Earlier this year, the Rev. Jesse Jackson vowed to lead a march in Memphis if the city didn’t sufficiently close the gap in how it awards contracts to African American vendors and businesses.
Well, the city has closed the gap...
by Lee R. Watkins
Special to The New Tri-State Defender
“I Ain’t Got To Love Nobody Else” put The Masqueraders on the map in 1968 but the soul and gospel music group struggled to find consistency after producing that hit record.
Fast...
by Montee Lopez
Special to The New Tri-State Defender
Under the banner of #TakeEmDown901, 30-plus local activists walked inside Memphis City Hall on Wednesday to deliver a message to Mayor Jim Strickland – take the statues of Nathan Bedford Forrest and...
It’s not uncommon in Memphis for parents to wait until the first day of school to register their students.
That scenario played out again on Monday as some 6,000 students were signed up for Shelby County Schools, bringing total enrollment...
Emerging from the shadows since federal agents raided several Latino neighborhoods in Memphis, immigrant families were greeted Monday by cheering neighbors and educators as they brought their children back to school amid assurances of protection.
Holding signs such as “Bienvenido”...
Say your home air conditioner dies, and it’s August in Memphis. You don’t have enough in your checking account to cover the cost of a new one, but you have just enough in savings. The problem: After you’ve cleaned...
A Memphis-based rapper who was headlining the Little Rock, Ark., show where 28 people were injured, was arrested in connection with the melee on Sunday in Alabama.
Al.com reports that 25-year-old Ricky Hampton, better known as Finese 2Tymes, was arrested...
Last school year, the small Lakeland district outside Memphis received about $64,000 in Title I funds to help educate poor students. Next year, it’s expecting nearly $427,000.
The Collierville district, 20 miles away, got about $635,000 last year. Next year?...
By Montee Lopez, Special to The New Tri-State Defender
With the unanimous consent of those voting, the Memphis City Council has ended the life of the Beale Street Tourism Development Authority (BSTDA). Council members – with District 5’s representative, Edmund For Jr., recusing himself – embraced a resolution on Tuesday that was first introduced at a council committee meeting in March. Ford is a non-voting member of the BSTDA. Created in 2015 under the tenure of former Mayor AC Wharton Jr., the 13-member BSTDA was authorized to design and maintain the attractiveness of the Beale Street Entertainment District while also seeking proper management. The Downtown Memphis Commission now controls the entertainment district on an interim basis. The responsibility of selecting new management of the district is now in the hands of the City of Memphis. Tuesday’s resolution, sponsored by Councilman Martavius Jones and Councilwoman Patrice Robinson, reflected the Council’s conclusion that BSTDA had failed. “They didn’t do what they set out to do,” Jones said, pointing out that BSTDA had two years to find management for the street. He linked the absence of a manager to the possibility that BSTDA had unrealistic goals. “I think they went in with the expectation a national group would come in and pitch a proposal to manage the street,” Jones said. The Beale Street Entertainment District isn’t big enough to attract a national managing company, said Jones, who associated the matter with what he sees as the council erroneously doling out powers and responsibilities they should retain. “In the time I’ve been on the council, what I’ve found … is the council (has) delegated its authority to committees not accountable to taxpayers,” Jones said. “That reduces transparency.” The elimination of the BSTDA is a step towards the restoration of transparency, he said. Meanwhile, several pending lawsuits loom that could affect the future of the entertainment district and the connectivity of the Beale Street Merchants Association, The Beale Street Historic Development Corporation, the Downtown Memphis Commission, and other entities. The timetable for selecting a permanent manager for the district is uncertain, but Ken Taylor with the Beale Street Merchants Association said the longer Beale Street district goes without management, the more money it loses. “The longer we hold on finding a manager for the street, the more potential investments we lose,” Taylor said, noting the potential of less income being generated from Africa in April and the Beale Street Music Festival – two big moneymakers with upcoming festival activities. Both Taylor and Jones want the same thing - positive and constantly improvement of Memphis’s most memorable tourist attraction. “I want a management group who can continue to uphold the image and historic values of Beale Street.” The New Tri-State Defender reached out to Mayor Jim Strickland concerning comments on finding management for the street. We are still awaiting a response.
