Memphis Chamber kicks off meetings
Informational series begins in Orange Mound
Representatives from the Greater Memphis Chamber met Tuesday in Orange Mound with residents and elected officials for an information session about the chamber’s work and how residents can participate in the future of economic development across the city.
The 5:30 p.m. meeting at the Orange Mound Community Center was the first in the “Taking it to the Streets” initiative, a series led by chamber CEO Beverly Robertson that aims to engage neighborhoods across Memphis. Robertson plans to visit Frayser and Hickory Hill before the end of the year to host similar sessions.
Robertson hopes to bring the sessions to three to four neighborhoods annually.
“When I first came to the chamber, I realized that so many of the conversations about what needed to be done and what needed to change were typically held between government and the business community,” Robertson said. “We’ve got to communicate and get ownership and buy-in from community residents.”
The residents first got a crash course in chamber priorities with an easy-to-remember acronym, PEW, which stands for public policy, economic development and workforce development.
Robertson then went on to say that Memphis is in “competitive warfare” with Southaven and West Memphis as all three cities work to lure the same businesses.
In an effort to sway opinions on the often-unpopular use of payment-inlieu-of-taxes (PILOT) incentives, Robertson told the crowd that the tax breaks were a useful tool in attracting businesses to Memphis when the city was already at a disadvantage compared to others that offer even more aggressive incentives.
“Other cities, they give cash,” Robertson said before asking the residents to imagine where they would choose to go if they had a company and one city — in this case, West Memphis or Southaven — offered cash in addition to incentives to locate there but the other city — Memphis — offered a less lucrative package.
Richard Smith, CEO of Fedex Logistics and chairman of chamber board, simplified the issue even more.
According to Smith, the only question anyone needs to ask before offering a company a tax break or other incentive to relocate or expand in Memphis is: Will Memphis be better off with the company or without it?
“As long as you’re better off ... it’s a no-brainer,” Smith told the group.
Smith’s company received a
20-year PILOT and $13 million in state and local grants to move the Fedex Logistics headquarters to the former Gibson Guitar Factory building in Downtown Memphis.
No one at the meeting represented a voice in opposition of tax breaks, grants or other kinds of incentives.
Desiree Stennett covers economic development and business at The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at desiree.stennett@commercialappeal.com, 901-529-2738 or on Twitter: @desi_stennett.