and they weren’t absolute guarantees,” Roberson said. “They’re estimates.”

This story will be updated with additional statements and information.

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Under Proposed Law, Women Will Have to Hear Their Fetus is Unviable- Twice

Micaela Watts

The proposed “Tennessee Infants Protection Act” (TIPA) cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee with a 7-2 vote, and is expected to head to the Senate floor as early as next week.

If passed, the measure won’t prohibit abortion before 20 weeks, but it will introduce a swath of legal entanglements for women who need an abortion after 20 weeks, and for the physicians who provide them.

Among the numerous restrictions introduced in the measure, one stands out as particularly troublesome to Francine Hunt, the executive director of Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood.

If passed, women seeking an abortion after 20 weeks — whether it’s because their fetus is not viable or carrying the fetus to term poses a threat to their lives — must have two physicians certify that the abortion is medically necessary under state law.

“To put this in context, for a woman who is pregnant at 20 weeks, by that point I would say most, if not all women want to carry their pregnancy to term,” said Hunt.

PP’s own data says that 99 percent of abortions are performed before 21 weeks.

Hunt adds, “It’s usually after that point that they’ve gotten bad news from their doctor. They’re usually in a state of grief, and they have a tough decision to make — whether that’s to risk carrying the child to term, risk delivering a still born, or making the decision to terminate the pregnancy because they think it will spare their infant from a life of pain, or save the mothers.”

If TIPA becomes law, expecting mothers who are faced with such a decision will have to hear that their fetus is unviable — twice, from two separate doctors who must not even be in the same practice.

“This bill doesn’t really even do anything, besides create more hardships for the patient who’s already at a delicate stage, and their doctor,” said Hunt. “There’s a cruel overtone to this bill”

Attempts to criminalize, ban, or partially ban abortions are almost a yearly feature in Tennessee’s legislature, and are routinely fought by Planned Parenthood and other reproductive rights advocates. This year, the TIPA measure has actually drawn criticism from Tennessee’s own attorney general, Herbert Slattery III, who called the measure “constitutionally infirm” and “suspect” in an opinion released early April.

Just last week, the state was forced to retract two abortion restrictions — one that requires physicians performing the abortions to have hospital admitting privileges, and one that requires a clinic that performs 50 or more abortions a year to meet the same standards as ambulatory surgery centers — after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down similar restrictions in Texas.

“Those restrictions were struck down because they were unconstitutional,” said Planned Parenthood Greater Memphis Region’s CEO, Ashley Coffield. “Yet, some legislators want to proceed with another unconstitutional measure.”

Coffield calls TIPA, “reckless”, but adds that the bill has “galvanized people across Tennessee to speak up about reproductive rights.”

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Update: Nary a Silo Will Tarnish Famous Vista

Courtesy of Lauren Crews

This rendering was commissioned by Lauren Crews, owner of the Marine Hospital. Crews said he felt that the rendering provided by ACBL did not provide a complete representation of the silo’s visibility.

The American Commercial Barge Line company has withdrawn their application to erect two 145-foot tall storage silos on the bluff of the Mississippi River in close proximity to the National Ornamental Metal Museum and directly across from the Chickasaw Heritage Park.

The announcement was made via Facebook, on a page run by the Metal Museum that called attention to the company’s plans.

Multiple residents and businesses in the French Fort area expressed concern that the construction of the silos would disrupt the view of the Mississippi from atop the ceremonial mounds that harken back to the indigenous Chickasaw nation.

The area has been documented as one of the most historic spots along the Mississippi River. Following the period of forced removal of Native Americans in the 1830’s by the U.S. Government, the French Fort area was occupied by the Union Army, then a heavy influx of French and Irish immigrants at the turn of the 20th century.

In his book, Life on the Mississippi, famed author Mark Twain called the area, “the most beautiful vista on the Mississippi”. The Memphis Flyer will update this story once we have confirmed Twain has stopped spinning in his grave.

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News The Fly-By

Vulnerable Vista

French Fort area residents and institutions are raising concern over two proposed silos that they say will pierce the skyline and interrupt one of the most well-known vistas of the Mississippi River, specifically the view from the ceremonial mounds at Chickasaw Heritage Park.

The American Commercial Barge Line (ACBL) applied to the Shelby County Board of Adjustment to erect two silos along the Mississippi River bluffs that would top out at 145 feet in height. The allowed height for such a structure is 100 feet in an area zoned heavy industrial, provided the structure is more than 100 feet from a residential area.

Lauren Crews owns the historic Marine Hospital in the French Fort area. Crews said while he respects the right of any company to invest in their properties, he’s urging the public to consider the integrity of the park and the surrounding area.

“I’ve canoed the Mississippi River starting from Lake Itasca in Minnesota, all the way down to New Orleans,” Crews said. “I can tell you, through all my years of studying this river, that this spot is hands down one of the most historic spots on the Mississippi.”

Crews can rattle off the history of the French Fort area with ease, beginning with the inhabitants of the Chickasaw nation, through the Fort Pickering era, the Union Army occupation, and the influx of Irish and French immigrants at the turn of the 20th century.

“I think this area has become so isolated from an accessibility standpoint, that people are forgetting not only the history here, but the assets we currently have,” said Crews, who added that interstate infrastructure has isolated the area to an extent.

Crews felt that the renderings submitted by ACBL to the Board of Adjustment lacked representation from all angles of view. So, he commissioned his own renderings.

In those renderings, which are true to specifications outlined in ACBL’s application, the silos surpass the bluff line and the ceremonial mound line.

In spite of the French Fort area having less than ideal access from I-55, the area is still fully appreciated by many. Crews knows that, and so does the executive director of the National Ornamental Metal Museum, Carissa Hussong.

