[0:03] All right. I would like
[0:06] to recognize our chaplain
[0:08] of the day, Pastor Steve Young
[0:11] of Ardmore Terrace Baptist
[0:13] Church. If you will please come
[0:16] to the podium and lead us
[0:18] in prayer. Is he here
[0:19] at this time? Yeah. Okay,
[0:21] great. Thank you. Thank you,
[0:23] Chairwoman. Thank you
[0:26] to the Councilmembers. Let us
[0:28] go to the Lord in prayer. O
[0:30] Lord, our Lord, how excellent
[0:33] is your name
[0:34] in all the earth. We bow
[0:36] before your presence. We come
[0:38] to you this afternoon as humbly
[0:39] as we know how,
[0:42] acknowledging that you are the
[0:45] Alpha and the Omega. You are
[0:47] the beginning and,
[0:49] and the ending. You are the
[0:51] first and the last. Everything
[0:55] that is was made
[0:56] by you and made for you, and
[1:01] without you nothing was made
[1:03] that was made. You are God.
[1:08] With that in mind, dear
[1:09] Father, we are reminded that
[1:13] you are the originator
[1:15] of human government,
[1:17] legislative order,
[1:19] legislative law and justice, we
[1:22] recognize the fearsome
[1:25] responsibility shouldered
[1:26] by these, your ministers
[1:29] in the earth, these appointed
[1:32] men and women who make up this
[1:35] august body. We affirm that
[1:40] they are here in service by
[1:43] your divine decree and your
[1:47] sovereign will.
[1:49] For we bear witness according
[1:50] to your holy word that states,
[1:53] let every soul be subject
[1:56] unto the higher powers,
[1:58] for there is no power but of
[2:00] God. Powers that be are
[2:04] ordained of God. So Father,
[2:08] in light of this, we ask you to
[2:10] bless these your servants and
[2:14] your ministers. Bless them
[2:16] with wisdom, knowledge,
[2:19] insight, discernment,
[2:22] and understanding. May these,
[2:25] your legislators,
[2:27] be emboldened to stand
[2:29] for right, truth, and justice.
[2:33] May they bring
[2:35] by their legislation joy to the
[2:38] righteous and strike terror
[2:40] to the evildoers. May they,
[2:44] by their good laws, convict the
[2:46] guilty and protect the
[2:48] innocent. May they,
[2:51] by their just ordinances,
[2:54] overthrow the wicked and
[2:56] strengthen the decent. And when
[2:59] it is all over,
[3:02] from this deliberative body,
[3:04] may justice roll down
[3:06] like a river and righteousness
[3:08] like a never-failing stream.
[3:11] Sin is a reproach
[3:13] to any people, but
[3:14] righteousness exalts a nation,
[3:15] a state, and even a city. And
[3:20] after these Councilmembers
[3:22] joyfully and faithfully
[3:23] discharge their duty,
[3:25] grant them the grace
[3:27] to have done it
[3:28] without bribe,
[3:30] without deceit,
[3:32] without inducement,
[3:34] without an unbalanced scale,
[3:38] far from evil and temptation.
[3:41] May they hear, O Lord, well
[3:44] done, servant, well done. We
[3:47] ask these blessings
[3:49] in the powerful,
[3:51] in the perfect, preeminent,
[3:54] primal, and prodigious name
[3:56] of the Lord Jesus Christ. And
[3:58] we all say amen. Amen. Please
[4:01] remain standing for the Pledge
[4:02] of Allegiance. I pledge
[4:05] allegiance to the flag of the
[4:07] United States of America and
[4:09] to the republic
[4:10] for which it stands,
[4:12] one nation under God,
[4:14] indivisible,
[4:15] with liberty and justice
[4:17] for all. Thank you. You may be
[4:19] seated. Thank you
[4:26] for that beautiful prayer.
[4:31] Councilwoman Dr.
[4:32] Easter-Thomas, you are
[4:34] recognized at this time. Thank
[4:37] you, Chair, and,
[4:40] and good evening to the city
[4:41] of Memphis who's joined us
[4:43] today. I just want
[4:44] to say thank you to Pastor
[4:46] Steve Young and First Lady
[4:47] Tammy Young
[4:49] for joining us today, and just
[4:50] to read this into the record
[4:52] Be it hereby known that
[4:53] Pastor Steve Young,
[4:55] in recognition of a life
[4:56] of exemplary qualities,
[4:58] outstanding service
[4:59] to the city,
[5:01] meritorious involvement
[5:02] in humanitarian affairs,
[5:04] and demonstrated concern
[5:05] for governmental process,
[5:06] has been appointed Chaplain
[5:08] of the Day of the Memphis
[5:10] City Council and is hereby
[5:12] entitled to all
[5:13] of the honors, rights,
[5:15] privileges,
[5:16] and prerogatives appertaining
[5:17] to the office and to display
[5:18] of this certificate given
[5:20] under this seal, 21st day of
[5:22] July, Jana Swearengen-
[5:24] Washington, Chair, and myself,
[5:25] Michalyn Easter-Thomas. Thank
[5:27] you. And again, this is
[5:28] Pastor Steve Young from
[5:29] Ardmore Terrace Baptist Church
[5:31] in Frayser
[5:32] in the lovely District 7. So we
[5:33] are so glad to have you here
[5:35] with us today. Thank you. So
[5:38] we're going
[5:39] to get up a little picture too.
[5:40] Thank you, Chair.
[5:54] We would like to acknowledge
[5:55] that we have former Chair Kemp
[5:57] Conrad in the back. Councilman,
[5:59] we're so glad to have you. Madam
[6:05] Comptroller, if you will please
[6:07] call the roll. Thank you.
[6:09] Council members Canale,
[6:11] Carlisle, Cooper-Sutton,
[6:16] Easter-Thomas, Ford, Green,
[6:22] Logan, Smiley, Spinosa,
[6:28] Walker, Warren, White.
[6:32] Chairwoman
[6:33] Swearengen-Washington?
[6:35] Present. Thank you. I believe
[6:42] Ford Canale has read the
[6:44] minutes. We didn't do anything.
[6:45] What we going to do? Thank you,
[6:46] Madam Chair. I have reviewed
[6:48] the meeting minutes from the
[6:50] July 7th, 2026 meeting,
[6:53] find them to be in order,
[6:54] and I move
[6:55] for their adoption. All right,
[6:56] it has been moved by
[6:58] Councilman Ford Canale,
[6:59] seconded by Councilwoman
[7:03] Green. Madam Comptroller, if
[7:05] you will please prepare the
[7:07] screen for the vote.
[7:31] Councilmember Carlisle did not
[7:32] vote. Easter-Thomas, yes. Ford,
[7:36] yes. Green, yes. Smiley, yes.
[7:39] Spinosa, yes. Walker, yes.
[7:42] Warren, yes. White, yes.
[7:46] Chairwoman, would you like
[7:47] to vote on the minutes? My
[7:49] screen is not, yes,
[7:51] we are having some
[7:52] difficulties,
[7:53] but I'm moving forward. Thank
[7:55] you. The minutes did pass,
[7:56] ma'am. All right,
[7:57] that item passes. Welcome
[8:02] to the July 21st, 2026 regular
[8:05] meeting of the Memphis City
[8:07] Council. Meetings of the
[8:09] council shall be conducted
[8:11] in an orderly manner to ensure
[8:13] that the public has the full
[8:15] opportunity to be heard and the
[8:17] deliberate process
[8:19] of the council is retained
[8:21] at all times. Our council staff
[8:24] member has meeting agendas
[8:26] available up front,
[8:28] as well as comment request
[8:30] cards for members
[8:32] of the public wishing
[8:33] to be heard
[8:35] on that specific item.
[8:36] Brianna, would you raise your
[8:37] hand so they can know who you
[8:38] are? Thank you. All those
[8:39] wishing to speak
[8:40] on an item must turn
[8:42] in their comment card
[8:44] to the staff
[8:46] before the item is called. If
[8:48] you are not here to speak
[8:49] on a specific item,
[8:51] you can note your request
[8:52] to give general comments
[8:55] at the end of the meeting. As
[8:56] chair, I will recognize
[8:59] citizens that properly
[9:00] registered to speak by
[9:02] submitting a completed comment
[9:05] request card
[9:06] to council staff. I would also
[9:08] like
[9:09] to ask that we hold a moment
[9:11] of silence in memory
[9:15] of the late Henry Hooper, who
[9:18] was a devoted Memphian,
[9:20] decorated veteran, and former
[9:22] Memphis City Councilman who is
[9:24] gone to be with the Lord. We
[9:26] extend our deepest condolences
[9:29] to his beautiful family, his
[9:32] friends, and all the citizens
[9:34] whose lives he touched.
[9:44] Item number 15 has been held
[9:47] until Tuesday, September 15th,
[9:50] 2026. Madam Comptroller, if you
[9:53] will please call item number 1.
[9:58] Item number 1 is a resolution
[10:00] recognizing and honoring Le
[10:03] Moyne Owen College
[10:04] in celebration
[10:06] of its 5th annual 807 Giving
[10:08] Day. This resolution is
[10:10] sponsored by the Memphis City
[10:12] Council. Councilwoman White,
[10:20] you are recognized
[10:22] at this time. Thank you,
[10:29] Madam Chairman. I am reading
[10:31] this resolution on behalf
[10:33] of the Memphis City Council,
[10:35] and I'm going to brief be,
[10:36] I'm going
[10:37] to shorten if that's okay
[10:38] with everyone. But whereas it
[10:40] is fitting that the Memphis
[10:41] City Council recognize and
[10:42] honor institutions of higher
[10:44] education and actually,
[10:46] don't we have some,
[10:47] a representative from Lemoyne
[10:49] in here? Thought we did. Thank
[10:57] you so much
[10:58] for joining us today. Yes,
[11:04] whereas, well, I want
[11:05] to start over. Honor
[11:07] institutions of higher
[11:08] education whose longstanding
[11:09] commitment
[11:10] to academic excellence,
[11:11] leadership development, and
[11:12] community service has
[11:13] positively impacted generations
[11:15] of students,
[11:17] students and strengthen the
[11:18] city of Memphis. And whereas
[11:21] the Memphis City Council has on
[11:22] numerous occasions recognized
[11:24] LeMoyne-Owen College
[11:25] for its unwavering commitment
[11:27] to providing a transformative
[11:29] educational experience and
[11:31] preparing students for lives
[11:32] of leadership, scholarship,
[11:34] service, and success. And
[11:36] whereas established in 2021,
[11:39] the annual 807 Giving Day was
[11:41] created to honor the college's
[11:43] historic address at 807
[11:45] Walker Avenue. The name 807
[11:48] serves as both a tribute to the
[11:50] institution's rich history and
[11:52] a meaningful reminder that
[11:53] every gift, regardless
[11:55] of size,
[11:56] makes a lasting impact
[11:57] on the lives of its students.
[11:59] And whereas the week-long
[12:02] celebration held
[12:03] on the historic campus of
[12:04] LeMoyne-Owen College includes
[12:06] worship on Walker on Sunday,
[12:09] the Magic Monday mixer
[12:10] for alumni and friends,
[12:12] and culminates
[12:15] with the livestreamed 807
[12:16] Giving Day telethon on
[12:17] Friday, August 7th, 2026. Now
[12:20] therefore be it resolved that
[12:22] the Memphis City Council hereby
[12:24] recognizes and honors
[12:26] LeMoyne-Owen College
[12:27] on the occasion of its 807
[12:30] Giving Day. Thank you so much
[12:32] for being here. We know how
[12:34] important LeMoyne-Owen College
[12:36] is to Memphis and our
[12:38] community,
[12:39] so thank you so much for being
[12:40] here and us celebrating and
[12:42] acknowledging 807 Giving Day,
[12:45] August to 2026. Yes, thank you
[12:49] so much, Dr. Nichols. Would you
[12:50] like
[12:51] to say a word? I simply want
[12:52] to thank the City Council, all
[12:55] the representatives. I would
[12:56] like
[12:57] to acknowledge our faculty,
[13:00] who is also a councilwoman,
[13:02] as well as all of you
[13:04] for your support. On behalf
[13:05] of President Davis, the
[13:06] college, many of us are out
[13:08] at a UNCF conference in
[13:10] Atlanta, so I stand here
[13:11] on the shoulders
[13:13] of all that came
[13:14] before me just
[13:15] to say thank you. I say this
[13:16] about my institution: that you
[13:18] cannot get
[13:19] to transformational leadership
[13:20] in the city of Memphis,
[13:22] in the county of Shelby, or the
[13:24] state of Tennessee without
[13:25] crossing the sacred grounds
[13:27] of the LeMoyne-Owen College.
[13:29] And by your support,
[13:31] you not only help us
[13:32] to continue this work, but you
[13:33] ensure that your tax base is
[13:35] secure because most
[13:37] of the students from
[13:38] LeMoyne-Owen College stay in
[13:40] Memphis and Shelby County
[13:41] to give back to their city. So
[13:42] thank you
[13:44] for your continued support.
[13:53] Thank you so much. Please allow
[13:56] us about 5 minutes to be able
[13:58] to reprogram so that we can get
[14:00] our screens up. Just give us a
[14:02] few minutes. We need to get our.
[21:14] Let me say,
[21:15] you all have just been a perfect
[21:16] audience. We will start
[21:19] with our consent agenda items
[21:21] 3 and 4. Madam Comptroller, if
[21:23] you will please call the
[21:25] consent agenda items 3 and 4.
[21:28] Thank you. Item number 3 is a
[21:31] joint ordinance to amend the
[21:33] Memphis and Shelby County
[21:34] Unified Development Code
[21:36] adopted by the City of Memphis
[21:38] on August 10th, 2010, and by
[21:40] Shelby County on August 9th,
[21:43] 2010, to establish a procedure
[21:46] for replacing the zoning map.
[21:49] Up for first reading,
[21:51] this ordinance is sponsored
[21:53] by the Division of Planning and
[21:54] Development The case number is
[21:55] ZTA-2602. The ordinance number
[21:59] is 5979. Item number 4 is a
[22:04] resolution approving
[22:05] Supplemental Agreement Number
[22:07] 1 for South Memphis East
[22:10] Holmes Road and accepting bond
[22:12] as security. There is a request
[22:14] for same-night minutes. The
[22:16] contract number is CR-5471.
[22:19] Chairwoman
[22:20] Swearengen-Washington, that
[22:21] concludes your consent agenda
[22:22] items. Councilman Spinosa,
[22:24] you're recognized. Thank you,
[22:25] Madam Chair.
[22:27] Without objection, I'd like
[22:28] to hold or pull item number 3
[22:29] off the consent agenda and we
[22:32] need to read that
[22:34] in committee. And
[22:37] without objection, that's the
[22:39] motion that I'm making. Okay,
[22:43] can I get a second for that?
[22:44] Second. All right,
[22:47] it's been moved by Councilman
[22:48] Spinosa and seconded by
[22:49] Councilwoman Walker
[22:52] to hold it. You're holding it?
[22:53] Yeah, just hold it and bring it
[22:54] back to committee
[22:55] for an actual just first
[22:56] reading for us. It has to do
[22:57] with the zoning maps and the
[22:59] changes,
[23:01] and we've come this far. Just
[23:02] want to be transparent
[23:03] with it, and Director Ragsdale
[23:04] agrees, so there's no
[23:06] controversy or anything. Just
[23:07] want to slow it down. I applaud
[23:10] your transparency. Thank you so
[23:11] much, Madam Chair. Thank you
[23:14] all. All right, item number
[23:16] 4, Madam Controller. I did read
[23:23] item number 4. How do we want
[23:25] to see this approach now? All
[23:27] right, I need a motion
[23:29] for the consent agenda minus.
[23:30] It has been moved by
[23:32] Councilman Warren. I get a
[23:34] second? Second by Ford
[23:37] Canale. Madam Comptroller. All
[23:40] right, council,
[23:42] if you will please prepare
[23:44] for the vote. We are voting
[23:47] on item number 4. It's
[23:56] in the system.
[23:57] Canale, yes. Easter-Thomas,
[24:00] yes. Ford, yes. Green, yes.
[24:02] Spinosa, yes. Walker, yes.
[24:04] Warren, yes. Chairwoman
[24:06] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[24:10] That item passes. Madam
[24:12] Comptroller, if you will please
[24:13] call the MLGW fiscal consent.
