City Council Chairman Myron Lowery has just stepped into the Memphis mayor's seventh floor offices, with floor to ceiling windows facing the river. Members of the media were allowed to follow in for a photo op but were quickly ushered out.
Lowery gave Willie Herenton a letter of his own. Herenton accepted the letter and thanked him.
"Now let's get down to business," Herenton said to the interim mayor.
The 5 p.m. meeting is the first conversation Herenton and Lowery have had regarding a transition in City Hall. It solidifies Herenton's exit and for Lowery, it provides some clarity about what comes next. Lowery said in an interview before the meeting that he had no idea when his swearing-in ceremony would actually take place.
While Herenton was making the rounds following his afternoon retirement speech, Lowery was seated in his quiet fifth floor offices waiting on Herenton's call. Herenton had promised to reach out and meet with Lowery to discuss city business before his July 31 exit.
After a month of uncertainty over whether he'd become interim mayor or not, Lowery seemed relieved, if not excited about his 90-day stint as mayor.
Lowery said he's still hoping to make inroads on redevelopment of The Pyramid and the Mid-South Fairgrounds. He also knocked down rumors that he would fire hundreds of city employees. He promised to give more specifics after his meeting with Herenton.
Lowery said even though the saga following Herenton's exit was rocky at times, when Herenton handed him his letter of resignation earlier in the day, Lowery thought "he's doing it his way."
He added that Herenton's speech was one of the best he's ever heard the mayor give.
"I thought he handled his farewell with dignity," Lowery said.
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