Friday update: More big news for The Edge

As your #1 source of news and information about The Edge District, I can see I am going to have my work cut out for me in the coming year as that neighborhood really takes off. Yesterday the Memphis Business Journal had an exclusive that Memphis Made Brewing Co. is looking at opening a second location, and it will be in The Edge, in a building at 435 Madison. They haven’t signed a lease yet but have signed a letter of intent. The new brewery would be the northern anchor for The Ravine, the urban park that will run through The Edge from Union to Madison.

Yesterday I had a discussion with a friend on Facebook on whether another brewery is needed in The Edge. I believe it absolutely is. The addition of a brewery, as well as the new cidery going in two blocks away on Union, will make The Edge a destination neighborhood – with Sun Studio, it always has been for tourists, but now it will be for locals as well. The new brewery and cidery will also make The Edge more walkable. Assuming the new Memphis Made location will have a taproom, it will be the only brewery in The Edge to bring in food trucks. It will be the closest brewery to my home and I look forward to walking down Madison for a pint of Fireside or Junt.

Continuing my conversation with my Facebook friend, I told him that I see The Edge at a tipping point as the next up-and-coming neighborhood. I see it being in its development approximately where Cooper-Young was in 1992; where South Main was in 2000; where the Broad Avenue Arts District was in 2010. I expect to spend significant time writing about The Edge in this blog in 2019.

Hey, I wonder if Bijou and Biscuit got adopted?

The Daily Memphian covers what is being done to ensure that The Ravine will live up to expectations.Funding is in place for phase 1 of the project, but what if there is a downturn in the economy similar to the Great Recession of 2008 and the philanthropy is not there to fund Phase 2? Brett Roler of the DMC stresses that by the end of Phase I, expected to be complete by May 2019, The Ravine will be a fully functional urban park.

If any breweries in The Edge have outdoor festivals in 2019, they shouldn’t plan on booking the band Zigadoo Moneyclips. The lead singer is going to federal prison for 2 years and 9 months on fraud charges.

If you’re tired of food that goes moo, or oink, or cluck, check out this Catherine & Mary’s entree. If it looks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.

The Hospitality Hub sent out some statistics about the people they served in 2018.

  • 1591 newly homeless individuals walked through the door. 63% were men and 37% were women.
  • Of the women, 23% were with children or were pregnant.
  • They helped 546 people track down their birth certificates.
  • They helped 417 people get a state ID.
  • 1034 housing vouchers were issued, giving the people a safe place to stay the night.
  • 1120 bus passes were given out.
  • Their Growing Work Local program, giving the homeless a chance yo put in a day’s work for a fair wage with a lunch included, filled 2180 shifts and paid out $109,000 in wages. 87 tons of trash on 1280 miles of Memphis roads were cleaned up by individuals working as part of this program.

This is a wonderful organization that offers a hand up in life. You will be doing a lot more to help the homeless by volunteering at the Hub or donating to them that you will be if you give money to a person on the street.

Drew and Ellie Holcomb’s Neighborly Christmas comes to the Orpheum tonight.

This is very cool: Among the many things to which your Memphis library card entitles you is a digital subscription to the New York Times.

Christmas opening news: PBjaRni, a bartender at Max’s Sports Bar, posted that the bar will open on 3 Christmas Day.

Statistics site FiveThirtyEight has ranked the most absurd college football bowls. Absurdity criteria included length of name, bad teams, high scoring, frequent sponsorship changes, and sponsor industry. There were also opportunities to earn bonus points. Least absurd for 2018 were the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, the Capital One Orange Bowl, the Allstate Sugar Bowl, and the Hyundai Sun Bowl. Most absurd: The Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl.

The Peanut Shoppe on Main has announced they will be open today, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday for your holiday shopping needs. It is unusual for them to open on Sunday. Best place in Memphis to buy nuts, chocolates, candy and popcorn for your loved ones!

The Memphis Animal Shelter is looking to hire a support services specialist.

The folks at the Orpheum have realized their movie series is too popular to restrict it just to the summer. From now on there will be movies on the big screen all year. Movies including SIngin’ in the Rain and Space Jam will be coming in 2019.

Happy New Year, YOGA! Your Inner Yogi at 10 N. Second is hosting a Yoga and Visualization class on Sunday, December 30 to help you set your intentions for the new year. This class will not be about making New Year’s resolutions, which rarely stick. You will create a story board using photos keywords, and quotes to help you set out what you want your 2019 to look like. The class is 4-6 PM and the cost is $25.

Looking to volunteer over the holidays? Volunteer Odyssey has an opportunity with Room in the Inn – Memphis. This organization, which started in Nashville, helps direct the homeless to church congregations that can provide warm places to sleep during the cold winter months. They need volunteers from 4:15 to 6:00 PM to greet the homeless guests, provide coffee and conversation, and keep them company while Room in the Inn lines up a place for them to stay for the night. After the guests depart volunteers clean and prepare the space for the next day. This is a family-friendly volunteer opportunity.

All right, that’ll do it for now. Back tomorrow with more news.