MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Two areas of Shelby County, once unincorporated, will officially be de-annexed by the city of Memphis.
After years of legal fights, homeowners in the Southwind/Windyke area and Rocky Point- South Cordova area will regain their independence at 11:59 Thursday night.
John Morris, public information officer with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, says deputies are ready to take over the reins from Memphis Police.
“Obviously, we’ve had these areas before, so we have a lot of experience from years past in patrolling these areas,” Morris said. “We’re working closely with MPD. MPD obviously had these areas to patrol over the past several years.”
The sheriff’s office has hired about 25 new personnel for roughly 7,000 additional residents in South Cordova-Rocky Point and Southwind-Windyke.
“This includes new deputies, communications people, dispatch people, etc.,” Morris said.
This de-annexation comes after the city took similar action with Eads in the county and the River Bottoms in southwest Memphis in 2019.
“We examined areas where it was difficult for the City of Memphis to provide services, areas where we see low density population and areas where citizens had requested de-annexation,” said Chief Operating Officer Doug McGowen.
It’s truly going to be a happy new year for many who fought for de-annexation. Patricia Possel strongly opposed Memphis annexing her South Cordova neighborhood in 2012, and says it was a bad economic move.
“We’re glad City officials eventually worked with us and we’re back to being unincorporated, which is where we should be,” Possel said.
She’s glad the sheriff’s department will take over law enforcement and looks forward to improved services like more reliable trash pickup.
“You can’t afford to have us,” Possel said. “Yes, you’re using our tax money in other ways, but you’re not maintaining us, which is only going to be a detriment to our area and if we fail, that only hurts the City of Memphis more.”
911 calls in the soon-to-be de-annexed areas are already being re-routed through the sheriff’s office.
