PILOTs and Taxes
Many Memphians reacted to the Memphis City Council’s recent hikes on taxes and fees with one question: Why are residents getting charged more while we hand out tax cuts to businesses all the time? Daniel Duckworth took this question to Nextdoor.
“Shelby County raised the wheel tax in hopes of bringing in $17 million,” he wrote. “In the meantime, businesses got $41 million in tax breaks in the county. We’re giving large businesses and corporations welfare and guaranteed income.”
Jay Limbaugh said, “The Memphis market is not as attractive as Nashville or Knoxville. We have to bribe companies to come and invest. Simple.”
Some suggested we have to use corporate handouts because our labor pool sucks. Other neighbors wondered if the city could save money with a consolidated government, like Nashville. One just wanted her yard waste picked up on time.
Nice
Amid the death and destruction you’ll find if you ever search YouTube for “Memphis,” you also occasionally find just some really nice love letters to the city from outsiders. Travel vloggers Adam and Madalyn visited recently; ate barbecue at Cozy Corner, Central BBQ, and The Bar-B-Q Shop; and wandered around Bass Pro and Beale Street. If you need a refresh on the city, check it out.