Hussong said that the view and ambience of the Metal Museum will be somewhat compromised should the silos go up, but it’s the Chickasaw Park she is most concerned about.

“I’ve seen buses of tourists stop by just to take in the view,” she said. “People come here every day to eat lunch in the park or watch the sunset. Having those silos built would completely change the feel of the area.”

ACBL’s proposal will go before the Board of Adjustment on April 26th. Some technicalities have yet to be sorted out, such as the exact distance of one proposed silo from Metal Museum Drive, which signals the beginning of a residential area, thus capping the allowed height at 60 feet.

Until then, French Fort residents and business owners said they will continue to raise awareness of the issue.

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Historic William C. Ellis & Sons Building in Demolition Crosshairs

Courtesy of the Save the William C. Ellis & Sons Ironworks and Machine Shop Facebook page.

As part of a $3.5 million property purchase, 275 S. Front was the first parcel to be demolished by the Carlile Corp. Now, a group of citizens with preservation concerns are rallying to save the 19th century William C. Ellis & Sons Iron Works Inc building, the next parcel slated for demolition to make way for One Beale high rise.

During a public meeting with officials from the historic preservationist group Memphis Heritage, a central theme emerged. According to Memphis Heritage, Carlile has no submitted formal redevelopment plans to the city of Memphis. The absence of such plans has produced multiple question from skeptical Memphians and history buffs

“I find it hard to believe that you are going to pay $3.5 million for a building you have no plans for,” said June West, executive director of Memphis Heritage, who added that she’s surprised the city would issue demolition permits without a full understanding of what would go up in place of the demolished property.

Though Carlile was invited to attend the public meeting, they declined to do so. In their absence, various ideas were tossed around the crowd of thirty gathered.

Could the city council be lobbied to pass a resolution that bans demolition of buildings in historic districts within 12 months of a redevelopment plan being presented?

Would South Front have to be widened for traffic flow? If so, can those permits be issued without redevelopment details?

For now, demolition is still scheduled through Biggs General Contracting Co., but those in favor of preserving at least some of the building, if not all, will be moving to investigate every possible angle in hopes of temporarily halting the demolition.

“I find it hard to believe that you’re going to pay $3.5 million dollars for a building that you have no plan for,” said West, who added, “I’m not saying that every building needs to be saved, but good planning is good planning.”

This story will be updated with additional details.

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Murder Rates Are Still Down, Property Crime Rates Are Still Up in Memphis

The latest figures released by the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission show the murder rate in Memphis is down by 26 percent from this time last year, from 7.6 per 100,000 persons this time last year to 5.6  as of March 31.

Contrariwise, property crimes for the city have jumped by 14.6 percent from this time last year. The bulk of this increase is due to motor vehicle thefts; 52.3 motor vehicle thefts per 100,000 persons living in Memphis. This time last year, the number was 43.8 thefts per 100,000.

Major violent crimes as a total category include murder, rape, aggravated assault, and robbery. Despite the decrease in murders, the total rate is stagnate for now compared to last year — only a .2 percent increase.

President of the crime commission, Bill Gibbons, says he is concerned about the continued rise of motor vehicle thefts but adds that he encouraged by the increase of arrests for motor vehicle thefts, up 68 percent from this time last year.

“Hopefully, this will send a clear message to perpetrators and serve as a deterrent going forward,” said Gibbons.

The crime commission began tracking major offenses in 2006, a notably high-crime year for Memphis, using preliminary data gathered from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Though the last 11 years contain plenty of nuances and fluctuations in multiple crime categories, the overall number of “Group A crimes” — 54 categories including both violent and property offenses — has decreased by 17.2 percent in Memphis.

All stats reported above reflect data specific to the City of Memphis. The updated crime states from January 1 – March 31, 2016, compared to January 1 – March 31, 2017, for the whole of Shelby County are as follows:

Overall Crime Rate/ Group A Offenses — 4.9 percent increase
Major Violent Crimes — 0.3 percent increase
Major Property Crime — 12.9 percent increase
Murder — 26 percent decrease 

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Pinch District Plan Clears LUCB Hurdle, Heads to City Council Next

Courtesy of the City of Memphis

Rendering of the proposed street view to Pyramid on Overton Avenue.

The Pinch District Concept Study will move forward to the Memphis City Council meeting for final approval after its unanimous passage by the Land Use Control Board (LUCB), with an added resolution that affirms the master plan will serve as a framework for future development, rather than a strict set of building regulations.

The plan proposed includes mixed use development for a nine block area in North Memphis, anchored by Bass Pro Shops at the Pyramid, St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital and the Cook Convention Center, with an emphasis on connectivity and walkability between the institutions.

“What you’re seeing is a representation from a lot of community input from the area,” said the director of Community and Housing Development, Paul Young, adding that they to produce something that the community can be proud of.

At the onset of Mayor Jim Strickland’s administration, coming up with the Pinch plan was one of Young’s first charges.

Should the council approve the plan, a moratorium in place since July of 2015 on new building permits and additional construction to existing structures in the area would subsequently be lifted, and developers with current property in the largely inactive area could move forward with projects.

Pushing for the LUCB’s approval for the plan, developer Greg Ericson explained that he has been unable to sell his or develop his Pinch property for years, all while property taxes have continued their increase in the underdeveloped area.

“I’ve been trying to sell my property for the past five years,” said Ericson, who added that his investments in his property have totaled more than $1.2 million. With the moratorium in place in an already desolate area and increasing property taxes, Ericson is ready to see a plan finally accepted.

“I want this plan to go through so the mortorium will be lifted. Let me sell my building to someone

for the bigger and better use of Memphis,” said Ericson.