WKNO TRANSCRIPT
CHRISTOPHER BLANK (Host): This week, as the Tennessee legislature took up immigration, vouchers, and disaster funding, Memphis and Shelby County officials faced their own challenges. With us to talk about a few local issues is political analyst Otis Sanford. Welcome back.
OTIS SANFORD: Thank you, Chris. Thank you for having me.
BLANK: Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert was back in the news. And maybe for some residents this was not terrible. You know, like in Monopoly when you get a bank error in your favor. It turns out the clerk's office has been undercharging for car registrations since July. But this also means there could be a $7 million budget shortfall for the City of Memphis. Otis, you know the county clerk has had a rough term of office, to say the least. Who gets to take ownership of this problem?
SANFORD: She does. Without question. Yes, I do understand that some incorrect data was applied to this increase initially. But it was corrected in September. And while we should give Wanda Halbert some grace for not implementing it in August, maybe, or certainly not in July when it was supposed to take effect, it should not have taken this long to get it done. And it is another example of this organization bordering on incompetence in that clerk's office. And I think everybody knows that now.
BLANK: Well, your column in the Daily Memphian this week was about the fallout from the firing of Memphis-Shelby County Schools superintendent, Marie Feagins. And throughout this process, you have been very cautious, I think, to say that there is blame enough to go around. Feagins and the board could both have acted better. But as you pointed out, what's done is done. And now we're all in damage control mode. House Speaker Cameron Sexton in an interview this week still thinks there should be a state takeover of the school district. But Mayor Lee Harris spoke at a Rotary Club meeting this week. He said there might be some other options. So Otis, what are you sensing from local leadership?
SANFORD: Well, if you listen to County Mayor Lee Harris, he is optimistic that something short of a full state takeover is possible. I do believe that Mayor Harris has some clout here to get this resolved without a state takeover.
BLANK: And the timing is just perfect for that to happen. They are in session and they have the ability right now to deal with it. And so I guess it raises the question: Lee Harris would like to have a cool down period just so everybody can get away from this moment. But is there even an opportunity to do that right now?
SANFORD: It doesn't seem that there is. Of course, the legislature is involved with a lot of other weighty issues. But there's enough anger related to what the Memphis-Shelby County School Board did in getting rid of former Superintendent Feagins that there may be an appetite to initiate this takeover. What they're talking about is putting other people in charge, and while the school board members will still be elected, they would be mostly in an advisory role. Well, I mean, that doesn't make much sense. Cooler heads need to prevail here. I do agree with Mayor Harris that it's time for us to move on and concentrate on making the school system better.
BLANK: Otis, you and I, we both used to work at the address 495 Union Avenue, the newsroom and the printing press of the Commercial Appeal. This week, of course, we learned that the building could be torn down to make room for the new Regional One Hospital. This is the county-owned hospital, and it has been on Mayor Lee Harris' agenda for years now. It's also huge and expensive and it does factor into how much money there is left for things like new schools or building a new jail complex. Why is this hospital so important?
SANFORD: It is sorely needed in a community that has a high level of poverty and people who are indigent. And not just in Memphis. I mean, again, it's Regional One. So this is an important endeavor. And I have to say, Chris, I put my hand over my heart when you started talking about the Commercial Appeal building, because I did spend a lot of my adult life in that building. But I do think that this is a great opportunity to turn that into something that could be beneficial for the entire Mid-south area. The big issue is going to be money.
BLANK: Right, you know, Memphis/Shelby County does always have problems securing funding from state lawmakers for many projects. Sometimes we get that funding, but it's not as much funding as we ask for. Do you think Mayor Lee Harris, using some of that clout that we talked about just a minute ago, might be able to get this project funded?
SANFORD: Well, I think he has the ability to do it, but it's going to take more than just Mayor Harris. It's going to take partners. University of Tennessee Health Science Center, for example. Peter Buckley, the Chancellor, is a very capable and effective leader and I think he would need to lend his voice to the state on this. Maybe even some other hospital leaders. And so it's important for everybody to get on board to make sure that this project gets what it needs, but it needs to start now.
