Chattanooga s. Resurgence. a decade of downtown development

Transcription

1 Chattanooga s Resurgence a decade of downtown development Ten years ago this week, Chattanoogans celebrated the opening of the Tennessee Aquarium. At the time, we suspected that our fortunes might be changing, but not even the most optimistic among us could have predicted what that event would set in motion. In the past decade, Chattanooga has experienced a transformation of epic proportions both physically and psychologically. This book is about that progress. It is also about the challenges that lie ahead.

2 This place will never look the same. On November 9, 1988, the president of the River- City Company stood before several thousand excited onlookers assembled at the intersection of Broad Street and Riverfront Parkway and said, Take a good look around you, because this place will never look the same again. Moments later, five bulldozers pulled down an abandoned warehouse, marking the groundbreaking for the Tennessee Aquarium. Indeed, Chattanooga never has looked the same. Nor have we looked back. The opening of the aquarium on May 1, 1992, altered our city s course forever. With one bold stroke, it changed the physical face of downtown and provided an anchor for the early development of the Tennessee Riverpark. As importantly, it transformed our opinions of ourselves. After years of stagnation and civic in-fighting, we were suddenly a city full of potential, marveling at what we could accomplish by pulling together. We had built the world s largest freshwater aquarium. There was nothing we could not do. Standing at the intersection of Second and Broad Streets today, it s hard to believe that Ross s Landing and much of downtown was once the desolate and dilapidated place that prompted the Lyndhurst Foundation to engage the Institute for Environmental Action to evaluate the health of the downtown area. Their report was published in 1982 as a newspaper insert titled Chattanooga in Motion, and it sounded the initial clarion call, citing downtown s failing fortunes but emphasizing the center city s critical role in the community s future. The Tennessee Riverpark Master Plan followed two years later and affirmed the need for a vibrant downtown. Chattanooga s community planning process Vision 2000 articulated our own citizens desire to see downtown become the signature of the community. We spoke of creating a front porch for our city at Ross s Landing, overlooking the Tennessee River. We concluded it was time to invest in our downtown, to revitalize it, and a landmark development at Ross s Landing was declared key to that mission. Since its opening in 1992, the Tennessee Aquarium has been a catalyst for a parade of projects that have once again made Chattanooga deserving of the moniker Dynamo of Dixie. Why did it matter? Because a vigorous downtown functioning as the center of commerce, finance, government, higher education, arts and culture is a prerequisite for a healthy community. The 1993 Downtown Plan put it this way: Downtown is the one place that distinguishes Chattanooga from all other cities in the world. Downtown is our community living room where we come when we want to be together to celebrate the things we like best about ourselves and about our community. If indeed downtown is our shared living room and the riverfront our shared front porch, then the past decade represents one of the most extraordinary home improvement projects ever undertaken, an investment on which Chattanoogans will collect dividends for decades to come. Resurgence a timeline of change Chattanooga Venture conducts Vision 2000 and publishes Commitment Opportunity Workbook October, 1985 Tennessee Riverpark Master Plan published November, 1988 Groundbreaking for the Tennessee Aquarium May, 1989 First section of Tennessee Riverpark opens April, 1992 CARTA s free electric shuttle begins operation May, 1992 Tennessee Aquarium opens along with Ross s Landing Park & Plaza October, 1992 Aquarium draws one millionth visitor May, 1993 Bridgefest marks the opening of the Walnut Street Bridge Spring, 1993 Re-Vision 2000 process checks progress and announces new goals

