Perkins 1, Memphis 0

or 30 years, Charles Perkins worked in county government as a commissioner and lobbyist. He voted on hundreds, maybe thousands of ordinances affecting the welfare of Memphis. He represented Memphis and Shelby County in dealings with new businesses. He worked closely with seven city and county mayors.

He still owns property in Memphis and has an office downtown. He is no upstart. And he is anything but a know-nothing. So it is sad to hear how little regard he has for Memphis today.

"Back in 1954 when I graduated from high school, Memphis was one of the cleanest, quietest, safest cities in the country. Now it's not clean, it's not quiet, and it's not safe, and that is the reason people move out."

That's the rhetoric of new towns. Perkins is their legal champion, and a resident of "New Forest Hills." He is an advocate, not a diplomat. He can speak his mind. His law firm represents all six would-be towns that have been certified for incorporation referendums on December 9th, plus "Nashoba," which hasn't yet filed its list of certified voters.

He estimates the odds are overwhelming that the incorporation votes will go forward. The city of Memphis and the Tennessee Municipal League are fighting a rearguard action in the state Supreme Court, and another suit has been filed against him in federal court, but Perkins sees neither as showstoppers. He believes the final tally will be 7-0 in favor of incorporation, and that 75 to 90 percent of residents in the unincorporated areas will vote YES.

Throughout his career in public office, Perkins was a political insider. Until July, he was Shelby County's lobbyist in Nashville. But he "had no idea" that the rules of city-invention had been changed until several weeks after the legislative session had ended.

"I never heard a single word about it," he insists.

About the middle of June, he became aware of Chapter 98. His partner Gordon Olswing heard about it from another Shelby County lawyer he won't identify, who heard it from a lobbyist for the Tennessee Municipal League who had too much to drink at a party. The upshot of "it" was that Lt. Gov. John Wilder's bill to help the little community of Hickory Wythe had statewide implications.

Perkins had his law clerk insert the changes into the existing law. Then he and Olswing read and reread it.

"I thought, this can't be the law," says Perkins. "I thought I was missing something."

He called Sen. Tom Leatherwood of Bartlett and said "I can't believe you passed this law." Then he called Wilder. Both of them said the law applied statewide.

"It was just amazing to me," says Perkins. "This was a major change in the law, in my opinion."

At that point, Perkins was in a spot. He was still representing Shelby County, but he planned to be lead attorney on incorporation for his own community and others. He resigned July 1st. He insists he was not pushed or threatened with being fired by Mayor Jim Rout.

"I was going to retire anyway, so I decided to go ahead and do it."

Even if Perkins was surprised by the sweep of Chapter 98, he was familiar with the anti-urban sentiment behind it.

"There has been talk every year of changing the annexation law," he says. "There's growing dissatisfaction with just reaching out and grabbing. The history of annexations in Shelby County has been they just reach out and grab territory without providing services. I think there's a good chance the legislature will change the law on annexation for Tennessee cities anyway."

New Forest Hills would likely prosper if it incorporates. Its 6 square miles include some $600 million worth of real property, including the office buildings and mansions at Southwind. Perkins says Shelby County will also prosper.

"I'd rather have people stay in Shelby County than move into DeSoto County or Arkansas," he says.

Memphis could benefit "eventually," but this involves some faith in trickle-down theories.

"The city of Memphis has a lot of strengths," he says. The compliment has all the conviction of a powerhouse football coach sizing up the next creampuff.

The Era of Good Feeling is over for Memphis and Shelby County government. City and county leaders may strike deals of necessity, but there is no genuine mutual respect. Accurate or not, the spirit of incorporation is that Memphis is "not clean, not quiet, and not safe."