Homing In

If you haven't picked up your copy of the Flyer yet this week, John Branston, Bianca Phillips, Bruce VanWyngarden, and I did a package on local foreclosures and how they're affecting the housing market, the tax base, and the overall community.

I know, I know. You're thinking, "Foreclosures? Ugh. Boring."

And maybe you don't know anyone who has been foreclosed on and you're not in any danger of being foreclosed on, so why do you care?

But I would say it's a pretty important story.

When tax revenue relies on local property values, a widespread decline in those values could be very detrimental.

And you never know what might happen.

Bianca Phillips' piece is a first-person account of her recent brush with foreclosure when her apartment building was suddenly foreclosed on. It wasn't anything she was expecting — how could she? Just one day, out of the blue, there was a realtor at the building, telling the tenants they had two weeks to get out or they'd be evicted.

The tenants eventually got more time — you should read the piece if you get a chance — but as she learned, in these situations, tenants basically have no rights at all.

Bruce VanWyngarden wrote about his recent experience buying and selling a home. I don't think his experience is necessarily typical, but it is interesting to read a first-hand account of what's going on in the market.

And if that doesn't interest you, well, there's always News of the Weird (page 60).

UPDATE: You can read the stories from the foreclosure package here, here, here and here.

Do you want to be in pictures?

Every year (for the last few, at least) I put together the Flyer's fall fashion issue. And every year it's always a challenge to find models because:

A. They have to be available during the day for the shoot.
B. The job doesn't pay.
C. We like to use college students for a variety of reasons (please see A) and I simply don't know that many college students. I am old.
D. It's creepy to walk up to people you don't know and say, "Have you ever thought about being a model?"

That's all to say, I'm looking for models. I've got quite a few ladies interested already but not that many guys (which I always expect, but it would be nice to have a few). So if you know of anyone, or you are someone, that this appeals to, please let me know.

From last year's shoot at the Peabody Hotel

Ideally, models should be college-aged (any younger, the Flyer gets in trouble), attractive, slim to medium builds, comfortable in front of a camera (if you always think you look weird in photos, this might not be the right opportunity for you), and think that I am somewhat funny (trust me, it helps.)

Interested parties can email me at cashiola@memphisflyer.com.

Into the Woods

This week, Shara Clark and I teamed up to write the Flyer's cover story on the controversy surrounding the old-growth forest in Overton Park.

The Memphis Zoo currently controls 17 acres of old-growth forest that it plans to one day use for a low-impact boardwalk through the woods. But after the zoo bulldozed four similar acres for its new Teton Trek exhibit, local grassroots group Citizens to Preserve Overton Park reformed and asked that the zoo take down their fence and return the 17 acres to public use.

To read the full story, click here.

I get the impression that the zoo — for better or for worse — has a great deal of autonomy. Yes, the zoo is owned by the city (which then contracts its management out to the Memphis Zoological Society for $100,000 a month) and reports to the city's parks division and ultimately, the City Council.

But it also gets a large chunk of its funding from private donors and the City Council doesn't seem all that concerned with what the zoo is doing, as long as it continues to prosper.

CPOP recently went before the council to ask that the zoo's boundary be redrawn and the surviving acres of old-growth forest be protected in perpetuity. They also asked for an update to the Overton Park master plan and the zoo's contract with the now-defunct Memphis Park Commission. They have also followed up with a letter to council members and Mayor Willie Herenton.