3 Downtown is the one place that distinguishes Chattanooga from all other cities in the world. Downtown is our community living room where we come when we want to be together to celebrate the things we like best about ourselves and about our community Downtown Plan Jack Lupton and Lyndhurst From the beginning, the Lyndhurst Foundation has been a guiding force in Chattanooga s resurgence, dedicating itself and its resources to empowering significant and sustainable improvements in the place and the people. The February 1996 edition of Tennessee Living quoted Lyndhurst Foundation president Jack Murrah: When we [at Lyndhurst] turned our attention almost exclusively to the future of this city, we found fundamental strengths in the development, celebration and understanding of the community itself. That metaphor now drives all of our work, both in Chattanooga and beyond. It takes diversity and integration to be a rich and enduring community. Lyndhurst s commitment reflects its former chairman and founder s deep affection for his hometown. John T. Lupton s philanthropy has stretched from the early work of Chattanooga Venture, through the Aquarium, IMAX and Creative Discovery Museum, to the UTC Renaissance grant and a deep commitment to Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise, downtown housing and education. In many ways, this retrospective is a celebration of Jack Lupton s vision and generosity. July, 1993 Chattanooga Visitors Center opens on Ross s Landing Plaza next to the Aquarium Clockwise from upper left: Tennessee Aquarium groundbreaking; the annual Riverbend Festival lights up the riverfront; Rembrandt s Café is one of many downtown dining options; the Chattanoogan Conference Center is part of more than $100 million in public investment in the Southside. August, 1993 Riverset Apartments open September, 1993 Big River Grille opens in former trolley barns Editor s Note Ten years ago, a compendium of downtown activity like this could have mentioned every corporation and commercial business with room left over. Such is not the case today with scores of businesses lining the streets of the city and hundreds of people in some way responsible for Chattanooga s rebirth. And so the editors of this retrospective apologize in advance for mentioning some rather than many. Suffice to say that downtown Chattanooga of 2002 is a rich tapestry of people, places and events that have earned us our far-reaching reputation for understanding what makes cities great.

4 The Economic Heartbeat As bad as things got for Chattanooga in the seventies and eighties, they could have been a lot worse. In 1982, the publication Chattanooga in Motion made this observation: Unlike many cities of its size, Chattanooga has never declined to an economic point of no return. Credit for that has to go to a handful of key businesses that have maintained their presence in downtown Chattanooga and, in so doing, have continued to bring tens of thousands of workers into the downtown each weekday. Blue Cross Blue Shield, TVA, UTC, UnumProvident and Erlanger have all provided solid continuity to downtown. During the nineties, corporate logos like Cigna s joined the skyline, helping to attract the 50,000+ regional workers who draw a paycheck at a downtown place of business. Historic downtown office buildings like the James and the Maclellan have undergone extensive renovations, and Market Center the first new office construction in a decade opened last year. They are reassuring omens that downtown is open for business. But the richness of any downtown is in the eclectic small businesses, retailers and restaurants that line its streets. Since 1992, dozens of entrepreneurs have opened their doors along Broad and Market Streets, in the Southside and along Frazier Avenue. Frazier Avenue: A District with Shop Appeal When the Walnut Street Bridge was renovated and reopened, strollers from the south shore invariably turned around after reaching the north end, there being little for them to do once they got there. What a difference eight years make. No part of downtown s transformation is more dramatic than that of Frazier Avenue and the north shore of the river. Despite the stalwart presence of anchors like Town & Country Restaurant and Art Creations, the street was largely deserted. Today Frazier is lined with eclectic shops and eateries, their back doors opening onto one of the South s great public spaces: Coolidge Park. Collectively, they are restoring downtown as a retail center, luring shoppers back to the city center to shop, eat and be entertained. Tourism: The Unsung Economic Hero Tourism in Chattanooga is now a half-billion dollar industry, and the growth of that industry over the past decade has been nothing short of phenomenal. Tourists spend 50% more than they did in 1991, and the industry employs 25% more people than it did a decade ago more than 7,000 in the Chattanooga area. Tourists are our barometers. As long as they re visiting, chances are good that our city is continuing to deliver a quality product at a reasonable price. And if they arrive with their families, chances are good we re building a city that will have appeal to our own residents. A Vancouver, Canada city plan- ner noted, If you design an environment for children, it will work for everyone. So when Family Fun Magazine a Disney publication dubbed Chattanooga as one of the best family vacation spots in the country, it said as much about our overall quality of life as it did about our ability to welcome tourists. The end of the decade found the city committed to do for meeting and convention business what it had done for leisure tourism business, and the Chattanooga Conference Center and the expansion of the Convention and Trade Center are tangible symbols of that commitment. March, 1994 Southside Grill opens April, 1994 Mudpie opens on Frazier Avenue August, 1994 Shuttle Park North opens August, 1994 First annual Brewer s Festival

