Reality Check: West Memphis has no shot at hosting Memphis in May

Reality Check: West Memphis has no shot at hosting Memphis in May

Have to admit it Ralph, West Memphis Mayor Marco McClendon is doing a heck of a job making himself visible from riding on garbage trucks with his sanitation crews, making appearances at local schools, churches and even dropping in for photo shoots with the men and women at the fire and police departments.

Honestly Ralph, he’s giving the appearance of taking this job as the city’s second black mayor very seriously and letting the citizens know he genuinely wants to be seen as a working and active leader He’s even jumped at the opportunity to get a lot of face time on the Memphis television stations from the morning shows to interviews including this latest attempt to possibly lure one of the premier tourist attractions in the Mid-South which we all know as the month-long Memphis in May celebrations.

Once McClendon heard that the Memphis in May organizers are unhappy with major changes being planned at the Tom Lee Park that will force the activities to be relocated he immediately appeared on a Memphis television station claiming he has talked to some land owners on this side of the Mississippi River about having the event here. He also mentioned several possible city-owned locations including the Tilden Rodgers.

Let me point out, Ralph, that while the Tom Lee Park will not be suitable for the celebration next year Memphis, officials came up with several alternative locations, including the highly popular Beale Street Entertainment District, Mud Island and the MLK Riverside Park, none of which I am told were suitable to Memphis in May organizers.

Also Ralph, I am not sure whether McClendon is using this as a publicity stunt or whether he actually thinks he can pull this off, but regardless, if I were betting on this I would seriously say the odds are highly unlikely this multi-million dollar venue will take place on this side of the river.

I know for a fact that every year hundreds of Memphis in May visitors fill our local hotels and patronize our local restaurants but frankly that is the extend of our participation.

From a purely practical point of view the Downtown Memphis Commission would be absolutely foolish to let this major event leave the city. We’re talking about millions of tourist dollars in jeopardy and much of the success is this river and downtown Memphis location. I seriously doubt the downtown merchants, all of whom benefit from this event from the restaurants, the major entertainment district to the motels, will sit still and allow Memphis in May to relocate over here. There is entirely too much money at stake in this situation, Ralph.

I am certainly not saying by some stretch of the imagination that this couldn’t happen but I seriously doubt it and think McClendon is simply wishful thinking.

If nothing else in what McClendon is doing thus far in his short time in office he’s taking full advantage of the positive publicity both on television and the social media outlets. I am looking at this as his “honeymoon” period.

He certainly has some mighty ambitious plans that we should all hope he can pull off but this attempt to snatch Memphis in May event from Memphis is highly doubtful from my point of view.

Before you begin to crtitize, let me say I am a realist, but that is not to say it couldn’t happen, and I give McClendon credit for giving it a try, regardless of his motives.

By Michael Coulter