The Memphis City Council’s public works and transportation committee passed a resolution this morning to establish a hotline where citizens can report blight and problems with rental properties.
The resolution is sponsored by councilman Edmund Ford Jr., who told council members the new hotline would incorporate reserve city code enforcement officers to address the citizens’ reported concerns.
“We can’t be the eyes of the entire city because of how big the city is,” Ford said.
But public works director Dwan Gilliom told the council he was concerned about rolling out a full-blown call center for blight reports when the planned 311 information line could handle those calls. The 311 line is already taking public works and sanitation-related calls, and it will launch for all citizen calls in January.
“It’s difficult enough to keep up with the calls we already have coming in,” Gilliom said.