[24:21] That would take us
[24:22] to item number 5, a resolution
[24:24] approving the increase
[24:25] to contract number 12540
[24:29] Master Paving Program Section
[24:32] 2 with Vukan LLC
[24:34] to increase the current
[24:35] contract in the funded amount
[24:37] of $1 million. Item number 6 is
[24:39] a resolution approving the
[24:41] increase to contract number
[24:43] 12512, Master Paving Program
[24:45] Sections 1 and 3 with Lehman
[24:49] Roberts Company
[24:51] to increase the current
[24:53] contract in the funded amount
[24:54] of $5 million. Item number 7 is
[24:58] a resolution awarding contract
[25:01] number 12595, LNG storage tank
[25:04] painting, to Viking Painting
[25:07] LLC in the funded amount of
[25:10] $3,167,560. There is a request
[25:17] for same-night minutes
[25:18] for this item number 7. Item
[25:21] number 8 is a resolution
[25:23] approving the ratification,
[25:24] increase, and renewal
[25:26] to contract number 12390,
[25:29] Project Portfolio Management
[25:32] Software Tool Acquisition
[25:34] with Work Otter Inc.,
[25:35] to ratify,
[25:37] increase the contract amount,
[25:39] and renew the current contract
[25:41] in the funded amount of
[25:43] $196,859.40. Item number 9 is a
[25:50] resolution awarding contract
[25:51] number 12638 North Service
[25:55] Center Building 5 roof
[25:57] replacement to B4 Ply Inc.
[25:59] in the funded amount of
[26:02] $558,242.30. And item number
[26:06] 10 is a resolution ratifying
[26:09] the award of contract number
[26:13] 12654 Samsara Telematics to
[26:16] Samsara Inc. In the funded
[26:19] not-to-exceed amount of
[26:22] $4,645,462.80. Madam Chair,
[26:27] that concludes your MLGW fiscal
[26:28] consent items. Councilwoman
[26:35] Walker, you are recognized.
[26:37] Thank you, Madam Chair. The
[26:38] committee met and there was a
[26:40] favorable recommendation,
[26:42] and I so move. All right. Move
[26:45] it electronically. Move it
[26:48] electronically. Councilwoman
[26:50] Walker. It has been moved by
[26:53] Councilwoman Walker, seconded
[26:55] by Councilman Spinosa. Madam
[26:58] Comptroller, if you will please
[27:00] prepare the screen
[27:01] for the vote. Canale, yes..
[27:13] Easter-Thomas, yes. Green.
[27:15] Yes. Please show Council
[27:16] Member Ford as voting yes
[27:18] on this item. Spinosa, yes.
[27:20] Walker, yes. Warren, yes.
[27:22] Chairwoman
[27:23] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[27:26] That item passes. Madam
[27:29] Comptroller, if you will please
[27:30] go to the regular agenda and
[27:32] call number, item number 11.
[27:39] Item number 11 is an ordinance
[27:42] to amend Chapter 25, Pension
[27:44] and Retirement System of the
[27:46] City of Memphis, Tennessee, up
[27:47] for third and final reading.
[27:49] Ordinance number 5974 is
[27:51] sponsored
[27:53] by the administration.
[27:54] Councilwoman White, you're
[27:56] recognized. Thank you, Chair
[27:59] Chairwoman. The committee met
[28:01] and recommended approval,
[28:04] and I so move. All right,
[28:09] it has been moved by
[28:10] Councilwoman White. Can I get a
[28:11] second? Second by Councilman
[28:14] Spinosa. There are no council
[28:17] in the queue to speak. Madam
[28:18] Comptroller, if you will please
[28:20] prepare the screen
[28:22] for the vote. Canale, yes.
[28:34] Easter-Thomas, yes. Ford.
[28:36] Yes. Green, yes. Spinosa.
[28:38] Yes. Walker, yes. Warren.
[28:41] Yes. White, yes. Chairwoman
[28:43] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[28:45] That item passes. Madam
[28:47] Comptroller, please call item
[28:49] number 12. Item number 12 is an
[28:52] ordinance to amend City of
[28:54] Memphis Code of Ordinances
[28:56] Chapter 33 Article 3 and
[28:57] corresponding Chapter 1328
[29:00] to increase the sewer fees up
[29:03] for third and final reading.
[29:05] Ordinance number 5975 is
[29:08] sponsored
[29:09] by the administration.
[29:11] Councilwoman White, you're
[29:12] recognized. Thank you. The
[29:15] committee met and recommended
[29:17] approval, and I so move. It's
[29:18] been moved by Councilwoman
[29:22] White. Seconded by Councilman
[29:24] Warren. There are no council
[29:26] in the queue to speak. Madam
[29:29] Comptroller, please prepare the
[29:30] screen.
[29:44] Canale, yes. Easter-Thomas.
[29:46] Yes. Ford, yes. Smiley, yes.
[29:49] Spinosa, yes. Walker, yes.
[29:51] White, yes. Chairwoman
[29:53] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[29:55] That item passes. Madam
[29:57] Comptroller, please call item
[29:59] number 13. Item number 13 is a
[30:03] referendum ordinance
[30:05] to amend the charter of the
[30:06] City of Memphis, same being
[30:08] Chapter 11 of the Acts of
[30:10] 1879, as amended pursuant
[30:12] to provisions of Article 9
[30:16] of the Constitution of the
[30:17] State of Tennessee Home Rule
[30:19] Amendment so as to establish
[30:20] lobbyist registration and
[30:23] disclosure requirements and to
[30:25] submit the proposed referendum
[30:27] ordinance
[30:29] to the qualified voters
[30:30] of the City of Memphis at the
[30:32] next state general election.
[30:34] Up for 3rd and final reading,
[30:36] Ordinance Number 5977 is
[30:38] sponsored by Councilman
[30:40] Carlisle. Councilwoman White,
[30:42] you're recognized. Thank you,
[30:45] Chairwoman. I need for you all
[30:47] to check for me, but I believe
[30:48] this is the one we ended kind
[30:52] of on a probably not a resolved
[30:55] note. And so,
[30:56] I would just say that it came
[30:57] down without recommendation.
[31:03] Attorney Wade, can you give us
[31:05] some clarification for item
[31:07] number 13? I had a question.
[31:21] Councilwoman Easter-Thomas,
[31:23] you're
[31:25] in the you're recognized. I,
[31:28] I think
[31:29] under the circumstances it
[31:31] comes down
[31:32] without a recommendation. And
[31:35] I, the sponsor's not here,
[31:36] so I can't really speak
[31:41] to it. Councilman Smiley. I
[31:42] just want to move to hold
[31:44] until the sponsor can come
[31:45] speak to it. I don't want
[31:47] to spend all day on an issue
[31:48] when the person who proposed it
[31:49] is not here to talk
[31:51] about the justification. So I
[31:52] move to hold this matter.
[31:54] Okay, can I get a second?
[31:56] Until the next 2 council
[31:58] meetings. When is that? Okay,
[32:02] no, you can't. It has been
[32:03] moved. What's the date? I need
[32:04] to get a, give a specific,
[32:05] just move it
[32:06] to the next meeting. Move it.
[32:07] You can't do that. Move it to
[32:08] the next meeting and then we'll
[32:11] see what happens. All right,
[32:13] August 4th meeting. Been moved
[32:15] by Councilman Smiley, seconded
[32:16] by Councilman Spinosa,
[32:18] for that item to be held
[32:20] until the next council meeting.
[32:23] Madam Comptroller, if you will
[32:24] please call item number 14.
[32:28] Item number 14 is a referendum
[32:30] ordinance to amend the charter
[32:32] of the City of Memphis, same
[32:34] being Chapter 11 of the Acts
[32:36] of 1879, as amended pursuant
[32:39] to the provisions of Article
[32:41] 9, Section 9 of the
[32:43] Constitution of the State of
[32:44] Tennessee,
[32:46] to authorize the creation
[32:48] by ordinance of uniform
[32:49] administrative procedures and
[32:51] systems for disposition
[32:53] of appeals that may affect the
[32:56] employment status
[32:57] of civil service employees. Up
[32:59] for 3rd and final reading,
[33:01] Ordinance Number 5978 is
[33:03] sponsored by Councilman
[33:05] Carlisle. Councilman Smiley,
[33:06] you're recognized. I move
[33:07] to hold this until August 4th
[33:08] meeting. Let me speak
[33:09] to this one. All right,
[33:11] Attorney Wade. Originally there
[33:13] was some blanket creation
[33:21] of authority
[33:22] for the council and the mayor
[33:24] to create a system,
[33:26] but I changed it to,
[33:28] to make it be an
[33:30] Administrative Procedures
[33:31] Act, and I think it's compliant
[33:32] with the law. I'm not sure how
[33:34] it was handled
[33:36] in the committee,
[33:37] but I've signed off
[33:38] on it if y'all want
[33:39] to move it on. Move to hold on
[33:41] to the August 4th meeting. All
[33:45] right, got a motion to hold,
[33:48] second by Councilwoman Green.
[33:50] We will hold that item. Madam
[33:53] Comptroller, if you will please
[33:55] call item number 15. 15 is
[33:59] going to be held too. All
[34:05] right. All right.
[34:16] We're going to move
[34:18] to our add-ons starting
[34:21] with item number 16. Madam
[34:22] Controller, item number 16 is
[34:24] an appointment, Art Davis,
[34:27] Chief Financial Officer, and
[34:29] there is a request
[34:31] for same-night minutes
[34:32] for this item. Okay.
[34:38] Councilwoman White, you're
[34:39] recognized. Thank you,
[34:40] Chairwoman. The committee met
[34:41] and recommended approval,
[34:42] and I so move. It's been moved
[34:43] by Councilwoman White, seconded
[34:46] by Councilman Ford Canale.
[34:53] Mr. Davis, would you like
[34:54] to say something? Mr. Winton,
[35:11] you might as well be making
[35:12] your way down. Yes, sir. Art
[35:15] Davis, interim CFO, City of
[35:17] Memphis, 125 North Main. I just
[35:20] want to say again, thank you
[35:22] for the confidence that the
[35:24] mayor has put in me and
[35:25] for your confidence
[35:27] in your vote. Support and the
[35:29] recommendation
[35:30] for the committee. And I also
[35:31] want
[35:33] to remind everyone what I said,
[35:34] that my goal is
[35:36] to bring transparency to the
[35:38] Finance Division as well as
[35:40] ensure that every public dollar
[35:43] that is received
[35:44] by the city is managed
[35:47] in the best way possible. And I
[35:49] will support this council, the
[35:52] mayor, but most importantly,
[35:53] the citizens of Memphis. Thank
[35:55] you. All right,
[36:00] there no council
[36:01] in the queue. Madam
[36:02] Comptroller, if you would
[36:03] please prepare the screen.
[36:18] Canale, yes. Easter-Thomas,
[36:20] yes. Ford, yes. Green, yes.
[36:22] Spinosa, yes. Walker, yes.
[36:24] Warren, yes. White, yes.
[36:27] Chairwoman
[36:28] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[36:30] That item passes.
[36:32] Congratulations. Madam
[36:40] Comptroller, if you will please
[36:42] call item number 17. Item
[36:44] number 17 is also an
[36:46] appointment Chris Winton,
[36:49] Chief Administrative Officer.
[36:51] There is a request
[36:52] for same-night minutes
[36:53] for this item also. All right,
[36:55] we would love to hear
[36:57] from you. Thank you, Madam
[36:59] Chair and Council. It is truly
[37:01] my pleasure to be here
[37:03] before you. As I've shared
[37:05] before, after meeting with
[37:07] individuals and constituents
[37:09] across the city as well as the
[37:10] leadership team here at City
[37:12] Hall, one thing is clear:
[37:15] There is a deep love for this
[37:17] city and a deep commitment
[37:19] to delivering more,
[37:20] and I thank you
[37:21] for the opportunity to be here
[37:23] and request your approval so we
[37:25] can get to work. There are no
[37:30] council in the queue
[37:32] to speak. Madam Comptroller, if
[37:33] you will please prepare the
[37:34] screen for the vote. It has
[37:39] been moved by Councilman
[37:41] Warren, seconded by
[37:44] Councilman Spinosa. Canale,
[37:59] yes. Easter-Thomas, yes.
[38:01] Ford, yes. Green, yes.
[38:03] Spinosa, yes. Walker, yes.
[38:06] Warren, yes. White, yes.
[38:08] Chairwoman
[38:09] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[38:12] That item passes. Madam
[38:14] Comptroller, if you will please
[38:16] call item number 18. Item
[38:22] number 18 is also,
[38:23] congratulations. Item number
[38:29] 18 is also appointments
[38:32] to the Airport Authority. We
[38:34] have Belinda Anderson Pamela
[38:36] Clary, Demar Roberts. There's
[38:38] also a request
[38:39] for same-night minutes
[38:40] for item 18. Councilwoman
[38:42] White, you're recognized. The
[38:44] committee met and recommended
[38:46] approval, and I so move. It has
[38:47] been moved by Councilwoman
[38:49] White, seconded by Councilman
[38:50] Spinosa. I don't see Miss
[38:53] Clary in the audience. Madam
[38:55] Comptroller, if you will please
[38:57] prepare the screen
[39:03] for the vote.
[39:09] Canale, yes.
[39:10] Easter-Thomas, yes. Green.
[39:12] Yes. Smiley, yes. Spinosa.
[39:15] Yes. Walker, yes. Warren.
[39:18] Yes. White, yes. Please show
[39:19] Councilmember Ford as voting
[39:21] yes on this item, and
[39:23] Chairwoman
[39:24] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[39:25] That item passes. Madam
[39:27] Comptroller, if you will please
[39:28] call item number 19. Item
[39:31] number 19 is a resolution to
[39:34] accept and allocate surface
[39:37] transportation block grant
[39:39] funds in the amount of
[39:42] $581,840 in grant funds
[39:46] from the Tennessee Department
[39:48] of Transportation for the
[39:49] Memphis Airport Plow
[39:51] Boulevard Access Road, Project
[39:53] PW01109. District 3, Super
[39:56] District 8. This resolution is
[39:59] sponsored
[40:00] by the administration. There is
[40:02] a request
[40:03] for same-night minutes.
[40:04] Councilman Smiley, you are
[40:06] recognized. Thank you, Madam
[40:07] Chair. The committee may
[40:08] recommend approval. I so move.
[40:10] It has been moved by
[40:12] Councilman Smiley, seconded
[40:13] by Councilman Spinosa. There
[40:16] are no Councilmembers
[40:17] in the queue to speak. Madam
[40:19] Comptroller, please prepare the
[40:20] screen. Council, if you'll vote
[40:22] at this time.
[40:32] Canale, yes.
[40:34] Easter, Thomas, yes. Ford,
[40:36] yes. Green, yes. Spinosa,
[40:38] yes. Walker, yes. Warren,
[40:40] yes. White, yes. Chairwoman
[40:42] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[40:45] Please show Councilmember
[40:46] Smiley is voting yes
[40:48] on this item. Tanzania. That
[40:51] item passes. Madam
[40:55] Comptroller, if you will please
[41:00] call item number 20. Item
[41:01] number 20 is a resolution
[41:03] appointing MATTA's fiscal
[41:04] trustee. All council districts.
[41:06] This resolution is sponsored
[41:07] by Councilman Ford, and there
[41:09] is a request
[41:10] for same-night minutes
[41:11] for this item. Councilwoman
[41:13] Green, you're in the queue.
[41:15] Thank you, Chair. I just wanted
[41:17] to clarify again for the
[41:19] listening public that this is
[41:21] taking out Walter Person, who
[41:25] was our CFO, and putting in
[41:26] Art Davis, who is now our CFO.
[41:28] It is not in any way approving
[41:31] a contract because we don't do
[41:33] contracting for any amount
[41:36] in regards to any trustee. So
[41:38] just so everybody's clear,
[41:40] this is just putting
[41:42] in one name for the other
[41:43] because there's now been a
[41:45] change in leadership. But we
[41:47] don't make contracts or set
[41:50] salaries. Thank you, Chair.
[41:53] Thank you, Councilwoman
[41:54] Green. Councilman Ford
[41:56] Canale, you're recognized.
[41:58] Thank you, Madam Chair. The
[41:59] committee met, recommended
[42:00] approval, and I so move. All
[42:02] right, it's been moved by
[42:03] Councilman Ford Canale,
[42:04] seconded by Councilman
[42:07] Warren. Madam Comptroller, if
[42:09] you will please prepare the
[42:10] screen.
[42:19] Canale, yes. Easter-Thomas,
[42:22] yes. Ford, yes. Green, yes.
