Weekly Update

Friends,

For eight years, improving city services has always been top of mind for our administration. While there will always be more work to do, I will forever be proud of what we have accomplished together.

Here is yet one more example of the incredible people with whom I have been fortunate enough to call my coworkers. 

During the Spring and Summer of 2020, City government worked with Dr. Manoj Jain and several folks in the private sector to successfully develop a mass COVID-19 testing program so that schools could return to in-person classes for the 2020-2021 school year.  In short, all students and staff would be tested regularly, and those that tested positive would be sent home so that everyone else could proceed in-person.

The Shelby County School system rejected our offer, conducted learning for all grades virtually, and students suffered learning loss of 70 percent of a school year in reading and more than a year in math.

On the other hand, 14 charter schools and some private schools chose to utilize the program.  With regard to the charter schools, they returned to in-person classes in August 2020 using the testing program for the school year. The program worked, and as a result, there was no learning loss for those students.

Throughout the pandemic, we went above and beyond by:

• Taking ownership of the mass vaccination process with just 48 hours’ notice from the State, improving the process, and administering over 350,000 vaccines. 

• Taking over the food distribution for school students and running it for 11 months until in-person school resumed.

• Learning contact tracking and providing the bulk of that service, and

• Operating a communications system to reach all citizens on a daily basis.

On the whole for city services, we

• improved our library system and earned the top award for the best library system in the country two years ago.

• improved our fire department and achieved the highest national rating for the first time since the 1960s, putting us in the top percent.

• removed about 200 abandoned and blighted billboards, and we are installing LED bulbs in our city’s 78,000 streetlights.

• increased paving by 72 percent (I love the smell of freshly poured asphalt in the morning)

• have an animal services division that has made remarkable improvements saving the lives of animals—consistently having an 80-90 percent save rate.

• Created (with over 15,000 Memphians) our first comprehensive plan in 40 years--Memphis 3.0, and it has won national awards and has resulted in investments being made in under-invested neighborhoods.

• created and implemented Accelerate Memphis, $200 million in investments made in our parks and neighborhoods across our city, particularly in underserved areas. Including the Accelerate Memphis funds, we have invested over $200 million in our parks and community centers, building new ones and improving the others. For comparison, the normal amount spent in eight-years is about $40 million.

• completed $245 million modernization of our airport concourse and a $200 million overhaul of the Renasant Convention Center.

• built a $65 million Youth Sports Complex and a $30 million tennis facility.

• completed a total $60 million award-winning reimaging of Tom Lee Park

• converted over 20 acres of land at Overton Park to public use.

• built, rehabilitated, or incentivized the building or rehabilitation of 18,000 affordable quality housing units.

• created the Healthcare Navigator that diverts those with mental health challenges away from jail and those without urgent health care needs away from emergency rooms to appropriate care.

• fully funded the pension system for the first time since 2006.

• improved our credit rating with the bonding agencies.

• did all that without raising property taxes.

For a review of most of the accomplishments over the last eight years, go here.

As mayor, I am so proud of the people with whom I have worked and so proud of the accomplishments (like the ones mentioned above) these last eight years. I am so thankful to all of them because they are 100% responsible for those accomplishments. 

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Yours,