With the unanimous consent of those voting, the Memphis City Council has ended the life of the Beale Street Tourism Development Authority (BSTDA). Council members – with District 5’s representative, Edmund For Jr., recusing himself – embraced a resolution on Tuesday that was first introduced at a council committee meeting in March. Ford is a non-voting member of the BSTDA. Created in 2015 under the tenure of former Mayor AC Wharton Jr., the 13-member BSTDA was authorized to design and maintain the attractiveness of the Beale Street Entertainment District while also seeking proper management. The Downtown Memphis Commission now controls the entertainment district on an interim basis. The responsibility of selecting new management of the district is now in the hands of the City of Memphis. Tuesday’s resolution, sponsored by Councilman Martavius Jones and Councilwoman Patrice Robinson, reflected the Council’s conclusion that BSTDA had failed. “They didn’t do what they set out to do,” Jones said, pointing out that BSTDA had two years to find management for the street. He linked the absence of a manager to the possibility that BSTDA had unrealistic goals. “I think they went in with the expectation a national group would come in and pitch a proposal to manage the street,” Jones said. The Beale Street Entertainment District isn’t big enough to attract a national managing company, said Jones, who associated the matter with what he sees as the council erroneously doling out powers and responsibilities they should retain. “In the time I’ve been on the council, what I’ve found … is the council (has) delegated its authority to committees not accountable to taxpayers,” Jones said. “That reduces transparency.” The elimination of the BSTDA is a step towards the restoration of transparency, he said. Meanwhile, several pending lawsuits loom that could affect the future of the entertainment district and the connectivity of the Beale Street Merchants Association, The Beale Street Historic Development Corporation, the Downtown Memphis Commission, and other entities. The timetable for selecting a permanent manager for the district is uncertain, but Ken Taylor with the Beale Street Merchants Association said the longer Beale Street district goes without management, the more money it loses. “The longer we hold on finding a manager for the street, the more potential investments we lose,” Taylor said, noting the potential of less income being generated from Africa in April and the Beale Street Music Festival – two big moneymakers with upcoming festival activities. Both Taylor and Jones want the same thing - positive and constantly improvement of Memphis’s most memorable tourist attraction. “I want a management group who can continue to uphold the image and historic values of Beale Street.” The New Tri-State Defender reached out to Mayor Jim Strickland concerning comments on finding management for the street. We are still awaiting a response.
By Montee Lopez, Special to TSDMemphis.com
The Memphis City Council Tourism Committee unanimously voted Tuesday to get rid of the Beale Street Tourism Authority, whose job is to design and maintain the attractiveness of the Beale Street Entertainment District while also seeking proper management. The Beale Street Tourism Authority (BSTA) hasn’t been around for very long. The 13-member board was created in 2015 during former Mayor A C Wharton Jr.’s tenure. Councilman Martavius Jones (Super District 8, Position 3) introduced the resolution that would do away with the BSTA. The purposes for which the authority was created have been “substantially accomplished,” Jones said. With the Tourism Committee vote, It would next take a majority vote of the full council to dissolve the BSTA. The council meets next on April 11. If there is a favorable vote, the City of Memphis would then need to file dissolution papers with the Tennessee Secretary of State. Shards of conflict have been flying, with ongoing delays and assertions of prejudice and racism associated with the process of finding permanent management for the entertainment district. The Downtown Memphis Commission is serving as interim manager. The most recent public debate about who should run the street has involved the Beale Street Tourism Authority, the Beale Street Merchants Association and an African-American-owned firm called 21 Beale St., which was the last entity remaining after the BSTA sifted through management proposals. The BSTA subsequently took the position that it didn’t have confidence in any of the would-be managers, including the 21 Beale St. group. The BSTA’s lack-of-confidence position mirrored the stance of the Beale Street Merchants Association. Ken Taylor, executive director of the Beale Street Merchants Association, chose not to comment about the association’s squabble with 21 Beale Street when The New Tri-State Defender asked him about it this week. Taylor did say he was happy about the Council Tourism Committee’s vote to do away with the authority. “We’re looking for a swift resolution to find management for Beale Street very quickly,” Taylor said. “It affects our ability to get sponsorships, tenants, etc.” Taylor said he had major faith in Terence Patterson, director of the Downtown Memphis Commission. “Whether it’s the Beale Street Tourism Development Authority or the administration (of Mayor Jim Strickland), our number one focus is making sure we’re good stewards of Beale Street,” Patterson said. “So we are committed to doing that.” The Tourism Committee meeting also drew Lucille Catron, owner of the Historic Daisy Theatre and executive director of the Beale Street Development Corporation. She called the dissolution of BSTA “needed and necessary.” “We have too many entities that are on Beale that are not related to Beale Street,” said Catron, who added that she hoped the council would look into entities that she is convinced have too much of a hand in the decision-making process concerning the Beale Street district. Several lawsuits involving the entertainment district are pending. They include the dis-pute over management of the district Beale Street and a challenge of the controversial Beale Street Bucks program, which amassed money by charging a $10 entry fee into the district. Beale Street Bucks was proposed as a security measure. “If there was equity on Beale Street, there would be no need for the lawsuits,” Bernal E. Smith II, publisher and CEO of The New Tri-State Defender, said after the Tourism Committee meeting. The Beale Street Tourism Authority had failed miserably in executing its purpose, said Smith, who added that he was worried about the BSTA’s treatment of African-Americans busi-nesses on Beale Street. “They had two goals – two measures of success,” Smith said. “Neither one of them were accomplished.” The New Tri-State Defender is located in the entertainment district at 203 Beale St.
