Welcome to Memphis' Green Zone

I've been interested in population growth and transfers in Memphis and Shelby County. In the 1990's it was established that the development plan of city for next generation was to pour resources into downtown. It was argued that by building up downtown it would serve as an economic hub for the rest of city and raise everyone's boats. On the flip side, many people complained bitterly that focusing on downtown starved other areas of the city of resources.

The city has been able to mask population declines through annexation. The problem is that we annexed everything we could. The city was not a place working and middle class people wanted to raise their families. There were dramatic population declines in the "C" as well as Whitehaven, as can be seen below.

While the population declines were concentrated and intense, a more troubling trend has risen between 2000 and 2007. Population declines are spreading out across almost all of the city. Frayser, Raliegh, Hickory Hill, and East Memphis are losing population. Unfortunately, the city is becoming poorer and emptier, except for primarily one area.



A couple weeks ago, there was the news story about the Center City Commission hiring private security guards to run off the bums and panhandlers. That is an implicit acknowledgment that the economic leaders of the city have no faith that regular police can deal with the pesky, poor people downtown. Considering all the resources that have gone into one area, the rest of city falling apart, and need for extra security reminded me of another place. The Green Zone in Baghdad.

Looking back over the past 15 years, was this outcome unexcepted by the elites that pushed for this economic model of development. A lot of money was made downtown, but at what cost to other areas. Compared to the rest of city, downtown is really nice and those private security guards are going to help protect that investment. But I still can't get Naomi Klien's concept of "The Shock Doctrine" out of my mind. If many of the people who had lived all over Memphis thought downtown redevelopment was successful in benefiting the whole of the city, why would they have left?