[42:24] Spinosa, yes. Walker, yes.
[42:26] Warren, yes. White, yes.
[42:29] Chairwoman
[42:30] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[42:32] That item passes. Madam
[42:35] Comptroller, if you will please
[42:37] call item number 2. Item number
[42:48] 2 is an appeal of Romulus
[42:50] Corporation and others,
[42:52] Memphis Alcohol Commission,
[42:54] matter T36342, filed pursuant
[42:57] to 4-3 and 412. Of the City
[43:00] of Memphis Code of Ordinances
[43:02] required by ordinance. This was
[43:04] held from March 24th. Okay,
[43:11] just one second. Councilman
[43:17] Ford Canale, you're recognized.
[43:22] Do what? Yes, move it. Right.
[43:24] Yeah, just move it
[43:26] without a recommendation. All
[43:28] right, thank you, Madam Chair.
[43:29] Without recommendation,
[43:30] I move it to the floor. All
[43:32] right, it's been moved by
[43:34] Councilman Ford Canale. Can I
[43:35] get a second? And second by
[43:37] Councilman Spinosa.
[43:40] At this time, we're going
[43:42] to give each side 15 minutes.
[43:45] Would you like to start? Thank
[43:46] you very much. If you'll put
[43:48] 15, yeah, he's already did.
[43:49] Okay, thank you. Thank you very
[43:51] much. My name is Robert
[43:53] Spence, 65 Union Avenue, Suite
[43:56] 900, and I have the distinct
[43:59] pleasure
[44:00] of representing the appellants
[44:03] in this appeal that is
[44:04] before you today. It's
[44:07] important that you understand
[44:09] from the outset what we're
[44:10] asking the City Council
[44:11] to do. We're asking the City
[44:13] Council to overrule the
[44:16] Memphis Alcohol Commission
[44:18] approval and find that Ethan
[44:21] Edwards' application
[44:24] to operate a liquor store at
[44:27] 870 South White Station Road
[44:30] does not satisfy the proximity
[44:33] distance requirement. That's
[44:36] what we're asking the City
[44:38] Council to do today
[44:39] in this appeal. And the reason
[44:50] that we're asking this City
[44:53] Council to take that action is
[44:56] for one simple,
[44:58] straightforward reason. The
[45:03] location of Mr. Edwards' liquor
[45:07] store violates Ordinance
[45:09] 7-4-5A, and it falls
[45:13] within the 1,500 feet proximity
[45:16] requirement and is within
[45:20] 1,500 feet of Woodland
[45:23] Presbyterian Church and
[45:25] School. All
[45:30] of you are familiar
[45:32] with your own ordinance,
[45:34] 7-4-5-A, which provides the
[45:38] proximity distance requirement
[45:40] that I've talked about. It
[45:43] requires any store selling
[45:46] alcoholic beverages not be
[45:48] located within 1,500 feet
[45:52] from any church, school, park,
[45:54] library, or the liquor store.
[45:58] So, so that is, that is the
[46:00] rule that is applied uniformly
[46:02] with respect to all applicants
[46:05] like Mr. Edwards who seek
[46:07] to open a liquor store
[46:09] in our community. Now, before
[46:16] Mr. Edwards ever filed an
[46:19] application, he engaged a
[46:25] professional surveyor
[46:28] to measure the distance
[46:30] for him from his supposed
[46:33] liquor store location. And what
[46:37] we have been able
[46:40] to demonstrate and get for you
[46:42] are the communications that the
[46:46] professional surveyor gave to
[46:48] Mr. Edwards before he filed his
[46:50] first application. On
[46:54] September 5th, Pickering
[46:59] surveyor Lynn Spencer told
[47:01] Mr. Edwards, the store doesn't
[47:05] meet the straight-line
[47:07] measurements. Can you get a
[47:10] variance? Can you get a
[47:13] variance? And then there are
[47:16] several other communications
[47:18] between Mr. Edwards and, and
[47:20] Miss Spencer which,
[47:23] which basically say that, that
[47:25] they, they know the rule. They
[47:28] will not ask the city for any
[47:31] clarification or explanation of
[47:33] the rules because they don't
[47:38] want to send up red flags
[47:40] about this application. So it
[47:44] is, it is clear that Before the
[47:48] application was submitted,
[47:50] about 2 weeks
[47:52] after these communications,
[47:54] Mr. Edwards was aware that his
[47:55] proposed location did not meet
[47:59] the proximity distance
[48:02] requirement. A week
[48:07] after these communications,
[48:09] his own lawyer, Attorney Mark
[48:10] Joe, told him,
[48:16] I'm a little concerned
[48:18] about the distance to Woodland
[48:19] if you go south on White
[48:22] Station and east on Park. His
[48:25] lawyer further told him,
[48:28] I do think you have to turn
[48:30] down Park and finish 1,500 feet
[48:34] east and west
[48:36] from the center line and There
[48:41] are a lot of things important
[48:42] about this communication,
[48:44] but one of the things that I,
[48:46] that I want you to focus
[48:48] on is that at the time
[48:50] of this communication,
[48:51] September 13th, 2024, there was
[48:55] no dispute that the centerline
[48:58] at issue
[49:02] for a correct measurement was
[49:05] White Station, was White
[49:07] Station. There is some
[49:16] individual named Gerald who is
[49:19] only identified as Gerald who
[49:22] instructed the professional
[49:24] surveyor how
[49:28] to perform the survey. And she
[49:33] acquiesced to his request,
[49:37] and we ended up with this.
[49:40] This first,
[49:43] the first survey submitted by
[49:44] Mr. Edwards was fraudulent. He
[49:47] knew it was fraudulent when he
[49:50] submitted it. What is strange
[49:54] is that the Alcohol Commission
[50:00] didn't flag it as fraudulent
[50:01] when he submitted it. Because
[50:03] you, as you see
[50:05] from this survey he submitted,
[50:10] as opposed
[50:11] to turning east and west on
[50:13] Park, which is denoted
[50:16] by the blue dashes, which is
[50:18] required, He presented a survey
[50:22] that kept straight on White
[50:26] Station, and that's the yellow
[50:28] line. But again, even
[50:34] on this fraudulent survey that
[50:37] Mr. Edwards submitted,
[50:40] the center line is on White
[50:43] Station Road because that is
[50:45] where the liquor store fronts.
[50:49] That is where the liquor
[50:51] storefronts. Even though Mr.
[50:59] Edwards submitted a fraudulent
[51:03] survey to the Memphis Alcohol
[51:05] Commission, for an,
[51:09] some inexplicable reason, the
[51:12] Memphis Alcohol Commission
[51:14] approved it on September 20th,
[51:19] 2024, in a meeting that was
[51:24] later determined by a court
[51:26] of law as violating the Open
[51:30] Meetings Act. So they have a
[51:33] fraudulent survey, they conduct
[51:36] a meeting that is violative
[51:38] of the Open Meetings Act and
[51:41] approve Mr. Edwards'
[51:44] application. Well, same parties
[51:54] that are gathered here today
[51:55] went to court. In court, Mr.
[52:01] Edwards added something
[52:02] to his argument. What he added
[52:06] was that, the proximity distance
[52:09] ordinance that all
[52:12] of you know is in effect,
[52:14] that it did not apply to him,
[52:18] that it did not apply to him.
[52:24] And his response
[52:28] to your complaint,
[52:32] complaint filed
[52:34] by the city council, because
[52:35] of, of the position that Mr.
[52:37] Edwards took was Edwards denies
[52:40] the allegations contained
[52:42] in paragraph 24 of the City
[52:44] Council's cross-petition as
[52:47] Section 4-5 of the Memphis
[52:50] City Code of Ordinances was not
[52:53] the governing law at the time
[52:54] of the application. That was
[52:58] obviously absurd. So
[53:01] by this time,
[53:03] we have a fraudulent survey.
[53:05] We have a meeting that violates
[53:07] the Open Meetings Act. We have
[53:09] an absurd legal position in
[53:11] court that the ordinance
[53:13] doesn't apply to Mr. Edwards.
[53:20] And then probably the most
[53:24] embarrassing thing was that the
[53:29] Memphis Alcohol Commission
[53:32] crossed the mall, came
[53:34] to court, and tried
[53:37] to convince the Chancery Court
[53:40] that the Open Meetings Act did
[53:42] not apply to it. And
[53:45] in a publicly filed pleading,
[53:49] took the position that it was
[53:51] not a governing body
[53:54] within the meaning of the
[53:55] Tennessee Open Meetings Act.
[53:59] So we have all
[54:02] of these aberrant behaviors,
[54:03] fraudulent surveys, Open
[54:07] Meetings Act violations. We're
[54:10] not a governing body that is,
[54:12] that is required to comply
[54:14] with the Open Meetings Act.
[54:16] All of these aberrant behaviors
[54:17] are being litigated just a
[54:20] stone's throw from here.
[54:24] Well, to the chagrin of the
[54:30] Alcohol Commission and Mr.
[54:33] Edwards, the court did not buy
[54:40] what they were selling,
[54:42] and the court First,
[54:48] with respect to the
[54:49] cross-petition that this city
[54:50] council was required to file
[54:53] to defend the ordinance,
[54:55] the distance proximity
[54:57] ordinance, the judge ruled on
[54:59] July 8th, 2025. It is the
[55:02] court's opinion, order, and
[55:04] declaration that the 1,500-foot
[55:07] restriction from churches,
[55:09] schools, parks,
[55:11] libraries and other liquor
[55:12] stores, for instance, the
[55:15] 1,500-foot restriction as
[55:19] originally stated in Section
[55:21] 4-5 of the 1985 City Code is
[55:26] still in full force and effect
[55:28] and the governing law. A
[55:32] proposition that, that,
[55:34] that all
[55:35] of us would have taken
[55:37] for granted Mr. Edwards argued
[55:39] in a court of law that this
[55:41] ordinance didn't apply
[55:42] to him,
[55:44] and therefore he didn't have to
[55:45] meet the 1,500-foot
[55:48] restriction. Because remember,
[55:50] at that time, the survey that
[55:52] he submitted didn't turn down
[55:55] Park. It didn't turn down
[56:09] Park. Further, with respect
[56:11] to the Memphis Alcohol
[56:13] Commission, the court also
[56:15] rejected its specious argument
[56:17] that it was not a governing
[56:20] body and that the Tennessee
[56:22] Open Meetings Act did not apply
[56:24] to it. The court ruled
[56:30] Therefore, the court concludes
[56:32] that CMAC, City of Memphis
[56:34] Alcohol Commission, was
[56:36] functioning as a governing body
[56:39] on September 20th, 2024, when
[56:41] it deliberated and made
[56:43] decisions regarding Ethan
[56:46] Edward and Grind Management
[56:49] requests for a certificate
[56:50] of compliance as part
[56:52] of the application
[56:53] for a liquor license
[56:55] before the TABC and was
[56:57] required
[56:59] to hold the meeting subject
[57:02] to the requirements of the
[57:07] Act. Now, governing bodies know
[57:13] that as a matter of course,
[57:19] as a former city attorney,
[57:22] it's an embarrassment
[57:24] for the alcohol commission
[57:27] to take the position
[57:28] in a court of law that the
[57:33] Tennessee Open Meetings Act
[57:36] does not govern its
[57:37] proceedings. And the court
[57:43] issued that ruling on
[57:44] September 2nd. 2025. And
[57:51] because the Memphis Accol
[57:53] Commission's conduct was so
[57:55] aberrant, aberrant,
[58:02] the court is monitoring the
[58:06] Accol Commission and is
[58:10] requiring that the Accol
[58:12] Commission submit semiannual
[58:14] reports on whether or not it is
[58:17] complying with the Open
[58:19] Meetings Act. So we have all of
[58:23] these aberrant and strange
[58:25] behaviors by Mr. Edwards,
[58:28] by the Alcohol Commission,
[58:34] prior to and leading up to
[58:36] Mr. Edwards second application.
[58:46] What is on the screen now are
[58:50] surveys that were done
[58:52] by other surveyors. Thank you
[58:57] so much. Am I done? Yes, sir. I
[59:00] used my, my 15 minutes? Yes,
[59:01] sir. All right, well,
[59:03] thank you. All right,
[59:05] thank you. All right,
[59:06] we will now have 15 minutes.
[59:15] Excuse me, Judge, if you start
[59:19] over. Okay, thank you. Give me
[59:21] the sign when it's time.
[59:23] Okay, I am retired Judge
[59:25] Bernice Donald. My address is
[59:26] 6077 Primacy Parkway, Suite
[59:30] 200, and I am here this
[59:31] afternoon with pride
[59:33] to represent Grind
[59:35] Management, owned by Ethan
[59:37] Edwards. I have a prepared
[59:38] presentation, but I want
[59:39] to just address 2 quick things
[59:40] because I'm senior now and I
[59:42] need to correct a couple
[59:44] of things. Mr. Spence accuses
[59:48] my client of fraud, and I want
[59:52] to absolutely and flatly rebut
[59:54] that right here and now. Mr.
[59:57] Edwards sought legal advice
[1:00:01] after reviewing the, the Muni
[1:00:04] Code, which at that time had
[1:00:06] dropped any reference to 1,500
[1:00:09] feet. It had some ellipses
[1:00:11] there. And Mr. Spence and the
[1:00:15] council went to Chancery Court
[1:00:17] and they argued to Chancellor
[1:00:18] Jenkins that that 1985
[1:00:20] ordinance, even though there is
[1:00:22] no facial reference to 1,500,
[1:00:24] it's still there because the
[1:00:25] ellipses preserved it. If you
[1:00:27] went around this chamber right
[1:00:29] now and asked people
[1:00:30] in this audience,
[1:00:32] what do the ellipses mean?
[1:00:33] Most of them could tell you.
[1:00:34] Mr. Edwards is not a lawyer,
[1:00:36] and that's the reference which
[1:00:39] Mr. Spence skews. On the
[1:00:41] September 18th Open Meetings
[1:00:43] Act agenda,
[1:00:47] there was not a quorum. Mr.
[1:00:50] Edwards didn't set that agenda,
[1:00:52] but the Alcohol Commission
[1:00:54] could not do its business
[1:00:55] because they didn't have a
[1:00:57] quorum, and Ms. Fullylove
[1:00:58] announced to the audience We
[1:01:00] don't have a quorum. We will
[1:01:02] try
[1:01:03] to canvass our members and find
[1:01:04] out when we have a majority,
[1:01:06] and then we will reconvene. If
[1:01:07] you have something
[1:01:09] on the agenda and you want
[1:01:10] to be heard, let us know. Mr.
[1:01:12] Edwards was there, heard that,
[1:01:14] and he appeared by Zoom
[1:01:16] on the 20th. Not anything that
[1:01:19] he did. The Alcohol Commission
[1:01:22] handled a number of items
[1:01:23] at that time. Including voting
[1:01:26] on his application. They voted
[1:01:28] on the opening
[1:01:30] of another liquor store, 321
[1:01:31] South Main. The only person who
[1:01:35] was challenged in Chancery
[1:01:37] Court was Grind Management.
[1:01:40] The other liquor store that was
[1:01:41] approved on that agenda, the
[1:01:43] court said everything is null
[1:01:44] and void. Busters didn't go
[1:01:46] in there and say, oh my God,
[1:01:47] they're opening up,
[1:01:48] it's null and void. That liquor
[1:01:50] store opened 2 to 3 months
[1:01:52] later without incident. What I
[1:01:54] want to say to you now
[1:01:55] before my 15 minutes are up,
[1:01:59] this afternoon we are asking
[1:02:01] this body, which sits not as a
[1:02:03] legislative body
[1:02:05] but as a quasi-judicial body,
[1:02:08] meaning that you act as judges
[1:02:10] without the formal rules but as
[1:02:12] judges making judicial
[1:02:14] decisions, and I want
[1:02:15] to ask you
[1:02:16] to dismiss this petition for 3
[1:02:17] reasons. One, Buster's, D
[1:02:22] Wine, and the Liquor Depot have
[1:02:25] no legal standing to appear
[1:02:28] before you and challenge this
[1:02:29] application or challenge the
[1:02:30] actions of the Alcohol
[1:02:33] Commission. They have no injury
[1:02:35] in fact or law. There is
[1:02:37] nothing that they could do
[1:02:39] before January 6th when this
[1:02:41] was approved that they could
[1:02:43] not do afterwards or now. They
[1:02:44] have no cognizable injury.
