The Memphis Area Transit Authority board of commissioners is once again fully seated, after the Memphis City Council approved appointments of seven new members during its Tuesday, Sept. 1, meeting.
But MATA remains without a permanent CEO or leadership team. A two-person executive trusteeship still controls the public transit system under a transportation trust established by the city in early September 2025.
MATA trustee and interim CEO Rodrick Holmes, a partner at law firm Holmes Peters, is responsible for daily operations. Holmes works alongside Walter Person, the city’s chief financial officer, who serves as the financial oversight trustee for MATA’s $32 million budget.
The nine-member transit policy board had been operating without a quorum for the past year after five commissioners resigned in late August 2025 when the city declined to hire a new CEO.
Mayor Paul Young said the new board appointments mark the initial phase of an eventual transition to a permanent executive management team.
“As you all know, the MATA board has been somewhat in flux. There hasn’t been a quorum for quite some time now. MATA as an organization is going to continue to be under this trustee relationship,” said Young. “We all know at a certain point in time we have to move toward bringing in a CEO and reestablishing the structure of MATA. So this is one step in moving in that direction.”
MATA’s interim leadership team has received a rare dose of praise following a recent operations update presented to the council that touted a slate of improvements to the beleaguered transit system. Ridership has increased and wait times have decreased, thanks to the integration of modern buses to augment an aging fleet set to be fully replaced. And new bus stop shelters and signage have been installed to restore information on bus routes and improve rider experience.
The new board members bring diverse areas of expertise to MATA.
William Mallory IV is a fifth-generation member of the Mallory family, owners of The Mallory Group, a 100-year-old logistics and supply chain company.
Sharon Harris, vice president of human resources at AnovoRx Holdings, also serves on the LeMoyne-Owen College board of trustees.
Willie Gregory is currently senior director of global community impact at Nike.
Young also tapped Dr. Gwen Sutton, president of the Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology Memphis, for her expertise in workforce training and development.
Tate Wilson, an attorney and CEO of the Kemmons Wilson Family Foundation, brings a philanthropic point of view to the board.
Independent living specialist and transit advocate Allison Donald was also selected.
Antwoine Clark, employment development manager at Binghamton Development Corp., was recruited by Young to join the board. Clark is the founder and executive director of the South Side Wildcats, a faith-based youth development organization. “A lot of young people are engaged through his youth sports program. It’s a really remarkable sight to see,” said Young about Clark.
Council members also approved the reappointment of Brandon Arrindell, principal and portfolio manager at Southeastern Asset Management, a Memphis-based investment management firm. Arrindell is one of two holdovers from the previous board. The other, Maya Siggers, associate general counsel at Edward Jones, is serving her current term set to expire June 30, 2027.
MATA transports riders in Memphis and parts of Shelby County on fixed-route buses, paratransit vehicles and trolleys, covering 280 square miles for 5 million passenger trips annually, according to its website.
As interim CEO, Holmes is credited with making significant improvements to the transit system in a single year. His track record has bolstered support for him among some council members, who would like him to retain control of the new board.
An earlier interim team of outside consultants made decisions that echoed past mistakes, such as purchasing used buses from other cities to replace the aging fleet. The used buses were more prone to breakdowns and required more maintenance.
A July 2025 forensic audit ordered by Young revealed years of financial mismanagement and professional misconduct. MATA had no formal budgeting process, and its spending had gone unchecked, contributing to a $60 million budget shortfall. And the transit agency’s funds had been misappropriated for lavish purchases and perks such as catered suites at Memphis Grizzlies games.
One council member fears a new board could disrupt current progress.
“I asked the mayor just to hold off,” said Yolanda Cooper-Sutton. “What good is a board moving forward right now — to make sure that all ducks are in a row?”
Young defended his decision to move forward with board appointments.
“I’ve been in the weeds with this on a regular basis and I know that the system is far better than what we all inherited a couple of years ago,” he said. “We want to make sure that we continue to move in the right direction, and I believe that these people have the ability to help us do that.”
But Cooper-Sutton disagreed. “You said that the last time and look where we ended up,” she said.
Still, the majority of council members supports the appointments, including transportation committee chair Edmond Ford Jr.
“This board can be hired, fired — whatever — if they don’t do the job,” Ford said. “We are going to keep it together. We are not going backwards. We are going forwards. We’ve got a lot more things to do.”
