South Memphis development plan involving TIF announced, backed by Shelby Co. mayor

A South Memphis redevelopment plan to counter blight and poverty was announced Wednesday, with backing from Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris and other local leaders.

The plan unveiled by the Southeast Regional Development Corporation would involve creating a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district, according to a news release. The TIF district would see tax revenue generated by South Memphis residents reinvested in the area to address infrastructure “depreciating neighborhood values” and educational support.

J.W. Gibson, CEO of the Southeast Regional Development Corporation, said planned projects to be funded via the TIF include a performing arts center, a technical center for teenagers, infrastructure improvements and various housing developments.

“We’re proposing multi-family housing, we’re proposing single-family housing, we’re proposing elderly housing,” he said.

A full map of the TIF district will be available at a news conference Thursday morning, Gibson said, but noted it would have McElmore Avenue as its southern border, reach Lamar Avenue out east and go as far north as Poplar Avenue.

The TIF district application needs to be approved by the Community Redevelopment Agency board before going to the Memphis City Council and the Shelby County Commission for final approval.

“When I ran to serve as County Mayor, I pledged to drive a conversation about investment in students, people in poverty, and neighborhoods. Today, I support this minority-led development team,” Harris said in a statement. “They have worked hard to build capacity so that they may take on transformative work in South Memphis. This community has organized and advocated for investment for decades. It’s time for South Memphis residents to see serious, long-term investment in the neighborhood that they love.”

As Downtown and Midtown Memphis see a flood of new development projects, few projects occur on a similar scale in neighborhoods like South Memphis, which has more than 5,800 vacant lots and buildings, the release said.

“We support the renaissance that is happening in Downtown and Midtown, but it is high time that Black Neighborhoods see that same interest, commitment, and investment,” the release said. “To usher in this new era, we need to think bigger.”

Leaders and supporters of the redevelopment plan include: State Senator Raumesh Akbari; State Reps. Larry Miller and G.A. Hardaway; Shelby County Commissioners Mickell Lowery, Van Turner and Tami Sawyer; Memphis City Council members J.B. Smiley Jr., Martavius Jones and Jamita Swearengen; former Shelby County and Memphis Mayor A.C. Wharton; LeMoyne-Owen College; and First Horizon Bank.

Max Garland covers FedEx, logistics and health care for The Commercial Appeal. Reach him at max.garland@commercialappeal.com or 901-529-2651 and on Twitter @MaxGarlandTypes.