MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland has got a city to run. A city with more than 600,000 people.
A city that has been limping along because of the coronavirus.
He has dealt with people dying from the disease - dealt with businesses closed, with thousands of people out of work.
Other than that, he’s doing fine.
Mayor Jim Strickland is blunt.
This is bad. Not Great Depression bad, but bad enough for him.
His focus is getting things going again.
“There’s no doubt,” he says, "... social distancing is going to be in our lives until we have a vaccine.”
The first of three phases of reopening the economy is underway. His advisors say its success depends on whether people do what they’re supposed to do.
“We would not feel any potential negative consequences from going into Phase one until ten days after we started it,” he says. “So, the numbers we will really start to look at - will be the numbers coming from this Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.”
Memphis City Council members have approved, in the first of three votes, making it mandatory for people to wear masks.
“We are still reviewing it and looking at how other cities have done it. Very few cities in the U.S. have mandated it, because it’s very hard to enforce it. And we don’t want to pass laws we really can’t enforce.”
One controversial issue has been the Shelby County Health Department giving all the addresses of those with coronavirus to police and fire. They say it’s needed for them to properly to their jobs.
Mayor Strickland says, “I hire really good people who know how to run their operations. Fire Director Gina Sweat and Police Director Mike Rallings are two of my hires. If they feel firefighters and police need to know this information before they get to a house, I trust them, and I believe them.”