[1:02:47] Mr. Spence is a brilliant
[1:02:49] lawyer. He is well esteemed,
[1:02:52] but his esteem and his
[1:02:53] brilliance cannot create legal
[1:02:55] standing in a court of law or
[1:02:57] before a quasi-judicial body.
[1:03:00] The other thing is, as I said,
[1:03:02] there is no injury in fact.
[1:03:03] They cannot come in here,
[1:03:07] even though they mention
[1:03:08] Woodland Presbyterian, they
[1:03:10] cannot invoke the jurisdiction
[1:03:11] of Woodland Presbyterian church
[1:03:14] or school in order
[1:03:15] to get standing. They simply
[1:03:16] have none. They are
[1:03:17] non-parties,
[1:03:19] and a non-party cannot come in
[1:03:22] and challenge this application.
[1:03:24] In the statute, it provides
[1:03:26] for a right of appeal,
[1:03:28] but that right of appeal is
[1:03:29] for the applicant. Buster's,
[1:03:31] D. Wine's, and the Liquor
[1:03:33] Depot were not applicants.
[1:03:35] There are people who come in
[1:03:37] here every time you have a
[1:03:38] meeting and seek to speak.
[1:03:40] They fill out a card.
[1:03:42] But that filling out a card and
[1:03:43] speaking does not give them the
[1:03:44] right to step into a court
[1:03:45] of law and sue your action.
[1:03:47] Mr. Spence argues a pseudo-good
[1:03:48] government argument. The
[1:03:50] Supreme Court has said that the
[1:03:51] person who comes
[1:03:53] in and gets standing to
[1:03:54] challenge a petition must not
[1:03:56] have a generalized right that
[1:03:58] every other citizen would have.
[1:04:00] They have
[1:04:01] to have some special injury.
[1:04:03] If you ask Mr. Spence, what is
[1:04:05] the injury that Buster
[1:04:08] suffered? The answer's got
[1:04:10] to be none. What is the injury
[1:04:12] that D. Wine suffered? None.
[1:04:15] What is the injury that the
[1:04:17] Wine Depot suffered? None.
[1:04:20] This is a spurious and ongoing
[1:04:22] campaign to keep Mr. Edwards
[1:04:24] and Grind Management
[1:04:26] from opening their store. I
[1:04:28] want to quickly go through the
[1:04:29] presentation now because I want
[1:04:30] to show you a couple
[1:04:31] of things. I want to talk
[1:04:33] to you about investments in
[1:04:34] Memphis. So why are we here?
[1:04:36] We're here because Busters and
[1:04:38] those other appellants do not
[1:04:41] want lawful competition. They
[1:04:43] do not want this man to open.
[1:04:45] They want to try to bury him.
[1:04:47] The station has been open for
[1:04:48] 5 months,
[1:04:50] and if you today accede
[1:04:52] to their request, what do you
[1:04:53] get if you go back and overrule
[1:04:55] the, the Alcohol Commission's
[1:05:00] action, which was based
[1:05:01] on substantial evidence. What
[1:05:04] does that do for you? What does
[1:05:06] it get? It gets nothing because
[1:05:10] the Alcohol Commission did not
[1:05:12] issue a final order. They only
[1:05:13] made a recommendation to
[1:05:15] Mayor Young. Mayor Young then
[1:05:18] reviewed that recommendation
[1:05:20] and sent it to the state. The
[1:05:22] state of Tennessee is the
[1:05:24] licensing authority and that
[1:05:25] issued that license,
[1:05:27] which gave Mr. Edwards a
[1:05:28] property right
[1:05:29] in that license. So if you,
[1:05:31] if you today say, okay,
[1:05:33] they didn't have authority,
[1:05:34] what do you do then? Do you sue
[1:05:35] Mayor Young in his official
[1:05:37] capacity and ask him to revoke
[1:05:39] or rescind his certificate
[1:05:40] of compliance? A suit against
[1:05:44] Mayor Young in his official
[1:05:45] capacity is a suit
[1:05:47] against the City of Memphis.
[1:05:48] What does that get? Do you go
[1:05:49] over to Chancery Court where
[1:05:51] Mr., Mr. Hammond and Busters has
[1:05:53] already filed an action
[1:05:55] against Mr. Edwards. Do you
[1:05:56] step into those shoes and try
[1:05:58] to prosecute an action
[1:06:00] against yourselves, the city
[1:06:01] of Memphis, there? Or does
[1:06:03] Memphis go to Davidson County
[1:06:04] in Nashville and file an action
[1:06:06] in chancery court
[1:06:08] to try and strip him
[1:06:10] of his license? I say no. This
[1:06:13] is the station. You can see
[1:06:14] it's alive and going. It's been
[1:06:16] going now for about 5 months.
[1:06:19] The Memphis Alcohol
[1:06:20] Commission,
[1:06:21] after a full hearing spanning
[1:06:23] 2 full days, found that
[1:06:24] Grind's 2025 application
[1:06:26] complied with all local state
[1:06:28] laws and ordinances. The
[1:06:30] Memphis mayor signed the
[1:06:31] ordinance. The Tennessee
[1:06:33] Alcoholic Beverage Commission
[1:06:35] granted a license
[1:06:36] after their own investigation.
[1:06:38] So today you should reject this
[1:06:39] appeal, dismiss it, and tell
[1:06:42] Busters and, and their cohorts
[1:06:44] to leave this man alone and let
[1:06:46] him run his business and
[1:06:48] contribute to the fabric
[1:06:49] of this city. The survey,
[1:06:51] this is what we presented
[1:06:52] to the Alcohol Commission,
[1:06:54] which is the only real survey
[1:06:56] in the packet. This was done
[1:06:58] by the Reed Survey. Greg
[1:07:00] Markham, a licensed surveyor,
[1:07:02] is here this afternoon. He
[1:07:05] testified before the Alcohol
[1:07:06] Commission. They questioned
[1:07:07] him. That is the survey. You
[1:07:09] see,
[1:07:10] they told you what people said.
[1:07:12] It doesn't matter what anybody
[1:07:13] said. The only thing that
[1:07:14] matters is the language in the
[1:07:17] ordinance that this body
[1:07:18] promulgated. And that,
[1:07:21] that ordinance specifies 2
[1:07:23] methodologies, one
[1:07:25] for a small, maybe single
[1:07:27] storefront,
[1:07:28] and the other one that relates
[1:07:30] to a commercial establishment
[1:07:31] greater than 2 acres
[1:07:33] with multi tenants on that.
[1:07:36] That is the measurement that
[1:07:38] the other people did not use.
[1:07:40] One thing that Mr. Spence put
[1:07:41] up there as a, as a,
[1:07:42] as a survey is something by
[1:07:43] Greg Williamson with the city
[1:07:44] Williams, I believe,
[1:07:46] and it says spatially,
[1:07:48] this is not a survey.
[1:07:51] For a survey,
[1:07:52] see a professional surveyor.
[1:07:53] So Greg Markham put
[1:07:55] in the only real survey.
[1:07:57] There's the language up there.
[1:07:59] I know we don't have a lot
[1:08:00] of time, so I'm not going
[1:08:01] to go through that right now,
[1:08:02] but if we have some rebuttal,
[1:08:03] I'll come back. Keep going. So
[1:08:07] the measurement methodology,
[1:08:08] I want you to think about
[1:08:10] Those of you who've gone to
[1:08:11] Wolfchase, think about all
[1:08:12] of a sudden Macy's being
[1:08:14] transformed
[1:08:17] into a liquor establishment.
[1:08:19] So according to Mr. Spence, if
[1:08:20] you wanted
[1:08:21] to measure the distance from
[1:08:22] Macy's to somewhere,
[1:08:23] you would go out
[1:08:24] to either the middle of
[1:08:26] Highway 64 and begin your
[1:08:27] measurement, or you would go
[1:08:28] out to the middle of
[1:08:29] Germantown Parkway and begin
[1:08:30] that. That is ludicrous. Your
[1:08:32] ordinance in your language says
[1:08:34] that you start in the front
[1:08:37] of the building and you,
[1:08:40] you go along a public or
[1:08:41] private street,
[1:08:43] private street being defined
[1:08:45] to be a private passageway
[1:08:47] for vehicles. There are all
[1:08:49] kinds of passageways, but this
[1:08:50] one is a private passageway
[1:08:52] for vehicles. And so that's
[1:08:54] what Greg Markham did. He went
[1:08:57] to the front of the,
[1:08:59] the building and measured
[1:09:00] from there, and he made the
[1:09:01] appropriate turns And he
[1:09:04] yielded a distance of 1,559.37
[1:09:07] feet, which is
[1:09:10] within the ordinance distance.
[1:09:14] Just a couple
[1:09:15] of other things that I want to,
[1:09:17] want to tell you. I don't know
[1:09:21] how much time I have,
[1:09:23] but I want to tell you that
[1:09:24] in the time,
[1:09:26] the short time that Mr.
[1:09:27] Edwards has been
[1:09:29] in operation, He employs 26
[1:09:31] full-time employees and 4
[1:09:33] part-timers. 70%
[1:09:35] of those employees are
[1:09:36] from the city of Memphis. He
[1:09:38] has yielded a payroll of
[1:09:41] $700, pardon me, $661,596
[1:09:45] to date. He estimates
[1:09:47] by year's end it'll be
[1:09:49] $788,000. He has spent more
[1:09:54] than $213,000 with women and
[1:09:57] minority business owners. He's
[1:10:01] invested some $1.262 million
[1:10:03] in facility upgrades
[1:10:04] to get this station going. He
[1:10:08] is
[1:10:09] at this time estimating that
[1:10:10] in 2027 he will,
[1:10:14] will contribute some $730,255
[1:10:17] in taxes. That's state, county,
[1:10:20] and city. He is
[1:10:23] about the business of making
[1:10:25] this enterprise work. I know
[1:10:27] I'm getting close to the end,
[1:10:28] so let me just say this
[1:10:33] to you. Mr. Edwards wakes up
[1:10:35] every day mission-focused,
[1:10:37] going to find
[1:10:38] out what he can do to make his
[1:10:40] business successful,
[1:10:41] what he can do to improve,
[1:10:42] what he can do to contribute
[1:10:43] to the fabric of this city. He
[1:10:46] has been pelted and whipsawed
[1:10:48] and accused and maligned by
[1:10:50] individuals who simply do not
[1:10:52] want competition, which is what
[1:10:53] this country is based on,
[1:10:55] competition,
[1:10:56] lawful competition. He spent
[1:10:59] his life, his time, his talent,
[1:11:01] his treasure. He's exhausted
[1:11:02] his family trying to secure a
[1:11:04] safe and prosperous business
[1:11:06] that currently employs the
[1:11:07] people that I've told you.
[1:11:10] He's never sued Busters, D.
[1:11:12] Wines, or Wine and Liquors.
[1:11:13] He's been keeping his head
[1:11:15] down building that business.
[1:11:17] There is no case here. Tell
[1:11:20] Busters and their colleagues
[1:11:23] it's time to stop. It's time
[1:11:25] to stop this man from draining
[1:11:27] his resources trying
[1:11:31] to further a lawsuit
[1:11:32] to keep him out
[1:11:33] of business. I want
[1:11:34] to leave you with one story.
[1:11:36] There's a story that many
[1:11:37] of you have heard
[1:11:38] about a sage who lived
[1:11:39] in a community, Dr. Warren.
[1:11:42] She was blind.
[1:11:44] But she was wise. These boys,
[1:11:45] these young boys who were full
[1:11:47] of mischief, they decided that
[1:11:49] they were going to trick her.
[1:11:52] They said, we're going
[1:11:53] to get a bird and we're going
[1:11:55] to go to her and we're going
[1:11:57] to say, woman, we have
[1:11:58] in our hands a bird. We want
[1:12:01] you to tell us whether the bird
[1:12:02] is living or dead. And their
[1:12:04] plan was if she said living,
[1:12:07] they were going to close their
[1:12:08] hands and crush it. If she said
[1:12:11] dead, they were going to open
[1:12:12] their hands and let it fly
[1:12:13] away,
[1:12:15] and she could hear the flapping
[1:12:16] of the wings. And so they came
[1:12:17] to her and they said,
[1:12:18] we have a bird, Councilman
[1:12:21] Walker. What, what,
[1:12:23] tell us the status. And she
[1:12:24] said, I don't know,
[1:12:32] but the bird's fate is in your
[1:12:35] hands. I don't know whether
[1:12:37] Mr. Edwards will succeed or
[1:12:40] fail in his business. I don't
[1:12:42] know whether it will become one
[1:12:43] of the leading liquor
[1:12:44] establishments in this
[1:12:45] community. I don't know that.
[1:12:46] What I do know is that he
[1:12:48] deserves the opportunity
[1:12:49] to try, and his opportunity,
[1:12:52] whatever that end may be,
[1:12:56] his opportunity is
[1:12:58] in your hands. Do not deny him
[1:13:00] that opportunity. Because
[1:13:03] someone is afraid
[1:13:04] of competition. Thank you.
[1:13:14] Thumbs up, thumbs down. We do
[1:13:16] have one card, and then
[1:13:19] Attorney Wade will get you
[1:13:20] to give us some clarification.
[1:13:25] Samuel Fogestine. I yield my
[1:13:30] time, yield my comment. Thank
[1:13:32] you. Okay. All right. All
[1:13:35] right. Attorney Wade, if you
[1:13:37] will offer some clarification,
[1:13:43] please. I'll do my best. The,
[1:13:47] the only issue, I mean,
[1:13:49] this is the second appeal we've
[1:13:51] had,
[1:13:52] alcohol appeal we've had. One
[1:13:54] of them was denied because the
[1:13:58] Alcohol Commission determined
[1:13:59] that they did not meet the
[1:14:00] distance requirement. And we
[1:14:03] heard the appeal, and I told
[1:14:05] you then that the only issue
[1:14:07] that you decide is whether or
[1:14:09] not the application meets the
[1:14:11] distance requirement. You've
[1:14:15] heard a lot of arguments
[1:14:17] about standing, noncompetitive,
[1:14:19] how much people make. Those
[1:14:21] arguments are irrelevant. The
[1:14:23] ordinance provides that the
[1:14:28] City Commission shall decide
[1:14:31] the restriction. The City
[1:14:33] Commission, when this ordinance
[1:14:35] was adopted, was composed of 5
[1:14:36] members, one
[1:14:39] of whom was the mayor. That
[1:14:42] provision, as far as I can
[1:14:44] tell, has never been changed.
[1:14:47] So ultimately you would have to
[1:14:49] make the decision even though
[1:14:51] the mayor has, and the
[1:14:53] Alcohol Commission has decided
[1:14:56] that it does or it doesn't.
[1:14:58] The Alcohol Commission is an
[1:15:00] administrative body. It does
[1:15:02] not have the, the power to
[1:15:06] write ordinances or make
[1:15:07] legislative decisions. The
[1:15:09] mayor is administrative or
[1:15:10] executive. He doesn't either.
[1:15:13] But I think what it requires is
[1:15:14] concurrence of 2 parties
[1:15:15] to make that decision.
[1:15:18] On the issue
[1:15:19] of standing, I looked at that
[1:15:21] and that's not an issue. I
[1:15:22] think that's a legal issue that
[1:15:23] they can take up in court,
[1:15:25] and I believe a court would
[1:15:27] want to know what this body's
[1:15:31] interpretation of its own
[1:15:33] ordinance was and whether it
[1:15:34] applied to this application. I
[1:15:38] could argue that the alcohol
[1:15:41] ordinance has a limit of 163
[1:15:48] potential liquor stores
[1:15:49] within the city. So
[1:15:52] on its face, I think it's
[1:15:53] anti-competitive because not
[1:15:54] everybody can have a liquor
[1:15:56] store. So I think Buster's
[1:15:58] argument was that, well,
[1:16:00] we've complied with the law,
[1:16:02] they should comply
[1:16:03] with the law. That's not
[1:16:04] for y'all to decide. All you're
[1:16:06] deciding is the literal
[1:16:07] question
[1:16:09] of whether it complies with
[1:16:10] with Section 4-5,
[1:16:12] the 1,500-foot.
[1:16:14] Unfortunately, what I heard
[1:16:17] tonight from both sides did not
[1:16:20] present that precise issue
[1:16:23] to you. I would have liked
[1:16:26] to have seen more detail about
[1:16:28] what the station has done and
[1:16:33] what their position is
[1:16:34] on that particular issue. How
[1:16:36] have they configured their
[1:16:38] property to be within the
[1:16:40] 1,500 feet? Does that fly?
