MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Every Tuesday as part of our Greater Memphis on a Mission series, we highlight organizations making Memphis better. This week, we caught up with a group that believes in collaboration.
Rory Thomas is the president of the Memphis Medical District Collaborative, a community organization development that focuses on revitalizing and improving the Medical District.
“We work with the hospitals and colleges in the Memphis Medical District to make it a better place to live, work and play,” said Thomas. “The Medical District has kind of been a pass-through between Midtown and Downtown but not really a destination on its own. So we’re really trying to change that.”
They do just that by enhancing public spaces for the many residents, employees, and students with their ambassador program which is made up of 10 men and 10 women.
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“They go around collecting litter, recycling, removing graffiti. I believe they did about over 9000 bags of litter removal in 2024,” said Tomas.
For residents in the district, they have a hire local program.
“We work with residents to get them trained for in-demand jobs at the hospitals and a living wage with full benefits but also have a clear career path for them to be able to provide economic mobility opportunities,” he said.
There are also numerous grant opportunities for local businesses, from predevelopment grants to improvement grants that help with signage, lighting, sidewalk repair, as well as interior improvements.
“Memphis Medical District Collaborative has been great in making sure we partner with not only the students but the hospitals and the businesses all around us,” said Thomas.
Carmella Rogers is the franchise owner of Hotworx, Edge District. She brought her 24-hour infrared fitness studio into the Medical District in 2022.
In addition to lighting and exterior signage, she was able to improve her space even more by utilizing the Memphis Medical District’s improvement grant.
“We had to pretty much gut our bathrooms completely from the way they were made,” she said.
That is why Brown Missionary Baptist Church and the Mid-South Genesis CDC donated $1,000 to the Memphis Medical District Collaborative. Because when you transform a pass-through section into a destination, your return on investment will be sustainable.
