Memphis City Council members were “surprised at the gall” in the absence of the Greater Memphis Chamber at a committee meeting Tuesday.
Both the Greater Memphis Chamber and the Black Chamber of Memphis were asked to testify before the council’s Economic Development, Tourism, and Technology Committee Tuesday. Both were asked to give “a comprehensive analysis of local economic activity,” which included business openings and closings.
Only the Black Chamber showed up. This drew the ire of two council members — Michalyn Easter-Thomas and Yolanda Cooper-Sutton.
An email obtained by the Flyer shows that the Greater Memphis Chamber did not confirm the date for the hearing but was listed as a presenter. A similar situation played out recently at the Shelby County Commission, the email says.
“On a few recent occasions, our team has been placed on the agendas of the Memphis City Council and/or Shelby County Commission committee sessions without our prior confirmation of attendance,” said Bobby White, the Chamber’s Chief Government Affairs Officer, in the email to Memphis City Council chairwoman Jana Swearengen-Washington. “In at least three instances, we were listed as presenters despite never having confirmed our participation — and were subsequently noted as absent, with commentary that we found both unfair and inconsistent with standard professional practice.”
Swearengen-Washington apologized for the mixup and regretted “that it created an unfair impression and any inconvenience to you and your staff.”
The Greater Memphis Chamber is a private nonprofit not directly funded by taxpayers. The group is not mandated to give updates on their activities other than to local governments.
Still, the group’s absence drew the attention of Cooper-Sutton.
“The Chamber of Commerce has a big footprint in our city and this is not the first request that has been asked of them to show up and they haven’t,” she said.
Cooper-Sutton said the group has also failed to show up “across the street,” meaning at the chambers of the Shelby County commission.
“I want to echo my co-council lady Cooper-Sutton,” said council member Easter-Thomas, “just sharing the surprise and the gall of the missing Chamber that’s [not] here. With all of the impact they have on out city, it’s kind of disappointing to not have them here to report on anything.
“It may have been that they didn’t confirm or that they didn’t know.”
As far as taxpayer money, a look at the Chamber’s most recent tax form does show $50,000 in “council funding.” But the document does not provide enough detail to know if that means the Memphis City Council or something else.
That same tax form shows the latest salary of the Chamber president and CEO Ted Townsend was $671,801 with $49,812 in benefits. Townsend is currently on leave.