[1:16:42] Does it not fly? So you,
[1:16:43] you haven't seen any of that.
[1:16:46] You haven't seen any
[1:16:47] of those facts. So I don't know
[1:16:49] how I can give more clarity
[1:16:52] unless somebody wants
[1:16:54] to ask him
[1:16:55] to provide specifics
[1:16:57] on those two,
[1:16:58] on that specific issue. That's
[1:16:59] all we want to know. How is it
[1:17:01] laid out? Show us how it meets
[1:17:03] it. Argue why it doesn't. Y'all
[1:17:06] make the decision one way or
[1:17:08] the other. It's simple. It's
[1:17:09] not hard. It's not into all
[1:17:11] of what the history was. The
[1:17:13] ordinance is the ordinance. It
[1:17:15] is in effect,
[1:17:18] and everybody has to comply
[1:17:19] with it. So we need
[1:17:20] to know why they think they do,
[1:17:22] why they think they don't, and
[1:17:24] you decide which side you
[1:17:26] believe has made the case. So I
[1:17:28] think you've got
[1:17:30] to hear a little more
[1:17:31] from them on though on that
[1:17:33] particular issue. I don't want
[1:17:34] to hear about how much money
[1:17:35] and what a great guy and how
[1:17:37] well he wakes up every day and
[1:17:38] looks for looks for gold. We
[1:17:40] need
[1:17:42] to know those specific facts.
[1:17:44] Those facts have no
[1:17:45] personality. They are what they
[1:17:46] are. They are hard, cold,
[1:17:49] black and white. Let's hear
[1:17:51] those. Make the decision up or
[1:17:53] down. That's my recommendation.
[1:17:55] Let's hear that. Can we do that
[1:17:56] with 5 minutes on each side?
[1:17:58] Can we do that in 5 minutes?
[1:18:00] And then we'll hear
[1:18:01] from the council. Okay,
[1:18:03] Councilman, before he comes.
[1:18:05] So before each
[1:18:07] of you present echo what
[1:18:09] Attorney Wade said,
[1:18:10] but I also want
[1:18:13] to know particularly because
[1:18:14] Attorney Wade said,
[1:18:15] how are you currently
[1:18:16] complying, but I do want
[1:18:18] to know was any alterations
[1:18:19] made
[1:18:22] after the initial application
[1:18:24] to the Alcohol Commission. So
[1:18:25] that's it for me,
[1:18:26] but I look forward to hearing
[1:18:27] the arguments because I'm
[1:18:28] thoroughly enjoying this
[1:18:29] masterclass of attorney work
[1:18:31] today. I don't know what,
[1:18:32] what order y'all want
[1:18:34] to do it, but it may be that
[1:18:35] you might want
[1:18:36] to show what your situation is,
[1:18:40] and I don't know,
[1:18:41] however y'all want to agree
[1:18:42] to do it, I don't care.
[1:18:43] Councilman Warren, did you want
[1:18:44] to say something? Do you think
[1:18:45] that makes sense for y'all
[1:18:46] to go first? Well, they speak.
[1:18:47] Did you want
[1:18:48] to say something? Go ahead. I
[1:18:51] just have a question. There was
[1:18:53] a guy named Gerald that was
[1:18:56] mentioned a little bit earlier.
[1:18:58] I don't know who he was. He was
[1:19:00] mentioned by Councilman Spence
[1:19:03] a couple times referring to
[1:19:04] Gerald. And as I recall,
[1:19:09] when we first heard
[1:19:10] about this thing, it had,
[1:19:12] we had like,
[1:19:13] we hadn't updated our
[1:19:16] ordinances for a while,
[1:19:17] and we had like some 1980s
[1:19:19] version that sort of omitted,
[1:19:22] I guess, this 1500. And it's
[1:19:25] almost
[1:19:26] like that's what was presented
[1:19:27] to the Alcohol Commission. So I
[1:19:29] guess part of this is,
[1:19:31] as we're sitting here,
[1:19:32] I know we're supposed
[1:19:33] to interpret the law,
[1:19:34] but we're also judges. And
[1:19:35] judges sort
[1:19:37] of interpret the law based on
[1:19:38] the situation when you're
[1:19:39] there. So I just need
[1:19:40] to know what our leeway is,
[1:19:41] and I want to know who Gerald
[1:19:43] is and what he said. Thank you
[1:19:48] Councilman Green and Madam
[1:19:49] Chair. I don't know who Gerald
[1:19:51] is either. Can I speak to.
[1:20:17] Councilor Warren, I think
[1:20:18] whoever.
[1:20:20] Councilor Warren,
[1:20:22] regardless of who Gerald is,
[1:20:23] that still doesn't have
[1:20:24] anything to do with the 1,500
[1:20:25] feet. Okay.
[1:20:47] I go second. I go
[1:20:48] second. I go second. Well, I
[1:20:55] had a presentation that dealt
[1:20:57] with this issue. I just didn't
[1:20:58] get to get to it. So I thought
[1:21:07] we had 20 minutes,
[1:21:09] but anyway, I'm just,
[1:21:14] are they ready or you ready
[1:21:33] to vote? Yeah, yeah, yeah,
[1:21:58] yeah, yeah, yeah.
[1:24:16] Okay, Council, are we ready?
[1:24:36] All right, Madam Controller, if
[1:24:37] you'll put 5 minutes
[1:24:38] on the screen and we're going
[1:24:39] to go ahead and get started.
[1:24:43] Oh, all right.
[1:24:57] All right. Madam Chairman.
[1:24:59] Okay, so the rules will be.
[1:25:01] Okay.
[1:25:02] each side will explain
[1:25:04] factually what's, what's their
[1:25:10] and what's not there. Okay,
[1:25:12] period. And then based
[1:25:13] on that,
[1:25:14] you will make a decision. We
[1:25:15] don't want opinions and expert
[1:25:16] opinions and so
[1:25:18] on and so forth. We want facts,
[1:25:19] basically those 2 facts, what's
[1:25:21] there and what's not there.
[1:25:24] Attorney Spence, would you
[1:25:25] like to begin? Yes. Madam
[1:25:30] Comptroller, if you would
[1:25:31] please put 5 minutes
[1:25:32] on the screen. Tow down here.
[1:26:03] All right,
[1:26:05] as I understand the question
[1:26:06] in the area of inquiry,
[1:26:08] it concerns what's there now.
[1:26:12] And my time ran out. This is my
[1:26:16] next slide. All right, so
[1:26:18] on this slide we can see what
[1:26:21] Mr. Edwards submitted
[1:26:23] with his second application.
[1:26:27] And you can see that every
[1:26:30] other survey measured
[1:26:34] along those blue dots
[1:26:36] from the front of the building
[1:26:37] to the street
[1:26:38] on which it fronts, which is
[1:26:42] White Station, down White
[1:26:45] Station to Park, turn on
[1:26:47] White Station, and it is the
[1:26:50] distance is less than 1,500
[1:26:54] feet. Well, what Mr. Edwards
[1:26:58] did in his new submission,
[1:27:00] knowing that, that, that what
[1:27:04] he submitted the first time had
[1:27:05] been discovered, he then,
[1:27:08] as opposed to measuring
[1:27:10] from the front of the store
[1:27:12] to the street
[1:27:13] on which it fronts, he started
[1:27:16] through the parking lot. And
[1:27:19] measured through,
[1:27:21] through his own parking lot
[1:27:22] to try
[1:27:23] to get more distance for, so
[1:27:27] that he could meet the
[1:27:28] proximity distance requirement.
[1:27:30] And so that's what the
[1:27:33] Memphis Alcohol Commission
[1:27:35] approved,
[1:27:36] and that is inconsistent
[1:27:38] with the ordinance. That is
[1:27:40] inconsistent
[1:27:41] with the ordinance. So the
[1:27:49] ordinance requires 1,500 feet
[1:27:52] from the front entrance
[1:27:54] to the street centerline,
[1:27:57] the blue dot. That's what the
[1:28:00] ordinance requires. That was,
[1:28:02] that's what Mr. Edwards
[1:28:04] submitted
[1:28:05] in his first application.
[1:28:07] That's what his attorney told
[1:28:08] him it required. But
[1:28:11] in his new application, he
[1:28:14] ignored all that advice again
[1:28:20] and ran or started his survey
[1:28:21] by running it
[1:28:22] through his parking lot, not
[1:28:25] to the front of the street as
[1:28:26] all the applications,
[1:28:28] as all the surveys require,
[1:28:30] but
[1:28:32] through his own parking lot,
[1:28:34] claiming that his parking lot
[1:28:37] was a private drive,
[1:28:39] was a private drive. And as
[1:28:42] this council is well aware, and
[1:28:44] a private street the UDC speaks
[1:28:48] to what is a private street.
[1:28:55] 5.2.17, a private street must
[1:29:00] be labeled on the final plat
[1:29:03] and be assigned as such. You
[1:29:06] have to have a lot and a block
[1:29:08] number. That doesn't exist
[1:29:09] here. The second requirement is
[1:29:12] that it must be constructed to
[1:29:16] equal or exceed the base
[1:29:18] materials compaction and final
[1:29:20] surfacing standards
[1:29:22] for public streets as certified
[1:29:24] by the city engineer. That
[1:29:27] doesn't exist here. And
[1:29:29] thirdly,
[1:29:31] it must be owned and maintained
[1:29:33] by property owners association.
[1:29:36] Because the street doesn't
[1:29:38] exist, nobody owns it. It's a
[1:29:40] nonexistent street. So Mr.
[1:29:47] Edwards' attempt to claim that
[1:29:50] his own parking lot is a
[1:29:53] private street where he can
[1:29:58] measure between and
[1:30:00] among parking spaces to try
[1:30:02] to creep out more distance
[1:30:04] in order to meet the proximity
[1:30:06] distance requirement does not
[1:30:09] work and violates your
[1:30:12] ordinance. The final thing I'll
[1:30:18] say If the methodology that
[1:30:24] Mr. Edwards is relying
[1:30:31] on is approved,
[1:30:32] it won't just be approved
[1:30:34] for him. It'll be approved
[1:30:36] for every future individual
[1:30:40] like Mr. Edwards who wants
[1:30:41] to own a liquor store. They'll
[1:30:45] be able to measure through
[1:30:46] their own parking lot draw
[1:30:50] lines
[1:30:51] through their own parking lot
[1:30:53] to create the 1,500-foot
[1:30:56] distance requirement. Every
[1:30:58] church, every school
[1:30:59] in this community will be
[1:31:01] at risk to being next door
[1:31:03] to a liquor store. My 5 minutes
[1:31:08] are up. Thank you. Thumbs up,
[1:31:19] thumbs down, please. Madam
[1:31:24] Comptroller, if you will please
[1:31:26] put 5 minutes on the screen.
[1:31:32] Yes. Good evening, Council.
[1:31:36] Mark Jobe of Glankler Brown one
[1:31:37] of the attorneys working for
[1:31:39] Mr. Edwards. The opponents just
[1:31:44] gave you a bunch
[1:31:45] of definitions and references
[1:31:47] to an ordinance that does not
[1:31:49] control. This is not governed
[1:31:51] by the UDC. The UDC is not the
[1:31:53] controlling ordinance. As we
[1:31:54] established in court, Section
[1:31:56] 4-5 of the 1985 Memphis City
[1:31:58] Code is the controlling
[1:32:00] ordinance. A private street is
[1:32:02] defined in that ordinance. It
[1:32:04] is defined as highlighted
[1:32:05] above. It's a private
[1:32:07] passageway for vehicles in a
[1:32:09] multi-establishment commercial
[1:32:10] area of at least 2 acres
[1:32:12] in size. That is precisely what
[1:32:14] we have here. White Station
[1:32:17] Plaza is 4.953 acres. It's
[1:32:20] zoned commercial mixed-use. It
[1:32:21] hosts 3 tenants. Gold's Gym,
[1:32:23] Mosa, and The Station. The
[1:32:25] passageway serves all
[1:32:27] of the tenants. It is not Mr.
[1:32:28] Edwards' drive. It is not Mr.
[1:32:30] Edwards' property. And the
[1:32:32] point of commencement was
[1:32:34] properly done
[1:32:35] on the survey performed
[1:32:37] by the Reeves firm. It's really
[1:32:39] as simple as that. When you,
[1:32:41] you take the point
[1:32:43] of commencement in front
[1:32:44] of the store
[1:32:46] along the private passageway in
[1:32:48] this multi-tenant commercial
[1:32:49] center and then proceed not
[1:32:53] in a straight line
[1:32:54] along the centerline
[1:32:55] from that point
[1:32:57] of commencement out
[1:32:58] to the public street,
[1:32:59] not the private street,
[1:33:00] and then
[1:33:01] along the remaining centerlines
[1:33:03] of streets and intersecting
[1:33:04] streets. That was established
[1:33:05] in court. We have followed the
[1:33:07] ordinance to a T, word
[1:33:09] by word, and outlined it
[1:33:10] in our presentation. Not only
[1:33:13] that, Buster's used this same
[1:33:18] methodology,
[1:33:21] the same private drive
[1:33:23] methodology,
[1:33:24] to open its second store in
[1:33:25] Ridgeway Trace. The survey
[1:33:28] included as part of that
[1:33:30] application is attached. It
[1:33:32] starts in the private drive,
[1:33:34] the private passageway
[1:33:35] for commercial, or for
[1:33:37] Vehicular travel, travel in a
[1:33:40] multi-establishment commercial
[1:33:41] area out to Poplar and up and
[1:33:43] down the street. This is not
[1:33:45] novel. It is the methodology
[1:33:47] they used. More so, Mr. Spence
[1:33:54] warns
[1:33:55] of liquor stores proliferating.
[1:33:56] There's a cap on the number
[1:33:57] of liquor stores, and frankly,
[1:34:00] the citizens of Memphis should
[1:34:01] be allowed
[1:34:02] to follow the plain language
[1:34:04] of the ordinance. Now, we went
[1:34:05] through a long rigmarole
[1:34:06] about that last year
[1:34:07] with another application, but
[1:34:09] this application follows the
[1:34:10] ordinance exactly as it's
[1:34:12] written. Not only that,
[1:34:15] as part of the Buster's
[1:34:16] submission in 2023
[1:34:18] to open its second store,
[1:34:20] they got an opinion letter
[1:34:21] from Josh Whitehead, former
[1:34:23] planning director,
[1:34:24] who analyzes this same section.
[1:34:27] In his opinion, he states,
[1:34:28] and this was accepted
[1:34:30] by the MAC and the mayor, The
[1:34:32] 1,500 feet of churches,
[1:34:33] schools, parks, playgrounds, or
[1:34:34] liquor libraries and other
[1:34:36] liquor stores as measured along
[1:34:37] the street or private parking
[1:34:39] lot aisle
[1:34:40] for shopping centers, 2-acre
[1:34:42] areas, but it should be acres
[1:34:43] from the midpoint
[1:34:45] of the front facade of the
[1:34:46] proposed liquor store that
[1:34:48] faces the street
[1:34:49] of the property line
[1:34:50] of a church, school, park,
[1:34:51] library, or playground. It's
[1:34:54] the same methodology. It's not
[1:34:56] new. And we are here defending
[1:34:58] it. We went through, we got
[1:35:01] through the court case, we
[1:35:02] followed the ordinance exactly
[1:35:04] as it's written, and here we
[1:35:06] are again being challenged.
[1:35:08] But again, we have evidence.
[1:35:09] We've shown the MAC over 2 days
[1:35:11] of hearings exactly how we
[1:35:13] follow the ordinance,
[1:35:14] and we've exhibited it
[1:35:16] to you here today. Not only
[1:35:17] that,
[1:35:18] we've shown you how it was used
[1:35:19] by the, quote, opposition in
[1:35:21] their application just a few
[1:35:23] years ago. Thank you. Thumbs
[1:35:32] up, thumbs down. You have a
[1:35:34] minute left. Did you want
[1:35:35] to add anything? You don't want
[1:35:37] to add anything, Judge Donald?
[1:35:39] I, I think they're done,
[1:35:41] Madam Chair. Okay. All right,
[1:35:44] Councilwoman Green, you're
[1:35:46] recognized. You're
[1:35:47] in the queue. Thank you,
[1:35:49] Chair. Attorney Wade so we've
[1:35:52] gotten a citation of the Muni
[1:35:55] Code and we've gotten a
[1:35:56] citation of the definition
[1:35:58] in the UDC. Can you speak
[1:36:01] to the council about which is
[1:36:03] the controlling law that we
[1:36:06] should be looking at as we make
[1:36:09] this factual determination? I
[1:36:14] really don't know the answer
[1:36:16] to that question.