The Memphis City Council Tourism Committee unanimously voted Tuesday to get rid of the Beale Street Tourism Authority, whose job is to design and maintain the attractiveness of the Beale Street Entertainment District while also seeking proper management. The Beale Street Tourism Authority (BSTA) hasn’t been around for very long. The 13-member board was created in 2015 during former Mayor A C Wharton Jr.’s tenure. Councilman Martavius Jones (Super District 8, Position 3) introduced the resolution that would do away with the BSTA. The purposes for which the authority was created have been “substantially accomplished,” Jones said. With the Tourism Committee vote, It would next take a majority vote of the full council to dissolve the BSTA. The council meets next on April 11. If there is a favorable vote, the City of Memphis would then need to file dissolution papers with the Tennessee Secretary of State. Shards of conflict have been flying, with ongoing delays and assertions of prejudice and racism associated with the process of finding permanent management for the entertainment district. The Downtown Memphis Commission is serving as interim manager. The most recent public debate about who should run the street has involved the Beale Street Tourism Authority, the Beale Street Merchants Association and an African-American-owned firm called 21 Beale St., which was the last entity remaining after the BSTA sifted through management proposals. The BSTA subsequently took the position that it didn’t have confidence in any of the would-be managers, including the 21 Beale St. group. The BSTA’s lack-of-confidence position mirrored the stance of the Beale Street Merchants Association. Ken Taylor, executive director of the Beale Street Merchants Association, chose not to comment about the association’s squabble with 21 Beale Street when The New Tri-State Defender asked him about it this week. Taylor did say he was happy about the Council Tourism Committee’s vote to do away with the authority. “We’re looking for a swift resolution to find management for Beale Street very quickly,” Taylor said. “It affects our ability to get sponsorships, tenants, etc.” Taylor said he had major faith in Terence Patterson, director of the Downtown Memphis Commission. “Whether it’s the Beale Street Tourism Development Authority or the administration (of Mayor Jim Strickland), our number one focus is making sure we’re good stewards of Beale Street,” Patterson said. “So we are committed to doing that.” The Tourism Committee meeting also drew Lucille Catron, owner of the Historic Daisy Theatre and executive director of the Beale Street Development Corporation. She called the dissolution of BSTA “needed and necessary.” “We have too many entities that are on Beale that are not related to Beale Street,” said Catron, who added that she hoped the council would look into entities that she is convinced have too much of a hand in the decision-making process concerning the Beale Street district. Several lawsuits involving the entertainment district are pending. They include the dis-pute over management of the district Beale Street and a challenge of the controversial Beale Street Bucks program, which amassed money by charging a $10 entry fee into the district. Beale Street Bucks was proposed as a security measure. “If there was equity on Beale Street, there would be no need for the lawsuits,” Bernal E. Smith II, publisher and CEO of The New Tri-State Defender, said after the Tourism Committee meeting. The Beale Street Tourism Authority had failed miserably in executing its purpose, said Smith, who added that he was worried about the BSTA’s treatment of African-Americans busi-nesses on Beale Street. “They had two goals – two measures of success,” Smith said. “Neither one of them were accomplished.” The New Tri-State Defender is located in the entertainment district at 203 Beale St.