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Streets are at the heart of our city. They connect our people to work, to school, and to one another. How we care for them reflects how much we care for Memphis.
We maintain more than 6,800 lane miles of streets, and keeping them safe, clean, and functional takes more than maintenance. It takes strategy, coordination, and purpose. Earlier this year, I added a new role, Chief of Development and Infrastructure, now held by John Zeanah, to strengthen alignment and long-term strategy across the City’s planning, housing, public works, and infrastructure work.
John’s approach is about being proactive rather than reactive, creating a model that allows us to deliver better service without waiting for residents to ask. The new street cleaning and maintenance zone system was designed to do exactly that: to improve service delivery, reduce complaints, and establish a preventative, routine maintenance plan that addresses potholes, drainage, and street cleaning before they become problems.
“We are not just filling potholes; we are strengthening trust. We are not just sweeping streets; we are clearing the path for what is next."
This work grew out of lessons learned during the Community Enhancement Division’s blight abatement and neighborhood clean-up efforts, where scheduled, area-based work proved to be more effective than responding to isolated calls. Building on that idea, John challenged Public Works Director Scott Morgan to design a proactive system that would work for his division, and Scott’s team delivered.
The result is a 10-zone street maintenance system that divides Memphis into manageable grids, so crews can stay ahead of the issues that most affect our residents.
In just 62 working days, Public Works crews completed preventative work in all ten zones. They filled 3,591 potholes, cleaned 2,699 inlets, and swept 1,436 miles of roadway. And that is on top of the 6,473 responsive calls for potholes they made during that same period. Those numbers represent more than efficiency; they represent a city thinking ahead.
"We are strategically reducing blight and chaos and restoring dignity to our community, one street at a time."
As Scott says, “Just because we’ve done something one way for a long time doesn’t mean there’s not a better way. We’re building systems that prevent problems instead of just responding to them.”
I believe this is what it means to build progress with purpose. We are not just filling potholes; we are strengthening trust. We are not just sweeping streets; we are clearing the path for what is next.
We are strategically reducing blight and chaos and restoring dignity to our community, one street at a time. Because when our neighborhoods rise, Memphis rises with them.
 Zone Strategy: The green lines represent major streets. Our teams have completed the first round of proactive work in all 10 zones, and are now moving on to the secondary streets (shown in orange) in each zone.
In the know. We’ve launched a webpage to keep you updated on the federal and state action to support Memphis’ public safety efforts. The Memphis Safe Task Force began operations the week of 9/29, with Tennessee National Guard patrols beginning on 10/10. Visit memphistn.gov/safeandclean to learn more.
Good News!
   Do you have good news to share? We would love to share it! Send us a note at goodnews@memphistn.gov
Track Our Progress
The linked reports below provide evidence to support our public safety strategy and our work to ensure municipal fiscal responsibility. These dashboard provides a quick overview, with the ability to dive in deeper to neighborhoods and divisions. Both dashboards updates daily.
 SAFER COMMUNITIES: For more info on how to use the safer communities dashboard, go here. Or for the whole dashboard, go here.
 FINANCE TRACKER: For more info on how to use the finance tracker dashboard, go here, then follow the prompts to the tracker.
Our Blight Strike Team worked in the following zip codes this week: 38114, 38116, 38118.
To report concerns related to property violations, potholes, and trash, click the link here or call 311 to speak to a live agent.
Want to know what's happening in Memphis? Explore these event calendars to stay in the loop on all the city has to offer!
Memphis Public Libraries
Memphis Parks
Memphis Travel
Arts Memphis
Choose901
I love Memphis
City of Memphis Meetings & Notices
Westwood Community Tour:
Mayor Young joined residents in the Westwood community for a Neighborhood Impact Tour and community clean-up. Together with City officials, he listened to residents’ concerns, tackled issues that could be fixed on the spot, and set action plans in motion for those requiring follow-up.
This is what accountability in action looks like—meeting people where they are and working side by side to make Memphis stronger. 
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