[1:36:17] To be honest,
[1:36:18] I think it's that's a question,
[1:36:21] ordinances, that is a question
[1:36:23] of, of interpretation,
[1:36:25] and I think that's something
[1:36:26] for the court to determine.
[1:36:28] The issue before you is solely
[1:36:29] on 4-5 of the, the code
[1:36:32] of ordinances,
[1:36:35] of the ordinance. So that's my
[1:36:36] question, is our ordinances
[1:36:39] speak specifically
[1:36:41] to the laws we want
[1:36:42] to enforce. The UDC,
[1:36:45] we've adopted it,
[1:36:47] but it is more broad
[1:36:49] in scope, right? No, I think it
[1:36:51] controls your decisions as
[1:36:53] well. I think you may use the
[1:36:57] UDC as, I mean, sometimes as a
[1:37:01] persuasive authority
[1:37:03] for how you would interpret it,
[1:37:05] but it's still your judgment as
[1:37:06] to how you interpret 4-5. And I
[1:37:08] will commend the parties that
[1:37:11] they basically did what I
[1:37:13] wanted them to do,
[1:37:15] was crystallize the 2 positions
[1:37:16] before you, whether 4-5
[1:37:19] controls, or whether what the
[1:37:24] applicant did in terms
[1:37:28] of I don't want
[1:37:31] to say anything derogatory, but
[1:37:32] create a position that they
[1:37:34] view as a private drive,
[1:37:36] and the question is, Is it a
[1:37:38] private drive or isn't it?
[1:37:39] Right. And so that's why I'm
[1:37:40] asking you
[1:37:42] about the definition
[1:37:43] of a private drive, because it
[1:37:44] appears they are different
[1:37:45] in the UDC and
[1:37:46] in the ordinance. And so I
[1:37:48] would like to know, when we're
[1:37:49] making this determination of
[1:37:52] fact as a quasi-judicial body,
[1:37:55] we are only to be looking at
[1:37:57] the ordinance because that is
[1:37:59] what we are deciding
[1:38:00] on today. Correct? That is
[1:38:02] correct. Okay. And look, I
[1:38:05] think we all are frustrated and
[1:38:07] would love
[1:38:08] for the alcohol commissioner to
[1:38:09] be here so that we could have
[1:38:11] some words with them,
[1:38:12] because none
[1:38:13] of us would be here having
[1:38:14] to do this. But I just wanted
[1:38:16] to make sure that as we're
[1:38:17] looking at this, we're looking
[1:38:19] at the right definition so that
[1:38:20] we can make the determination
[1:38:22] of fact based
[1:38:23] on that definition. Yeah, I
[1:38:24] think you are. But I think
[1:38:25] you've raised an issue that I
[1:38:28] have. I've been involved and
[1:38:30] I've looked
[1:38:31] at this thing hours and hours.
[1:38:34] And my, I mean, it's basically
[1:38:36] a land use restriction. And,
[1:38:38] and I would suggest that we
[1:38:40] look, look hard
[1:38:42] at making it have to have a
[1:38:44] special use permit and go
[1:38:45] through the UTC where we have a
[1:38:47] record. We don't have,
[1:38:50] we have people with expertise
[1:38:51] in making those kind
[1:38:53] of recommendations to us rather
[1:38:54] than an alcohol commissioner.
[1:38:55] We're going to fix this
[1:38:56] on the back end. Yeah, yeah,
[1:38:58] I know. I understand. You're
[1:39:00] preaching my language now.
[1:39:01] Yeah, but right now it creates
[1:39:03] a clear ambiguity. And I think
[1:39:05] that's something a court would
[1:39:06] have to do they would have
[1:39:08] to reconcile the two to see if
[1:39:10] they can stand together or
[1:39:11] they're inconsistent. And I,
[1:39:13] and I don't think that's,
[1:39:15] that's something that you have
[1:39:16] the authority to do. And our
[1:39:17] job today is not to try
[1:39:18] to figure out which is the more
[1:39:19] controlling. Our job today is
[1:39:20] to specifically look
[1:39:22] at the ordinance, the language
[1:39:24] in the ordinance,
[1:39:25] and interpret it based
[1:39:26] on that. Yes. Thank you. Thank
[1:39:27] you, Councilwoman Green.
[1:39:29] Councilman Smiley, and then
[1:39:31] Dr. Warren, you're recognized.
[1:39:32] All right, my question is
[1:39:35] for council for Busters. I
[1:39:37] think council for Edwards
[1:39:40] brought up what I think is a
[1:39:42] pretty good point. I want you
[1:39:45] to talk specifically about how
[1:39:47] do you rectify if it's true
[1:39:51] Buster's doing something
[1:39:52] similar in its second store.
[1:40:01] Councilman Smiley, that
[1:40:04] argument is a red herring.
[1:40:11] Buster's application is
[1:40:14] submitted to the Alcohol
[1:40:16] Commission
[1:40:18] to open up its second store,
[1:40:19] is not before the council. So
[1:40:22] to just lob some argument
[1:40:26] without challenging the
[1:40:28] distance requirement for
[1:40:31] Buster's is erroneous
[1:40:35] in a formal proceeding. So
[1:40:38] at the outset,
[1:40:39] it's a red herring argument.
[1:40:41] But, but beyond that, the 2
[1:40:45] locations are entirely
[1:40:47] different. They're entirely
[1:40:49] different. And so to try
[1:40:52] to compare Buster East's
[1:40:55] location with This location
[1:40:59] that fronts on White Station
[1:41:02] within 30 or 40 yards to
[1:41:08] Buster's East that's back
[1:41:10] in a shopping plaza,
[1:41:11] they're just totally different.
[1:41:14] And so it's difficult for me
[1:41:16] to explain to you all the
[1:41:17] differences that would be
[1:41:19] applicable to the Buster's
[1:41:22] East location, versus this
[1:41:24] location when it has not been
[1:41:27] formally challenged, it wasn't
[1:41:29] before the council, and,
[1:41:32] and if you measure around
[1:41:37] Buster's East 1,500 feet,
[1:41:42] there are no churches,
[1:41:46] there are no schools,
[1:41:47] there are no parks. So It's
[1:41:51] just a difficult thing to do
[1:41:55] without there being a formal
[1:41:56] challenge for me
[1:41:58] to respond to. Just a comment
[1:42:00] off the cuff. I got a question
[1:42:03] for, I got a question
[1:42:06] for council for Edwards. What
[1:42:10] I'm trying to,
[1:42:12] was there an existing driveway
[1:42:14] before, and was that driveway
[1:42:17] being demolished so that the
[1:42:19] the existing driveway is
[1:42:23] in compliance? And if it was,
[1:42:25] does it even matter? Okay, so
[1:42:29] the way that I understand it is
[1:42:34] opposing council's argument
[1:42:36] that is that it's supposed
[1:42:38] to go from the front door
[1:42:40] of the store directly
[1:42:41] to the street. And was it at
[1:42:44] any point a different driveway,
[1:42:47] or is it just a matter of the
[1:42:48] surveyor drawing the line a
[1:42:50] different way because I
[1:42:53] believe, go ahead. After going
[1:42:59] through the litigation,
[1:43:03] modifications were made
[1:43:04] to the site. Okay. If you think
[1:43:07] back years ago when the crime
[1:43:08] was rampant, everything was
[1:43:10] going, and Bell's council can
[1:43:11] speak to this, the northernmost
[1:43:13] and southernmost curb cuts were
[1:43:16] closed with Jersey barriers.
[1:43:20] After the litigation and
[1:43:21] in the fall before this
[1:43:23] application was submitted, the
[1:43:25] landlord modified his site and
[1:43:30] with city approval,
[1:43:32] proper city approval, all city
[1:43:33] approvals, Memphis Fire
[1:43:36] Department involvement,
[1:43:37] they executed that plan. And
[1:43:41] but here the nuance that Mr.
[1:43:44] Spence speaks
[1:43:46] of isn't anywhere
[1:43:48] but the ordinance. The
[1:43:49] differences are not defined
[1:43:50] anywhere else
[1:43:51] but the ordinance. These places
[1:43:52] are not different. Ridgeway
[1:43:54] Trace is not different than
[1:43:55] White Station Plaza as it
[1:43:57] relates to this ordinance. The
[1:44:00] requirements are simple. You
[1:44:03] measure
[1:44:04] from a private passageway
[1:44:05] for vehicles in a
[1:44:06] multi-establishment commercial
[1:44:07] area of more than 2 acres per
[1:44:09] side. That is the same
[1:44:11] qualification to Ridgeway
[1:44:12] Trace. So you start there.
[1:44:14] But yes,
[1:44:15] modifications were made. And I
[1:44:18] alluded to this. This is
[1:44:19] in the record. If, if you are
[1:44:21] building a building or doing
[1:44:23] anything and you get a citation
[1:44:24] from the city,
[1:44:26] you have the right to comply.
[1:44:27] You have a right to comply
[1:44:28] with the ordinance. If you
[1:44:30] pass,
[1:44:31] if you fail your electrical
[1:44:32] inspection, you don't tear the
[1:44:33] building down. You comply
[1:44:35] with the ordinance. You get it
[1:44:36] right. And that's what we've
[1:44:37] done. The ordinance says what
[1:44:38] it says. So what did you do?
[1:44:39] What did you do to comply
[1:44:41] with the ordinance? It? Well,
[1:44:45] there was multiple reasons,
[1:44:46] and again, Bells can speak
[1:44:47] to this if you'd like
[1:44:49] to hear that, or his council.
[1:44:52] The southernmost, well,
[1:44:54] this wasn't really,
[1:44:55] this was done
[1:44:56] for fire compliance, is the
[1:44:57] second entrance was permanently
[1:45:01] shut except
[1:45:02] for fire department use only.
[1:45:06] And the northern curb cut was
[1:45:07] closed And the center curb cut
[1:45:11] was moved to align with the,
[1:45:14] with the across-the-street
[1:45:17] development and to better,
[1:45:19] to better traffic flow,
[1:45:22] if you will. I think my last
[1:45:24] question, and I'm going to let
[1:45:26] some other people ask a
[1:45:27] question. In your opinion,
[1:45:32] does the, what I believe
[1:45:33] to be a modification after the
[1:45:35] fact even matter if it's
[1:45:36] in compliance now? No. Okay,
[1:45:40] that's it for me. Thank you.
[1:45:43] Councilman Warren. Thank you,
[1:45:46] Madam Chair. And I think, we're
[1:45:49] showing our legal expertise
[1:45:51] here today
[1:45:53] on the board. I'm just going
[1:45:54] to come through as a simple
[1:45:55] country family doctor here,
[1:45:58] saying that looking at this,
[1:46:01] it seems to me that we
[1:46:03] shouldn't be here talking
[1:46:05] about this. We need
[1:46:07] to go ahead and think
[1:46:09] about what smells right,
[1:46:11] and we need to vote that way.
[1:46:13] So thank you very much. Thank
[1:46:14] you, Councilman. Councilwoman
[1:46:16] White. I see that our council
[1:46:21] is amused today. Well, first I
[1:46:24] just want
[1:46:25] to say thank both sides
[1:46:27] for their presentations. And
[1:46:28] you all ultimately really did
[1:46:30] get me to, to really
[1:46:31] understanding what was going
[1:46:33] on. So, we appreciate the
[1:46:35] background and the history and
[1:46:36] those things, and thank you,
[1:46:37] Attorney Wade,
[1:46:38] for giving us guidance
[1:46:39] on what our responsibility is
[1:46:41] in kind
[1:46:43] of narrowing the issue. So
[1:46:44] after listening carefully
[1:46:45] to both presentations,
[1:46:46] I just want
[1:46:47] to make sure that I got this.
[1:46:48] So the appellant is arguing
[1:46:49] that the measurement should be
[1:46:50] from the door storefront, and
[1:46:52] then the appellee is arguing
[1:46:54] that the ordinance's own
[1:46:56] definition gives,
[1:46:58] gives the definition
[1:46:59] of private street And that in
[1:47:01] this instance that it applies
[1:47:02] here because it's a
[1:47:04] multi-establishment commercial
[1:47:06] area with a private passageway
[1:47:07] for vehicles, and that's where
[1:47:09] the measurement should start.
[1:47:11] And that the last survey,
[1:47:13] which is the Reeves survey,
[1:47:14] says that it's 1,539 square
[1:47:16] feet. Is that right? The only
[1:47:18] thing I would like
[1:47:19] to correct, it's 1,559.37. I
[1:47:20] would like to correct that the
[1:47:25] appellant is the opposition
[1:47:27] to the station. They appealed
[1:47:29] the MAC's decision
[1:47:30] of approval, right? The, okay,
[1:47:33] right. Okay. All right. Very
[1:47:36] good. Okay. All right. And so
[1:47:39] the, the, what I want
[1:47:40] to make clear though is, well,
[1:47:43] I, I get it. The language in
[1:47:44] the ordinance states private
[1:47:47] drive. Okay, I got it. Sure.
[1:47:53] Can I, can I, thank you,
[1:47:54] Councilwoman White.
[1:47:55] Councilman Spinosa. Thank you,
[1:47:59] Madam Chair. So I'm going
[1:48:00] to ask Attorney Wade. So after
[1:48:03] reading all this last night,
[1:48:05] I have been surprised today.
[1:48:07] So safe
[1:48:08] to say that the first attempt
[1:48:11] to get a license was denied for
[1:48:13] the reasons it was denied and
[1:48:15] explained today, not
[1:48:17] in compliance? With the foot,
[1:48:19] the 1,500-foot rule, correct? I
[1:48:26] think it was denied because the
[1:48:28] approval was void for failure
[1:48:30] to comply with the Open
[1:48:32] Meetings Act, which meant that
[1:48:34] they had to reapply because
[1:48:36] that original one was not,
[1:48:39] was not effective. Okay. And so
[1:48:40] when they came
[1:48:42] with the new one, they changed,
[1:48:44] they modified the site As they
[1:48:46] told you. And so my
[1:48:47] understanding, again,
[1:48:48] what we're voting
[1:48:49] on today is, is it
[1:48:50] in compliance today? Yes. And
[1:48:55] just being honest here,
[1:48:57] I thought one thing
[1:48:58] before I got here today. So
[1:48:59] what's at question is the
[1:49:01] private drive, correct?
[1:49:03] Correct. And what about this as
[1:49:05] far as the private drive goes?
[1:49:07] You go to the center line
[1:49:08] of the street, typically you
[1:49:09] would see a straight line
[1:49:11] from that center line.
[1:49:12] Correct? Yes. And now we've got
[1:49:14] a swerve,
[1:49:16] and that's how we're so close
[1:49:17] to the 1,500-foot rule. He said
[1:49:19] 1,555. So what,
[1:49:21] what we're voting on today is
[1:49:23] the swerve line versus a
[1:49:24] straight line? That's correct.
[1:49:27] How many,
[1:49:28] do we know how many swerve
[1:49:29] lines we've, the alcohol,
[1:49:32] I can't wait to talk
[1:49:33] about the Alcohol Commission at
[1:49:34] our next meeting and then not
[1:49:36] talk about them.
[1:49:37] But all right, so, so what's,
[1:49:39] what's
[1:49:40] before you tonight is a vote
[1:49:42] to approve the appeal. If you
[1:49:46] approve the appeal,
[1:49:47] then you vote in favor of the
[1:49:52] Romulus app. Yes, it's a yes to
[1:49:56] vote. A no denies the appeal,
[1:49:59] and that in favor of Grind
[1:50:04] Management. A yes means you
[1:50:09] approve the appeal and you've,
[1:50:10] you're
[1:50:12] against the crime management.
[1:50:16] And no is do not overturn the
[1:50:18] decision, right? Yeah. Okay.
[1:50:21] And hey, for the record,
[1:50:23] I want
[1:50:24] to say I have relationships,
[1:50:25] very close ones, on both sides
[1:50:26] of this, so I'm not voting
[1:50:27] against any individual today.