5 If properly done, reconnecting the city with its river, not only physically but by active use, will strengthen community pride. Tourists will be attracted and the word will spread, an essential step in focusing business and investment interest on Chattanooga. Tennessee Riverpark Master Plan, 1985 September, 1994 First annual Wine Over Water May, 1995 Creative Discovery Museum opens Clockwise from top left: Headquarters for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee; Market Center, anchor for what will soon be a district of office buildings; lunch hour at Miller Plaza; UnumProvident s corporate headquarters; TVA s Office of Power; UTC s Fletcher School of Business. UnumProvident Chooses Chattanooga For 115 years, Unum Provident has been a key player in downtown Chattanooga. Today the company is prominent not only in terms of its majestic position atop the Fountain Plaza hill, but also in terms of the employee base. Each day, some 2,800 Chattanoogans make their way into downtown to go to work at UnumProvident, which recently ranked in the top ten of America s Most Admired Companies, as listed in Fortune magazine. Earlier this year the company announced plans for a $45 million campus expansion. As part of that expansion, UnumProvident is building a $12 million, thousand-car parking garage that will free up blocks of surface parking and should be a catalyst along with the widening of Fourth Street for the redevelopment of one of Chattanooga s oldest neighborhoods. And the addition of 200 new jobs will bring UnumProvident s total downtown employment to more than 3,000. The Chattanooga Downtown Partnership has gone a long way toward marrying commerce and culture. Their seasonal celebrations and after-hours events bring Chattanoogans downtown to enjoy music, art, parades, and fireworks, then shop and eat before heading home. Formed in 1991, the CDP drew a dozen people to its first networking meeting. Today, they routinely draw hundreds.

6 Music, Movies, Fountains & Food Much of Chattanooga s most perceptible progress is embodied in its public spaces and attractions and facilities dedicated to arts, culture and sports. Think back. Ten years ago, the Naval Reserve Training Center occupied the north shore; an overgrown football field sat on Kirkman hill overlooking the abandoned high school; the only way to get from the Hunter Museum to downtown or to UTC was by car. Today, Coolidge Park and its magical carousel occupy that Naval Reserve site; BellSouth Park sits proudly atop Kirkman Hill, and the Riverwalk stretches upriver and down from the Hunter. Ten years ago the Walnut Street Bridge was barricaded with barbed wire; the Bluff View sculpture garden was nothing more than a weed-choked lot. Today they are destinations in their own rights. The IMAX Theatre, the Creative Discovery Museum both new additions since Ross s Landing has become more than our shared front porch, it s now our community rec room hosting an array of events, including the enormously successful Riverbend Festival. Ross s Landing Park & Plaza is a unique combination of public park, history museum and art gallery. The Nightfall Concert Series at Miller Plaza is now a regional draw. And the streets themselves have taken on a new appeal with streetscaped intersections, trees, banners and public sculptures. Chattanooga s riverwalk has won a trophy room full of honors and accolades. The Millennium Project, scheduled for completion in 2003, will provide the metaphorical golden spike, joining the downriver sections with the upriver, and Chattanoogans will be able to walk, jog, bike, scoot, blade nine miles from Chickamauga Dam to downtown. Along its length, visitors will find a rowing center, interactive exhibits, nature preserves, a sculpture garden, an amphitheater, and dozens of diversions that make it one of the premiere pedways in the country. More and more, communities are realizing quality of life holds the key to their economic futures. Increasingly, individuals and businesses can locate where they please, and the content of a community s lifestyle portfolio including the quality of its downtown is becoming a critical factor in relocation decisions. The competition is intense, but so are the opportunities for those who excel. After a decade of care and attention, downtown Chattanooga has become fun to visit, pleasant to walk around in an enjoyable place to be. Who would have predicted that prior to 1992? Ross s Landing Park & Plaza With its distinctive lifted landscapes, Ross s Landing Park and Plaza has provided a fitting setting for the Tennessee Aquarium. Part park, part museum, part plaza, part playground, this award-winning public space is a perfect complement to the Tennessee Aquarium. February, 1996 Bessie Smith Hall opens February, 1996 James A. Henry Community Center opens in the Westside May, 1996 Tennessee Aquarium IMAX Theatre opens June, 1996 Shuttle Park South opens July, 1996 Residence Inn opens

