Dear Shelby County,
Thank you for entrusting me with the business of our municipalities. I assure you that you are in capable hands. However, I know it’s better to show than tell. This will be an arduous process as we tackle all of the elephants in the room. Change will not happen overnight or maybe even by year end, but I promise to be as transparent as possible along the way and, of course, to move with urgency and intention. We will report back to you, the Shelby Countians, with regular status reports so that we can all legitimately measure our progress. And I say “report back to you” purposely because we work for you.
I know there is always concern with the changing of the guard in any executive leadership position, especially with so many concerns in play. Let me also assure you that while priorities may shift according to what’s most pressing, no one’s concerns will be shelved or deprioritized. That is to say, there will be no singular focus. We are One Shelby! Memphis is the nucleus of the surrounding municipalities, so we must shore up the core. BUT like any good and proper workout, you can’t neglect the other parts of the body. We are reaching across the aisle and the city limits to our partners in government to build a stronger vessel overall.
In that vein, we are actively assembling committees to help build out our strategic plan for the county. We have 9 areas of focus including: workforce development; K-12 public education; economic growth; fiscal stability; housing and neighborhoods; sustainability and environment; public health; justice system; early childhood education.
We will also be conducting community roundtables that will be comprised of our neighbors, faith and community leaders, artists, small businesses and educators from all across the county. Suffice it to say, my team and I are digging in and doing the work. We aren’t afraid of a little sweat! This is what we do – GRIND.
Sincerely,
Mayor-Elect Lowery