[1:50:28] I'm trying
[1:50:29] to interpret the law,
[1:50:31] so I just want to say that
[1:50:32] for the record. Dr. Warren, I
[1:50:34] was ready to call
[1:50:35] for the vote. Yes, ma'am. I
[1:50:37] just have one question. I have
[1:50:39] relationships with both and
[1:50:41] like both. I feel the same way
[1:50:42] you do, but I think we have
[1:50:44] seen one other curved line
[1:50:46] today. That's the only other, I
[1:50:48] don't know how many alcohol has
[1:50:49] to deal with, but we did see
[1:50:51] one other besides this one.
[1:50:55] Judge Donald, did you want
[1:50:56] to say something? Yeah, just
[1:50:57] one quick thing. On behalf of
[1:51:00] Mr. Edwards, I want
[1:51:01] to thank you
[1:51:02] for this opportunity,
[1:51:03] but I do want
[1:51:04] to make this point. Under
[1:51:05] Tennessee law,
[1:51:06] because I've heard the word up
[1:51:07] here, ambiguity, if there is a
[1:51:09] perceived ambiguity
[1:51:12] in the ordinance,
[1:51:13] that ambiguity must be resolved
[1:51:16] in favor of the applicant and
[1:51:17] against the municipality.
[1:51:19] That's the law. And I've got
[1:51:21] many cases I can give you.
[1:51:22] City of Murfreesboro, Wright
[1:51:25] versus City Hall. There are a
[1:51:27] bunch of them, but I just want
[1:51:28] to make that point. If, if you
[1:51:29] perceive there is an ambiguity
[1:51:30] then the ambiguity must be
[1:51:31] resolved
[1:51:33] against the government
[1:51:34] in favor
[1:51:35] of the property owner. Thank
[1:51:36] you. Thank you, Judge.
[1:51:38] Councilman Smiley, you
[1:51:39] recognized, I do not want
[1:51:40] to be a judge. Can I make one
[1:51:42] final point? It's not,
[1:51:47] how long? 30 seconds. I'm not
[1:51:49] sure about brevity with you,
[1:51:51] Attorney Spence,
[1:51:52] but go ahead, then I'm going
[1:51:53] to say it,
[1:51:54] and then I think we're going
[1:51:55] to call for the question. All
[1:51:57] right. The ordinance says the
[1:52:00] centerline of the public or
[1:52:03] private street, then it defines
[1:52:05] a private street as a
[1:52:06] passageway. But, but then,
[1:52:08] but we're not talking about the
[1:52:09] most important language, on
[1:52:13] which the liquor store fronts.
[1:52:15] So public or private street is
[1:52:20] attached to
[1:52:21] on which it fronts. There's no
[1:52:23] question in this case that this
[1:52:25] liquor store fronts on White
[1:52:27] Station. It doesn't front
[1:52:29] on a private passageway. And so
[1:52:34] when you read the ordinance as
[1:52:36] a whole, it's clear. There's no
[1:52:38] ambiguity. It's
[1:52:40] on which it fronts. All right,
[1:52:46] Councilman Smiley, we're going
[1:52:47] to wrap it up. Can I call
[1:52:48] for the question after this?
[1:52:49] Yes. All right I'm going
[1:52:51] to make a statement,
[1:52:52] and I'm pretty sure it's going
[1:52:53] to be litigated. Oh, I'm making
[1:52:57] a statement. I just, when you
[1:53:02] about to make a vote, you
[1:53:04] should you should give people a
[1:53:06] reason why. So here's my
[1:53:08] position, and I'm going
[1:53:09] to tell you how I'm going
[1:53:10] to cast my vote. I believe,
[1:53:12] after looking at the ordinance
[1:53:13] and hearing the,
[1:53:15] the excellent argument
[1:53:17] by both councils, so kudos to
[1:53:18] to both sides. I believe that
[1:53:21] the way that Edwards addressed
[1:53:30] the survey,
[1:53:33] it violates the spirit
[1:53:35] of the ordinance. However, I
[1:53:37] don't think this council should
[1:53:38] be in the business
[1:53:39] of putting folks out
[1:53:40] of business. I'm going
[1:53:41] to vote no,
[1:53:43] and that's my reason why. If
[1:53:47] you'll please prepare the
[1:53:49] screen. Oh, oh my goodness,
[1:53:52] y'all, come
[1:53:54] on now. I'm sorry, we, we can
[1:53:55] vote, but I do want
[1:53:56] to say this because, well, no,
[1:53:58] because I just wish you had
[1:53:59] just left well enough alone
[1:54:00] because, tell me what to do.
[1:54:02] Well, lawyers, so I, I know,
[1:54:07] Attorney Wade, I will, but this
[1:54:09] is what I will say. I just
[1:54:11] didn't agree with the,
[1:54:13] that it violated the spirit
[1:54:14] of the law part,
[1:54:15] because as I said here, it
[1:54:16] seemed as if that it's a
[1:54:18] commonly used methodology. And
[1:54:20] then I think what's persuasive
[1:54:21] is the ordinance itself that
[1:54:23] says that a private,
[1:54:26] from a private drive,
[1:54:27] and it explains it such as
[1:54:29] this, as a multi-establishment
[1:54:31] commercial property. And so it
[1:54:34] seems that the ordinance itself
[1:54:36] actually describes a private
[1:54:38] drive, and that that
[1:54:40] measurement is what is used and
[1:54:41] has been used
[1:54:43] for that particular ordinance.
[1:54:44] So for that reason,
[1:54:45] I'll be voting the other way.
[1:54:47] So you would still vote, you
[1:54:48] tell me you can't leave well
[1:54:50] enough alone and then make an
[1:54:51] argument to, all right, thank
[1:54:52] you, Councilmembers. Madam
[1:54:54] Comptroller, I want
[1:54:55] to stop giving us a bad name.
[1:54:57] Thank you Councilmembers.
[1:54:59] Please prepare the screen.
[1:55:20] Canale, no. Easter-Thomas,
[1:55:23] abstained. Ford, abstained.
[1:55:26] Green, no. Smiley, no.
[1:55:28] Spinosa, yes. Warren, no.
[1:55:32] White, no. Chairwoman
[1:55:33] Swearengen-Washington, no.
[1:55:36] Please show Councilmember
[1:55:38] Walker as voting no
[1:55:40] on this item. Thank you very
[1:55:44] much. All right, thank you.
[1:55:53] That item failed. Okay, that
[1:55:58] brings us
[1:55:59] to our same-night minute items.
[1:56:01] Councilman Canale, would you
[1:56:02] please read the same-night
[1:56:04] minute items into record?
[1:56:07] Thank you, Madam Chair. Same
[1:56:08] night minute items are 4, 7,
[1:56:12] 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20. And
[1:56:16] with that, I move it
[1:56:17] to the floor. Thank you. It's
[1:56:19] been moved by Councilman
[1:56:21] Canale and seconded by
[1:56:27] Councilman Dr. Warren. Please
[1:56:31] prepare your screens
[1:56:33] for the voting.
[1:56:44] Canale, yes. Easter-Thomas.
[1:56:45] Yes. Ford, yes. Green, yes.
[1:56:48] Smiley, yes. Walker, yes.
[1:56:50] Warren, yes. White, yes.
[1:56:52] Chairwoman
[1:56:53] Swearengen-Washington, yes.
[1:56:57] That item passes. That moves us
[1:57:01] to our public comment cards.
[1:57:12] First on the agenda is
[1:57:15] Cynthia Bailey and then Lucy
[1:57:21] Chambliss. Chambliss. Miss
[1:57:40] Cynthia, Miss Lucy, and then
[1:57:42] Corey Travis. Hello, good
[1:57:50] evening to you all. Cynthia
[1:57:53] Bailey, community advocate at
[1:57:56] 1095, you can't go ahead?
[1:58:00] Yes, ma'am. Oh, Poplar Avenue.
[1:58:04] I'm coming today. It's been a
[1:58:08] lot of issues at Maddow, as you
[1:58:10] all know, and myself, Mr.
[1:58:14] Johnny, and Mr. Sammy, we came
[1:58:16] in May and we have given you
[1:58:18] all a list of things that been
[1:58:20] happening and occurring
[1:58:22] in that matter. The things that
[1:58:24] supposedly been happening
[1:58:25] haven't been happening. Now I
[1:58:27] heard you all said that Mr.
[1:58:30] Holm is doing a great job, and
[1:58:33] it's okay if you all feel that
[1:58:34] way, but we totally disagree.
[1:58:37] We don't see no new buses that
[1:58:41] you all said that's supposed
[1:58:43] to be out. I think,
[1:58:45] Council Lady White was
[1:58:49] on the news or something
[1:58:52] talking about a great job that
[1:58:53] he's doing. Okay, that's fine,
[1:58:55] but when you have the community
[1:58:57] as a whole consistently and
[1:58:59] constantly come
[1:59:01] to us and complain every day,
[1:59:04] it's not one day that I'm down
[1:59:06] there that I hear complaints
[1:59:08] consistently about the buses.
[1:59:10] Transportation matters. Just
[1:59:14] like police department matters,
[1:59:16] just like education matters,
[1:59:18] transportation matters. And
[1:59:20] it's, to me now, I'm feeling
[1:59:22] like when we come up here and
[1:59:24] say these things, it's going
[1:59:25] in one ear out the other one.
[1:59:28] Because we out here,
[1:59:30] and I promise
[1:59:31] on an oath that I'm going
[1:59:32] to do everything
[1:59:34] in my power when I was
[1:59:35] on the board,
[1:59:36] and I'm continually doing it.
[1:59:37] But we need support. We need
[1:59:39] someone to speak up and speak
[1:59:42] out about what the citizens are
[1:59:43] coming saying. To you all.
[1:59:47] Okay Council Lady Easter-
[1:59:48] Thomas, you asked us in May
[1:59:50] to give you a list,
[1:59:52] and we gave you all a list
[1:59:54] of things. We have not received
[1:59:56] any feedback from nobody
[1:59:58] about that list. Thank you.
[2:00:00] Would you like to respond?
[2:00:02] Miss Bailey, spot on. I did get
[2:00:04] that list from you,
[2:00:06] and we didn't receive any
[2:00:08] response, so that's why I
[2:00:10] didn't give you a response. I
[2:00:12] just wanted
[2:00:13] to make sure that that was
[2:00:14] on your record too. Thank you,
[2:00:16] Miss Lucy. Lucy Chambliss. I'm
[2:00:22] a little thrown off. I don't
[2:00:23] think I've ever seen that many
[2:00:24] Republicans in this room.
[2:00:28] Sorry. I'm ready. Yeah. 2 weeks
[2:00:33] ago, I stood
[2:00:34] before you and asked you
[2:00:35] to do something.
[2:00:37] At that time, 3 people had been
[2:00:38] killed by the Memphis Unsafe
[2:00:39] Task Force. Darren Pegram was
[2:00:41] killed by DEA agent Levi
[2:00:44] Blandon. Why was the DEA
[2:00:49] serving a warrant that didn't
[2:00:50] have anything to do
[2:00:51] with drugs, though? When
[2:00:52] Memphis police were
[2:00:53] on the scene, why did we have
[2:00:54] to have a federal task force,
[2:00:55] federal agents carrying rifles
[2:00:56] to confront a man at work? We
[2:01:00] need to understand why that
[2:01:01] happened. Jonah Neal was killed
[2:01:04] by an HSI special agent. He was
[2:01:06] suffering a mental health
[2:01:07] crisis, and his family called
[2:01:08] for crisis intervention. Why
[2:01:11] was an HSI special agent sent?
[2:01:13] We need answers
[2:01:14] on that. I stood here
[2:01:18] before you last time,
[2:01:20] just a couple of days
[2:01:21] after members of the National
[2:01:23] Guard, the United States
[2:01:24] military, gunned
[2:01:26] down 20-year-old Tyron
[2:01:27] Johnson. I asked who gave
[2:01:29] consent for the military
[2:01:30] to carry weapons and engage
[2:01:31] in law enforcement activity.
[2:01:32] Mayor Young made it sound like
[2:01:33] they'd be picking up trash,
[2:01:34] and Governor Lee said that they
[2:01:36] wouldn't be armed or engaging
[2:01:38] in law enforcement activities
[2:01:39] unless requested
[2:01:40] by local law enforcement. So
[2:01:41] who made that call? The day
[2:01:45] after I last stood here
[2:01:48] before you, Alfonso Ivy was
[2:01:49] shot and killed
[2:01:50] by DEA agents. And again,
[2:01:51] we have to ask,
[2:01:53] why was the DEA involved?
[2:01:56] At this point, 8 American
[2:01:57] citizens have been killed by
[2:01:59] these federal task forces
[2:02:00] nationwide so far this year.
[2:02:02] Half of these extrajudicial
[2:02:04] killings have happened here
[2:02:05] in Memphis. And the most we've
[2:02:08] heard from this administration
[2:02:10] is that they were unfortunate
[2:02:13] incidents. I'm here asking not
[2:02:17] only for the release
[2:02:19] of a single video or answers to
[2:02:21] the questions I've posed
[2:02:22] tonight, but for full
[2:02:23] transparency and accountability
[2:02:24] to the public. Who is making
[2:02:25] these calls that is making life
[2:02:27] more difficult and less safe
[2:02:29] for Memphis? And where is our
[2:02:30] leadership? How has that seat
[2:02:33] at the table served us? And is
[2:02:35] it not time for us
[2:02:36] to remove ourselves from a
[2:02:37] table that never truly welcomed
[2:02:39] us in the first place? Thank
[2:02:44] you so much. Corey Travis and
[2:02:47] then Wanecia Hyman. Corey
[2:02:52] Travis isn't here. Okay,
[2:02:53] Wanecia Hyman, she isn't here.
[2:02:57] Claudia Hyman. Sammy Hunter.
[2:03:12] Yes, my name is Sammy Hunter,
[2:03:14] 4211 Parkchester Avenue. I
[2:03:17] co-chair the Memphis Bus
[2:03:19] Rider Union since 2012.
[2:03:22] Council, today I'm coming
[2:03:23] to you simply
[2:03:24] on some things that Ms.
[2:03:26] Cynthia Bailey said. I'm
[2:03:27] piggybacking on that. First
[2:03:29] thing,
[2:03:30] bus riders are still standing.
[2:03:31] 2 or 3 hours waiting on bus.
[2:03:33] Even if they got trackers
[2:03:34] on the phones, the buses are
[2:03:36] still not showing up. The
[2:03:38] second thing is that when Mr.
[2:03:40] Holmes first got in,
[2:03:42] there were 20 buses that were
[2:03:44] approved by the board, which
[2:03:45] Miss Cynthia Bailey was on. 20
[2:03:48] buses supposed to be coming
[2:03:49] from Kentucky. Mr. Holmes
[2:03:51] stopped those buses
[2:03:53] from coming. My thing is,
[2:03:54] if he at least could let some
[2:03:56] of those buses come
[2:03:58] in we wouldn't be
[2:03:59] in the shape that we're
[2:04:00] in now. They say they got a bus
[2:04:01] shortage going on. If he had
[2:04:02] let some
[2:04:03] of those buses come in,
[2:04:05] we wouldn't be going
[2:04:06] through what we're going
[2:04:07] through now
[2:04:08] with the bus riders standing
[2:04:09] out here a long period
[2:04:10] of time. Now the second thing,
[2:04:11] he said 12 buses, new buses.
[2:04:12] He wanted new buses. I can
[2:04:13] understand that. He said 12
[2:04:14] buses were expected in June.
[2:04:17] That's what Mr. Holmes' word
[2:04:18] was. Now we're going almost
[2:04:20] going into August. We don't see
[2:04:22] any buses yet. We haven't seen
[2:04:24] anything. So I'm just saying
[2:04:26] this is a mess. You can look
[2:04:30] at it if you want to look
[2:04:31] at it how you want to look
[2:04:32] at it, but Memphis needs a
[2:04:33] better transportation system
[2:04:35] in Memphis. We need a better,
[2:04:36] because when you go
[2:04:37] to other cities,
[2:04:38] that's what they say. What's
[2:04:39] wrong
[2:04:40] with y'all transportation
[2:04:41] system down there? Well, I
[2:04:42] don't want to come there
[2:04:43] because I can't get around.
[2:04:44] And you don't have the trolleys
[2:04:46] to get me where I want
[2:04:47] to get. I'm trying to visit
[2:04:48] Memphis, but I can't come
[2:04:49] because you don't have a better
[2:04:50] transit system. So this is what
[2:04:52] I've been
[2:04:53] to other cities and I see this,
[2:04:55] it makes me mad when I hear
[2:04:57] this because I know we can do
[2:04:59] better than this. We need
[2:05:00] to do better in the city of
[2:05:01] Memphis and we need people
[2:05:02] on board to try to get this
[2:05:03] transportation system better.
