Last night I attended the South Main Association meeting at Bar None. Here are the notes I took:
Meeting started with a reminder for everyone to pay their 2011 dues. You can pay online via PayPal on the SMA web site.
The slate of proposed 2011 board members was introduced by 2010 president Carol Lott. She stated that all the members met the requirements for residency and past service. Vote was taken and the slate passed. Congratulations to the 2011 board members.
New president Hank Cowels took the floor. He introduced Center City Commission president Paul Morris.
Paul started off by mentioning that the CCC’s jurisdiction covers just 6 1/2 miles. The city of Memphis is more than 300 square miles.
Paul outlined three reasons why a Downtown strategy is effective and efficient:
1) Downtown is our city’s brand. Even if people moving to a new city don’t plan to live in its downtown, they come downtown and check out what it has to offer. Any marketer will tell you that the key to success is to have a strong brand.
2) Downtown is a talent magnet. It is the part of the city that will attract mobile professionals, “knowledge workers” who often earn $75K and up. Paul noted that one third of new Downtown residents move here from out of state.
3) Downtown is sustainable, both economically and environmentally. Some of the most expensive services a city provides are police, fire, and garbage collection. When these services have to cover a larger area due to sprawl, they become extremely expensive to maintain. Downtown, being more dense in population, allows services to be maintained more efficiently. Paul noted that Memphis is larger in square miles than the five boroughs of New York City combined, but NYC has more than 11x the population. Paul noted that Downtown pays more property taxes per square mile than any other part of the city. He also mentioned the benefit of living and working Downtown – by walking or trolleying to work, a tank of gas a week is saved.
Paul then talked about some of the initiatives the CCC has been working on. The first initiative he discussed is restoring order on Main Street. Mayor Wharton, Col. Shemwell of the Downtown Precinct, Director Godwin, and the CCC are all committed to having police on bike patrol on Main. It has made a tremendous difference. Most of the troublemakers have given up and moved on. Deni Reilly of the Majestic Grille commented to me after the meeting, “The ones that are left cower when they see you now. They have no swagger anymore.” I’ve observed the same thing.
Another initiative the CCC has undertaken is enforcement of the no parking law on the Main Street Mall. When Paul got the job as president last July, one of the first things he did was read the CCC charter. He was delighted to discover he had the power to write parking tickets! He delegated that authority to other CCC employees, who have been handing tickets out. He also doubled the price for a loading/unloading permit.
Another intiative: Corrals for newspaper boxes. This is another way to make Downtown look orderly. We’re starting to see these installed Downtown (they look kind of like bike racks). Before we had 8-10 boxes strewn all over the place at busy Downtown corners.
Another initiative: The CCC is working hard to try and get money to fix up Downtown sidewalks. They’re aware it’s a safety risk and it makes the area look bad, and are pursuing several sources of funding.
Another initiative the CCC supports is the Hospitality Hub. If we’re going to fight aggressive panhandling, we need to make sure that no one has the need to panhandle aggressively. The Hub helps the homeless get shelter vouchers, bus passes, and the things they need to find work and get back into the community.
Another initiative: SOS, or Save Our Skyline. A year ago One Commerce Square was down to 25% occupancy, and there was serious concern it would go completely dark. Not good, as utilities for the building cost more than $1 million a year. The CCC saw an opportunity with Pinnacle Airlines. Pinnacle wanted to move Downtown, but negotiations with One Commerce Square had been unsuccessful. The CCC worked with both the city and county mayors to craft an attractive package that got Pinnacle in the building, adding 650 jobs to Downtown.
Pinnacle may be the new big-name Downtown tenant, but by no means are they the only one. Lisa Brumleve of the CCC helped put together a package to get LeBonheur Community Outreach Downtown. That’s another 130 jobs. ServiceMaster by Stratos is moving into the Lincoln-American Tower. Paul mentioned that he’s happy to see people walking around Downtown with backpacks, as four new schools, including the U of M Law School and the MCA grad school, have moved down here. Barboro Flats just opened, adding more apartments to the area. Electrolux has secured office space, and Paul took their transition team on a tour of area apartments and is confident they will locate Downtown.
Despite all these initiatives, Paul noted that we still have a long way to go. There are still empty buildings, broken sidewalks and streets, blight.
Paul finished the speech by issuing a challenge to everyone in the room. He needs everyone to lobby community leaders to help them understand how important Downtown is to the whole city.
Becky Beaton asked about beautification, and why funds can’t be secured to make South Main as beautiful as the Downtown core. Paul said the CCC is working on that. He can’t promise it will happen, but he’d like to see revenue from Downtown parking meters (a half million a year) go toward beautification, rather than the city’s general fund. Deni Reilly noted that you can donate to City Beautiful and request that the money go toward Downtown projects. Future maintenance of planters, flowers, etc. is the biggest expense.
Carl Rosen from the Memphis Grizzlies took the floor. Downtown Night with the Grizzlies, which happened November 10, was such a success that the team wants to do another one. It will happen January 31 when the Grizzlies play the Orlando Magic at the FedExForum. $59 will include food, drink, a game ticket, and a Grizzlies gift.
Jay Sieleman and Joe Whitmer of the Blues Foundation took the floor. The Foundation had long wanted to expand into a new headquarters, having outgrown its space on Union. Lisa Brumleve, Andy Kitsinger, and Paul Morris of the CCC came to them and told them, “We have an opportunity for you, you better jump on it.” As a result, the Foundation will move into its new headquarters at 421 S. Main in a couple of months.
The International Blues Challenge will expand to 4 days of competition this year, February 1-5. Jay and Joe really pushed Tuesday as a great night for Downtowners to go – it will be the FedEx International Showcase at the New Daisy, featuring blues bands from outside the US. Competition begins Wednesday, with quarterfinals wristbands for Wednesday and Thursday only $10. That gets you into 19 clubs, and for the first time this year two venues off Beale Street have been added: The Flying Saucer and the Westin lobby. Friday is semifinal day, with $15 wristbands. Finals will be held Saturday at the Orpheum.
Volunteers are needed for the International Blues Challenge. Hit Joe up with an e-mail at joe@blues.org if you’re interested.
While there, I saw a couple split the 1-pound Bar None burger. Looked delicious.
Good meeting, and thanks to Paul for coming to speak to the group.