Memphis

MEMPHIS — Memphis voters will decide three City Charter amendments Tuesday. Ordinance 5966 would remove library employees from the charter's civil-service exemption. Supporters say that would give them grievance rights and a path to unionizing. Library workers are now mayoral appointees. Ordinance 5977 would direct the City Council to write an ordinance creating a lobbyist registration and disclosure process. Memphis has none now, though Shelby County runs a registry through its Ethics Commission. Ordinance 5978 would let the council, in consultation with the mayor, set uniform procedures for civil-service appeals. Its sponsors say the current process can take up to two years. The measure changes no rules itself, and council members voted to send it to voters on Aug. 4 over a lone no vote from Councilman J.B. Smiley Jr. A yes vote on any of the three authorizes the council to draft the follow-up ordinances later.

MEMPHIS — The Memphis City Council voted Oct. 20 for a nonbinding resolution urging the removal of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Tennessee National Guard from the Memphis Safe Task Force. The vote was 9-0, with Ford Canale abstaining. No member of the public spoke against it. The resolution cites an Aug. 30 nightclub raid that detained more than 120 immigrants. It also cites six deaths it ties to task force operations. It notes that Memphis Police Department data showed crime already at a 25-year low before the deployment. Cosponsor Michalyn Easter Thomas said the task force has brought raids and disruption. U.S. Attorney Todd Blanche said the week before that the task force had helped push crime to a 25-year low and would stay in the city for as long as needed. The resolution carries no enforcement power.

MEMPHIS — MLGW confirmed in early October that more than 7 percent of Memphis streetlights are out, about 5,600 fixtures, according to a FOX13 investigation. That is double the number out in January 2024, when the utility said everything would be repaired within that year. The utility began swapping old high-pressure sodium lamps for LED bulbs in 2023. Residents describe dark stretches near the University of Memphis and strobing lights on Union Avenue and South Main. MLGW attributes outages to aging infrastructure and scheduled maintenance. It also cites third-party damage, including theft, contractors cutting wires and vehicles striking poles. The report did not give a new repair deadline. MLGW's leaders are due to brief the City Council on the utility budget Nov. 18, alongside its proposed water and gas rate increases.

MEMPHIS — The Metal Museum's largest annual fundraiser, Repair Days, runs Nov. 5-8 at the museum's new Overton Park home. It is the first Repair Days there. The museum reopened in the renovated former Memphis College of Art building in September. Visitors bring metal objects, from family heirlooms to everyday items, and skilled metalsmiths restore them while the public watches. Money raised pays for exhibitions, the apprenticeship program, the M4 on Tour outreach effort and the Forging the Future after-school program. Garden & Gun has described past editions as drawing hundreds of repair jobs. Its report says the Saturday foundry pour, where molten metal is cast into replacement parts, is usually the busiest moment. Repair fees are set up front based on the estimated labor. Daily hours and fee details are on the museum's website.

MEMPHIS — The riverfront-area venue Satellite Music Hall has two touring shows in the coming week. Rapper Fetty Wap brings his Nostalgia Tour on Saturday, Nov. 7, with a 7 p.m. listing on Ticketmaster. Pop-punk band Bowling for Soup plays on Monday, Nov. 9. Memphis Travel lists that show, but listings differ on the start time, so check with the venue. Satellite has been building out its calendar with national acts. Medium Build is set for Nov. 12 and King's X for Nov. 10. Memphis Travel's events page carries the dates and links through to ticketing. Other Saturday-night options in the same area include Yung Gravy at Minglewood Hall and The Band Memo in the 1884 Lounge.

MEMPHIS — Two low-key music dates stand out early in the week. The University of Memphis University Singers present their fall concert Tuesday, Nov. 3, at 7 p.m. at the Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center on campus. On Thursday, Nov. 5, at 7:30 p.m., bassist Rodney Jordan joins the Ted Ludwig Trio for a Modern Jazz Masters program at The Green Room at Crosstown Arts, 1350 Concourse Ave. The We Are Memphis live-music calendar lists both. Ticket prices are not given there, so check with the venue before going. The Green Room is also where the Iris Collective's Artist Fellows play Nov. 20. Crosstown Arts lists that show at $30 in advance and $40 at the door.