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Suburban Mayors Talk Consolidation

By Candice Ludlow

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wkno/local-wkno-859922.mp3

Cordova, TN – The talk of consolidation is back. Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton has been promoting it through his listening tours. Last night, the Shelby County Chambers of Commerce Alliance put on their own show. Candice Ludlow reports.

Nearly 200 people filled the Memphis Area Homebuilders Association auditorium in Cordova. There were no surprises. The suburban mayors stand firmly against consolidation, citing their fears that their taxes will increase while services decrease. Patrick Hardy, who studies consolidation and is the municipal management consultant for the University of Tennessee's Institute for Public Service says, "A lot of other studies suggest the cost rise is a result of additional new services or expanded services. If you stop and think about it, that sort a makes sense. If we're going to consolidate, the first thing you're going to look at is bringing the lower service level up."

Hardy says there have been 132 attempts at consolidation between 1921 and 1996. One-hundred-two of those were attempted in the Southeast. Still, since 1976, only ten have succeeded.

He says a key factor in consolidation is that public officials get along. Collierville Mayor Stan Joyner says, "I guess it comes down to one word, and that word is trust."

"When you look at Louisville, which is one of the latest consolidations in the United States. Mayor Abramson had gained the trust of all of these people," says Bartlett Mayor Keith McDonald. "In fact, there were more people outside Louisville than inside Louisville, and yet, they decided to consolidate. A lot of that had to do with the trust of the form of government, the way it's being run, and we don't have that with all the scandals."