7 Jack s Alley Anatomy of a Downtown District For years, the 400 block of Market Street stood out as a giant bit of unfinished business in this city so committed to downtown revitalization. Abandoned storefronts, decaying buildings and a handful of hardy but struggling enterprises made it a block worth skipping. Today most of the buildings have been reclaimed, a mid-block alley has been created, and an eclectic blend of restaurants and offices has made Jack s Alley a downtown destination, morning, noon and night. Citizens must realize that downtown is the common turf of the community, the place where people of all ages, classes and ethnic groups should intermingle. Chattanooga in Motion, 1982 Clockwise from upper left: the Walnut Street Bridge the world s longest pedestrian bridge; interior/exterior of Coolidge Park s captivating carousel; Nightfall concert at Miller Plaza; whimsical sidewalk sculpture on Broad Street; splishing in the fountain at Coolidge Park; Chattanooga s inimitable street party the Bessie Smith Strut; the Bluff View sculpture garden; splashing in the stream at Ross s Landing Park & Plaza. BellSouth Park A Home Run on the Hill For years, city planners searched for the perfect development to place on the hill overlooking the aquarium. Opportunity came in the form of the Chattanooga Lookouts who were looking for a new home closer to the pulse of activity at Ross s Landing. In another extraordinary display of civic partnership, Frank Burke and the other Lookout owners agreed to build the stadium with their own money. Remarkable in an era of sports teams holding cities hostage to build publicly funded multimillion stadiums. The Bijou Theatre A Modern Phenomenon Carmike Cinemas told Chattanooga developers they didn t build theatres in downtown anymore. That was A couple of years and a couple of visits later, Carmike was convinced that downtown theatres could work in a place like Chattanooga, so they opened the seven-screen Bijou Theatre, adding an important dimension to downtown nightlife. September, 1996 Little Theatre completes expansion, changes to Chattanooga Theatre Centre November, 1996 Downtown Partnership produces first annual Winter Days and Lights

8 Coming to Life Downtown When Gianni Longo and the Institute for Environmental Action were brought in to assess downtown Chattanooga s problems in the early eighties, they quickly realized one thing: once downtown workers departed at the end of the day, no one was left, in large part because there were so few diversions only a handful of restaurants and a smattering of theatrical and cultural events. But the main reason was that very few people lived there. When day was done, downtown workers headed for bedroom communities across the river and in the suburbs. The 1993 Downtown Plan posed the challenge in plain language: It boils down to this: if we are ever to realize our vision for downtown Chattanooga, we must figure out a way to get people to live there. And in 1993, frankly, there weren t many places for people to live even if they wanted to. And no one was sure they wanted to. That s why Chattanooga s first new housing in more than a decade the Riverset Apartments represented a significant risk. And it only happened because of a delicate cooperative effort between the RiverCity Company, the City and private developers. But the response was dramatic. Riverset was full when it opened in 1993 and has stayed so ever since. The Riverset experience proved beyond question that people wanted to live downtown. They just needed places to hang their hats. The housing market has responded. Riverset, the Grand, the Robinson, First & Market, Cowart Place, the Crabtree, St. John s, Lindsay Court and Southern Railway have either been completed or are underway, representing a decade s worth of investment totaling $50,000,000. There are 1,800 more people living in and around downtown than there were in In 2000 the RiverCity Company took civic leaders to Memphis to see what that city had done to add 5,000 units of housing downtown since the early seventies. The Chattanooga delegation came back with a new understanding of the intricacies of downtown housing and the incentives necessary to make them happen. Just this past winter, the Hamilton County Commission and the Chattanooga City Council enacted an incentive that developers need to aggressively pursue the downtown rental housing market. Homes are the cornerstones of neighborhoods, and the residential renaissance is renewing places like Rustville, Fort Negley, Lindsay Street and M.L. King. So are schools. Two new elementary schools Tommie F. Brown Academy for Classical Studies and the Herman H. Battle Academy for Teaching and Learning will open as magnet schools giving first priority to residents of the surrounding neighborhoods. Fit & Livable Housing for Everyone Since 1986, Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise (CNE) has upheld its mission to provide the opportunity for all Chattanoogans to have fit and affordable housing. Since its inception, CNE has invested over $230 million benefiting 6,000 families and has enabled 2,550 people to purchase homes. Another of Chattanooga s trademark public-private partnerships, CNE comprises the efforts of the City of Chattanooga, Hamilton County, the Lyndhurst Foundation, private individuals, lenders, financial institutions and corporations, Tennessee Housing Development Agency and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In 2001, CNE financed more than $11 million in residential development. CNE s accomplishments have not escaped recognition; the agency was given a HUD John J. Gunther Blue Ribbon Practices in Community Development award and the 1994 Urban Land Institute s Award for Excellence. A 24-hour downtown. Chattanoogans once addressed the idea longingly. Today, we see living room window lights burning past dark from the river to the Southside. Once again, downtown Chattanooga has become a place to live. March, 1997 Battery Place segment of Riverpark opens July, 1997 Apartments at the Grand open October, 1997 Finley Stadium hosts first football game

9 It boils down to this: if we are ever to realize our vision for downtown Chattanooga, we must figure out a way to get people to live there. Downtown Plan, 1993 Neighborhoods: Fundamental Building Blocks for the Region Slowly but very surely, Chattanooga is rebuilding its historic downtown neighborhoods. Fort Negley, Jefferson Heights and Rustville in the Southside, the Westside, M.L. King, Highland Park, Bushtown, Alton Park and the prospect of restored residential tracts along Fourth Street are re-creating communities where they once flourished. The restoration is being conducted thoughtfully and with sensitivity ensuring that current residents can continue to own their homes as the community prospers. During the past decade, neighborhood associations have hit their stride, found their voice, gained an audience and become powerful agents for meaningful change in the areas they represent. Cities are functions of their neighborhoods, reflecting their strengths and weaknesses. Chattanooga s growing commitment to creating vital neighborhoods can send ripples of economic and social health through the entire region. Spring, 1998 Jack s Alley completed Clockwise from top: Another CNE home ready for market; the renovated Robinson Apartments; the newly constructed condominiums at First and Market; the Riverset Apartments; Left: Cowart Place is anchoring the Southside s residential renewal; Above: CARTA s electric shuttle provides the vital transportation link. No Noise. No Fumes. No Fare. When the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority began operating electric shuttle buses in 1992, we regarded the vehicles as a novelty. Moving noiselessly through the streets, they seemed more like toys than legitimate public transportation. Ten years later the free shuttle is an indispensable part of the downtown scene moving residents, workers and visitors throughout the city. And Advanced Vehicle Systems, the bus manufacturer, has become a successful home grown company and hosted delegations from around the globe all interested in putting this new technology to work in their own communities.

10 Working Together Works Chattanooga s Planning, Process and Partnerships Virtually every major project undertaken in Chattanooga during the nineties bore these trademarks: input and involvement from people whom the project would affect, a plan that reflected their ideas combined with the contributions of experts in the field, and a partnership of players to make the plan into a viable development. Chattanoogans manage process, planning and partnerships as well as any community in the country, and the results are found in projects with appeal, integrity and sustainability. From the Tennessee Riverpark in the eighties to BellSouth Park and the Westside redevelopment in the nineties, Chattanooga has developed a knack for building consensus on a project and then finding the resources to get it done. Moccasin Bend Task Force and Vision 2000 Setting the Tone Dating to the mid-eighties, Chattanoogans have been involved in planning the future of their community. Both the Moccasin Bend Task Force and Vision 2000 solicited broad input from the community before publishing the results of their work (the Tennessee Riverpark Master Plan and Vision 2000 Commitment Opportunity Workbook, respectively). Involving thousands of citizens, those two processes set the benchmark for public planning and helped established Chattanooga s reputation as a community committed to participatory process. Since 1992, Chattanooga has hosted scores of groups representing other communities. They come to see the aquarium; they want to look at the riverfront; they are interested in the electric shuttle. But very nearly to a group, they yearn to learn how Chattanooga moves its plans off the drawing board and into reality. The credit for that reputation belongs to scores of people: mayors, county executives, city council members, county commissioners, state legislators, government staffs, philanthropists, business people, educators and concerned citizens. Together, we have engaged in vigorous debate, forged solid compromises, then worked creatively to put projects together. Chattanoogans should take pride in our civic renaissance but we should be equally proud of the conversations, the cooperation and the consensus that enabled it. Community planning and decision-making are an ongoing process which requires continuous input: from professionals, city institutions and private citizens. The continuity of this input is its guaranty of success for individual projects as well as master plans. Chattanooga in Motion, 1982 Just What is a Charrette Anyway? As Chattanoogans have gathered to discuss the future of our city, we have been introduced to a new glossary of terms related to urban design and development: city grid, streetscape, infill, infrastructure, public realm. We learned that structures have scale and traffic has tempo; that development is successful when it creates a sense of place. Many of these terms cropped up while we were sitting in something called a charrette. Charrette is a French word meaning little cart. Architecture students at the old Ecole des Beaux Arts had their work collected by a teacher passing a small cart around the studio. Today, we apply the term to design workshops in which a number of ideas are applied to a common challenge. Chattanoogans have held charrettes to plan the Southside, Riverfront Parkway, Eastgate and others. January, 1999 Community Impact Fund created August, 1999 Downtown Police Precinct opens on Walnut Street September, 1999 Battery Place Rowing Center segment opens October, 1999 Coolidge Park opens

11 The Foundations of Chattanooga s Generosity The Lyndhurst Foundation has been boundless in its philanthropic generosity, but it is not alone. The Tonya Foundation embraced a vision for downtown before it was fashionable, funding both Miller Park and Miller Plaza. Benwood, Caldwell, Community, ELD, Hamico and Maclellan Foundations have all played catalytic roles in Chattanooga s revitalization. From public spaces to public education, Chattanooga s foundations have donated millions of dollars to enhance our collective quality of life. In the words of the president of the Southeastern Council of Foundations: There are few cities that can match Chattanooga for the amount and the quality of its foundations and their leaders. Today Chattanoogans have a sense of pride and confidence rooted, perhaps most importantly, in hard work, the spirit of cooperation and the community s ability to come together and set a direction that made those things happen. A Work in Progress: Creating New Possibilities for Chattanooga, The Harwood Group for the Mott Foundation, 1999 Pulling Together for Public Education Quality schools are integral to strong neighborhoods. Chattanooga s new downtown magnet schools are the result of a visionary partnership among the County, the City, the Lyndhurst and UC Foundations, UTC, the RiverCity Company, the Hamilton County Department of Education and the associated neighborhoods. Tommie F. Brown Academy and Herman H. Battle Academy will open this fall and provide cornerstones for the city s residential renaissance. Brown and Battle Academies will become the next generation of downtown schools, carrying on the groundbreaking work that was begun with Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences. April, 2000 BellSouth Park opens with exhibition game between Baltimore Orioles and Cincinnati Reds Projects produced from Chattanooga s remarkable partnerships. Clockwise from top left: Coolidge Park; Chattanooga Visitors Center, BellSouth Park and Finley Stadium. Left: the James A. Henry Center in the Westside. Far left: Tennessee Riverpark fishing pier; UTC student housing, bringing a new dimension to the M. L. King district. July, 2000 First Pops on the River concert at Coolidge Park August, 2000 Aquarium hosts ten millionth visitor The Town & Gown Connection With its $25 million Lupton Renaissance Fund in place, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga has the opportunity to create enduring positive changes and position UTC as a world-class institution of higher learning. Early discussion has centered on the creation of an urban design and planning institute that would focus on the teaching, research and implementation needed to create vigorous and sustainable cities.

12 Respect and Recognition Perhaps the most certain sign of Chattanooga s success is the amount of recognition it has earned us. We can remember the thrill of having the aquarium featured in the New York Times. The NEW YORK TIMES! And, after his visit, a Washington Post travel writer said, By reinvesting in its river heritage, Chattanooga is well on the way to becoming the prettiest city of its size in America. The WASHINGTON POST! How close that was to the vision of the Tennessee Riverpark Master Plan, which seven years earlier had written: By reconnecting with its great river, the city can make over its image, find new sources of pride for its citizens and fuel the engine of central economic development. We now realize that those two 1992 reviews were only the tip of the journalistic iceberg, because the ensuing decade brought publicity that ranged from Japanese public television to the cover of Parade Magazine. Family Fun Magazine said we were one of the ten best family vacation destinations in the country, and the one with the friendliest people. The American Architecture Foundation featured Chattanooga in their PBS special on three cities that had struggled back from the brink of urban irrelevance to create vibrant city centers. Outside Magazine listed Chattanooga among its ten dream towns perfect places to live big, play hard and work (if you must). And more than 700 of Fodor s editors and writers worldwide recently named Chattanooga the top overlooked and underrated family destination for 2002 in or near the United States. Collectively, the coverage painted the picture of a community rediscovering itself and reintroducing itself to others. The publicity caught the attention of people trying to do similar things in their own communities, and they started calling and coming to see what we had built. When they left, they were shaking their heads about what we had managed to accomplish in a relatively brief time. But what really caught their attention was the way in which it had been accomplished with diverse community groups lending their opinions (neighborhood groups, merchants associations, environmentalists), with guidance from some of the finest minds in their fields (urban design, public space, housing and landscape), and with funding from diverse sources (government, philanthropy, business and individuals). