The University District is home to Memphis’ largest institution of higher learning, The University of Memphis. The district is made of several distinct neighborhoods, including East Buntyn, Sherwood Forest, and Normal Station. Its main drag, a two-block strip of Highland Avenue known as the Highland Strip, is a staple of Memphis nightlife and offers food and drinks to fuel any study session. Recently, planning has focused on prioritizing pedestrians, including building standards for storefronts and updated railroad crossing to suit the university’s 20,000-plus students.
Since 1982, the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center has worked for social and economic justice in Memphis. Now it’s helping senior residents in HUD-subsidized apartments fight to keep their homes.
“The Edge could be the next Overton Square. That’s the way we like to think of it."
At the University of Memphis’ South Campus, transgender clients work with speech pathologists to navigate the nuances of sound and craft a signature sound that reflects their true self.
The University of Memphis desegregated in 1959, but it would take more than 10 years of organizing and actions by dedicated students, both Black and white, to achieve true integration.
The Islamic Association of Greater Memphis, which operates two mosques and supports year-round programming, got its start at a tiny house in the University District.
The city's new Memphis 3.0 plan hopes to increase density. Residents in the University District say with the influx new high-rise developments near the Highland Strip, density isn't just a plan; it's their present.
The University of Memphis Research Foundation park, opened in January 2019, brings the university's top-notch facilities to the greater community. Housed at the former Highland branch of the Cossitt Library, the 25,000-square-foot space prioritizes technology and entrepreneurship. It is also creating job opportunities for students.
The Sheahan Pumping Station was built in 1932 and helps keep Memphis' artesian water pristine. Take a rare photographic tour inside its uniquely beautiful and critical important building.
In S1E8 of the On The Ground Podcast, we sit down with two members of a planning team working on a playbook for community development in the University District that puts the University of Memphis at the center of equitable neighborhood growth.
The University of Memphis and UNDC are teaming with residents on a plan to ensure the University District’s booming growth is shared by all, and they’re asking the Kresge Foundation for major funding to make the plan a reality.
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