[2:05:05] Thank you. You're absolutely
[2:05:07] right. We appreciate your
[2:05:09] comment. Councilman Ford.
[2:05:13] Okay, let me get something
[2:05:15] straight right now. Yes, sir.
[2:05:17] With the buses. Yeah, we were
[2:05:18] supposed
[2:05:19] to have been getting some buses
[2:05:20] from Kentucky,
[2:05:21] but why get some from Kentucky
[2:05:22] that's just
[2:05:24] like the ones that we're trying
[2:05:25] to get rid of? No, that's why
[2:05:28] you stopped here. Now, if you
[2:05:30] go and check your facts,
[2:05:32] we've gotten 9 new buses in.
[2:05:34] You're a liar. I am not a liar,
[2:05:37] and please don't call me that.
[2:05:39] He's not a liar. Please let me
[2:05:42] talk, okay? And then you go get
[2:05:44] your story straight,
[2:05:46] and then you will know
[2:05:47] about the buses that are here.
[2:05:49] They coming by threes. We've
[2:05:51] got 3, 6, 9. This week we
[2:05:53] should get 3 more,
[2:05:55] will be that 12.
[2:05:57] Within the end of the year, we
[2:05:58] will have some brand new more
[2:06:00] buses. If you go out there,
[2:06:04] they will be glad to show them
[2:06:05] to you. I asked
[2:06:07] for the councilman
[2:06:08] to respond. This is not a
[2:06:09] debate, and he is sharing some
[2:06:11] information. Please continue,
[2:06:13] councilman. I appreciate it,
[2:06:16] but do not ever call me a liar
[2:06:18] because I don't lie. I don't
[2:06:19] have to lie. I'm too old
[2:06:21] to lie, you know? But I don't
[2:06:24] like nobody don't get facts.
[2:06:28] We've been meeting
[2:06:29] with the bus people, okay? But
[2:06:31] y'all are not listening. Y'all
[2:06:33] are listening
[2:06:34] to the wrong people. But I know
[2:06:36] as a fact how many buses have
[2:06:37] come in, and they're coming
[2:06:41] in that way. 3, 3, 3, and 3.
[2:06:44] And you're, one thing that
[2:06:45] you're correct is shortages
[2:06:47] on trying to get buses.
[2:06:51] But we're going to have 12
[2:06:52] brand new ones, and by the end
[2:06:54] of the year we're going to have
[2:06:55] quite a few more brand new
[2:06:57] buses,
[2:06:59] not a used bus that's going
[2:07:00] to break down. Then not only
[2:07:03] that, the riders,
[2:07:07] and you said people saying 3
[2:07:09] hours,
[2:07:10] I don't know where you're
[2:07:11] coming from with that. That's
[2:07:13] That's not true either, okay?
[2:07:14] Unless you missed the bus and
[2:07:17] then it wasn't supposed
[2:07:18] to come until that time. If
[2:07:20] you're supposed to be in there
[2:07:21] at 7, you got there at , that
[2:07:22] bus gone. So the next one may
[2:07:25] come at a certain time, okay?
[2:07:28] Only thing that we're having
[2:07:30] right now,
[2:07:33] and I'm having issues
[2:07:35] with that right this minute,
[2:07:38] and that's we hadn't even had
[2:07:39] fast. You can ride the bus.
[2:07:41] Free. How many cities ride the
[2:07:44] bus free? Now, my wife is
[2:07:46] from Mobile, Alabama. Now, you
[2:07:49] go there, you're going to pay
[2:07:51] quite a bit because that's
[2:07:53] privately owned. And they don't
[2:07:58] have brand new buses. It takes
[2:08:02] time. We've been working
[2:08:04] on this for quite a while.
[2:08:06] But it's much, much better.
[2:08:09] Okay? We had some, and it's our
[2:08:13] fault that we had the wrong
[2:08:15] people trying
[2:08:16] to get it together. They kind
[2:08:18] of disappointed us, but we're
[2:08:20] on the right track right now.
[2:08:22] Y'all was talking about
[2:08:24] Attorney Holmes. He could be
[2:08:28] doing something much better.
[2:08:31] He don't have
[2:08:32] to be helping us. This man is
[2:08:34] doing a job to help the city,
[2:08:37] okay? We're trying to keep him
[2:08:39] as long as we can because he's
[2:08:41] ready to go. He was supposed
[2:08:42] to only been here 90 days.
[2:08:44] This man changed things
[2:08:46] within 30 days. We can't afford
[2:08:51] this man,
[2:08:54] but this man is just here
[2:08:55] to try to help this city. He
[2:08:58] can be gone today, tomorrow,
[2:09:00] and everything else. What we
[2:09:04] end up giving this man,
[2:09:06] he'd make that in a few days.
[2:09:09] He don't have to help us. He's
[2:09:12] willing to help us and
[2:09:13] to stay on,
[2:09:16] but he could have been gone
[2:09:18] in that 90 days.
[2:09:20] But I need y'all
[2:09:21] to get y'all's facts together.
[2:09:24] Everybody's complaining, bus,
[2:09:26] this, this, this. They even
[2:09:29] complain about bus stops. He
[2:09:32] built some, well, hey, if it's
[2:09:33] raining, you can be
[2:09:35] under something. Why complain?
[2:09:37] Oh, you put it
[2:09:38] in the wrong place.
[2:09:40] Everything, you're not happy,
[2:09:43] you know. But get your facts
[2:09:46] together. I'm going
[2:09:48] to be quiet, but please get
[2:09:49] your facts together because,
[2:09:50] hey,
[2:09:51] that's what you're saying is
[2:09:52] not true,
[2:09:53] and I don't want the public
[2:09:54] to see that, hey,
[2:09:56] these things are not true,
[2:09:57] because it's, it's happening.
[2:09:59] Okay, thank you. Thank you,
[2:10:00] Chair. And thank you
[2:10:01] for your leadership. And we
[2:10:03] know that MATTA was a disaster,
[2:10:06] and we've had
[2:10:07] to practically start
[2:10:08] from scratch. I mean,
[2:10:10] for real. So we're going
[2:10:12] to continue to work because we
[2:10:14] know we deserve a better
[2:10:15] transit system,
[2:10:17] and we will not rest
[2:10:18] until it continues to improve.
[2:10:20] In a lot of cities,
[2:10:21] you can ride the bus 24 hours.
[2:10:23] So we have a lot of work
[2:10:24] to do, but we will not rest
[2:10:26] until we continue to provide
[2:10:28] the services that you all
[2:10:30] deserve, that we deserve. Mr.
[2:10:32] Ricky Lewis, and then Johnny
[2:10:34] Mosley. After Johnny Mosley,
[2:10:45] Andrew Guthrie, and then
[2:10:47] Brianna Byrd. And that's it.
[2:10:57] Good afternoon. Good afternoon.
[2:11:00] My name is Ricky Lewis, and I
[2:11:01] am still an advocate
[2:11:03] of the ones that fired
[2:11:05] at MLGW. And that Timothy
[2:11:10] Davis been having contracts,
[2:11:18] I'm sorry, I got you. He'll,
[2:11:21] he'll help you
[2:11:22] with that microphone. Just fix
[2:11:25] that for you. There you go.
[2:11:27] Yeah, Timothy Davis, VP from
[2:11:31] Light Gas and Water. They are
[2:11:34] really robbing the city of
[2:11:37] Memphis Light Gas and Water.
[2:11:41] With the contracts,
[2:11:44] if I've said I gave you some,
[2:11:45] some brochures or whatever,
[2:11:47] and it says Ruth is 30 years,
[2:11:52] she'd been knowing him 30
[2:11:53] years. So if,
[2:11:56] if a friend come and get $8
[2:11:58] million or $5 million contract,
[2:12:01] that is, is that a code
[2:12:02] of ethics? If it was one
[2:12:04] of you guys Channel 3, 5, 13,
[2:12:07] CNN be investigating you guys.
[2:12:09] So I feel they need
[2:12:10] to be investigated. All
[2:12:16] contracts from Davis, it need
[2:12:20] to be, it needs
[2:12:22] to be investigated. Ruby is the
[2:12:27] contract lady. It's the VP,
[2:12:28] senior VP of ECS partner,
[2:12:33] and it was closed 2025. And now
[2:12:37] they have a contract of
[2:12:39] Hometown Hub. And Memphis
[2:12:41] City, Memphis Light, Gas, and
[2:12:44] Water has always trained our
[2:12:48] own at Memphis. We never went
[2:12:50] outside to get nobody. We
[2:12:52] trained our own at Light,
[2:12:54] Gas, and Water, and now we go
[2:12:55] on to California, They're
[2:12:57] getting people from California
[2:12:59] or Texas or whatever. If CJ
[2:13:03] Davis had fired them, this
[2:13:06] chamber would have been crowded
[2:13:08] every, every, every week.
[2:13:11] Thank you. Thank you, Mr.
[2:13:14] Lewis. I would like
[2:13:15] to encourage you to go to the
[2:13:16] MLGW board member meeting and
[2:13:19] share your sentiments. That
[2:13:21] would be a great place
[2:13:22] to speak to those individuals
[2:13:24] who are making those decisions?
[2:13:27] I have already. Okay, thank
[2:13:28] you. Thank you. Mr. Johnny
[2:13:31] Mosley and then Andrew
[2:13:33] Guthrie. Johnny Mosley, 1150
[2:13:36] Pelican Lane. When you are a
[2:13:39] transit advocate,
[2:13:41] you hear a lot. You even feel
[2:13:43] the pain of bus riders. You
[2:13:46] know what it's like
[2:13:48] to be cursed out and
[2:13:49] to be treated as a nobody. But
[2:13:51] when you've been honored as a
[2:13:52] living legend and recognized
[2:13:54] by leadership organizations
[2:13:55] for your leadership, Alpha
[2:13:57] Phi Alpha fraternity, the
[2:13:59] Deltas, and the state
[2:14:00] legislature, you look back
[2:14:02] with deep gratitude. You
[2:14:05] remember why your late father,
[2:14:07] a 50-year sanitation worker,
[2:14:09] marched for dignity
[2:14:10] in the struggle that brought
[2:14:12] Dr. King to Memphis, Tennessee
[2:14:13] in 1968. I'm grateful
[2:14:15] to stand as a voice
[2:14:17] for bus riders,
[2:14:19] who feel that they are trapped
[2:14:20] in a public transportation
[2:14:22] system that is stripping them
[2:14:24] of their dignity. I understand
[2:14:27] what I just heard from the
[2:14:28] City Council earlier and my
[2:14:30] City Councilmember, Councilman
[2:14:32] Ford, who I have nothing but
[2:14:33] respect. I can only
[2:14:37] respectfully ask that the
[2:14:39] Transportation Committee
[2:14:41] schedule a meeting to address
[2:14:43] the problem facing bus riders.
[2:14:45] The pain that bus riders are
[2:14:47] facing, some
[2:14:48] of the same pain that 1,300
[2:14:51] sanitation workers and their
[2:14:53] family faced in 1968. I can
[2:14:56] only respect the fact and ask
[2:14:59] this City Council to move
[2:15:01] public comments earlier up so
[2:15:04] bus riders be allowed to speak
[2:15:05] for themselves and don't have
[2:15:07] to worry about being stranded
[2:15:08] downtown as I witness their
[2:15:11] suffering. Standing
[2:15:13] in the hot sun, over 100
[2:15:16] degrees today, I'm reminded
[2:15:18] of those dark days when
[2:15:20] Memphis was called a decaying
[2:15:21] backwater river town. If
[2:15:25] Memphis is
[2:15:26] to truly move forward to be
[2:15:28] what someone called the shining
[2:15:29] city on the hill,
[2:15:31] then we all must turn
[2:15:33] to each other rather than
[2:15:34] on each other, regardless
[2:15:35] of our differences,
[2:15:37] of whether or not we agree
[2:15:39] on what's going on today.
[2:15:42] Thank you so much. Mr. Andrew
[2:15:45] Guthrie and then Brianna
[2:15:49] Bird. Good evening. I'm here
[2:15:55] with concerns about the held
[2:15:57] civil service referendum
[2:15:59] ordinance put forward by
[2:16:00] Councilmember Carlisle. I'm
[2:16:01] sure you'll agree we need clear
[2:16:03] communication between
[2:16:05] politicians and the workers
[2:16:06] of Memphis. Frankly, this
[2:16:08] referendum is opaque,
[2:16:10] concerning, and confusing.
[2:16:13] Though I very much hope I'm
[2:16:14] mistaken, it seems the
[2:16:15] referendum would undermine the
[2:16:17] very basis and existence
[2:16:18] of civil service protections
[2:16:20] in Memphis. That would be
[2:16:22] disastrous for our city.
[2:16:24] For months,
[2:16:25] you all have been hearing from
[2:16:27] our library workers how they
[2:16:30] are desperate for basic civil
[2:16:32] service protections. You wisely
[2:16:34] decided to open a path
[2:16:36] for them
[2:16:38] to win those protections. It is
[2:16:40] fortunate that you have more
[2:16:42] time to consider this issue
[2:16:45] because the public workers of
[2:16:46] Memphis need answers. I ask
[2:16:49] you, and I ask you
[2:16:50] to ask yourselves,
[2:16:53] would you want to take away the
[2:16:55] basic autonomy that public
[2:16:57] workers need
[2:16:59] to do their jobs? Would you
[2:17:02] want
[2:17:04] to give politicians more power
[2:17:06] over the working people of
[2:17:08] Memphis? Do you want
[2:17:12] to weaken or do away
[2:17:14] with civil service protections?
[2:17:20] And most importantly, will you
[2:17:22] protect our public servants?
[2:17:27] Thank you in advance
[2:17:29] for trying
[2:17:30] to be more transparent
[2:17:32] with us, and please protect our
[2:17:33] civil servants. Yes, sir.
[2:17:36] Thank you so much
[2:17:37] for coming down. Miss Brianna
[2:17:39] Bird. Hey, Brianna Bird, 720
[2:17:45] Lobe Street. Good afternoon,
[2:17:48] Councilmembers. I'm also here
[2:17:50] because I am concerned and a
[2:17:53] little bit confused
[2:17:55] about item 14 that was pushed
[2:17:57] from this meeting, which I am
[2:17:59] grateful that that was pushed
[2:18:00] from today. I'm afraid that the
[2:18:02] referendum could undermine the
[2:18:04] protections that our government
[2:18:05] workers need to do their jobs
[2:18:06] because the foundation of good
[2:18:08] government is independent and
[2:18:10] nonpartisan civil servants.
[2:18:13] Of course, last year Donald
[2:18:15] Trump and Elon Musk showed how
[2:18:16] dangerous it is when someone
[2:18:17] creates new government entities
[2:18:19] that can undermine civil
[2:18:20] servants. I have to ask, would
[2:18:22] this referendum create
[2:18:23] something similar to Doge
[2:18:24] in our city? I also want
[2:18:28] to know,
[2:18:29] what are the motivations
[2:18:30] behind this referendum? Is
[2:18:31] someone trying to do away with
[2:18:32] civil service protections as
[2:18:33] we've heard in the past? And
[2:18:36] looking at the language
[2:18:37] in the ordinance,
[2:18:38] can you be clear about what
[2:18:40] these uniform administrative
[2:18:41] procedures or systems
[2:18:42] for disposition
[2:18:44] of appeals would be? Would
[2:18:47] City Hall be undermining the
[2:18:48] independence of the Civil
[2:18:50] Service Board? These are just
[2:18:52] some of the questions that
[2:18:53] we've got and would
[2:18:55] like some further clarification
[2:18:57] on because we're a little
[2:18:58] unsure about this. Yeah,
[2:19:01] to close, please protect civil
[2:19:03] service workers. And I
[2:19:05] appreciate your time. Thanks.
[2:19:08] Thank you for coming. We held
[2:19:09] it because we wanted additional
[2:19:10] clarification as well. I
[2:19:13] appreciate that. Thank you.
[2:19:15] Thank you. All right, that was
[2:19:17] our last comment card. I will
[2:19:18] entertain a motion
[2:19:20] to adjourn. It has been moved
[2:19:22] by Councilman Ford Canale. Can
[2:19:23] I get a second? All right,
[2:19:26] I got a second by
[2:19:27] Councilwoman Green. Meeting
[2:19:29] adjourned. Everyone have a safe
[2:19:30] evening. Thank you, fabulous
[2:19:33] staff.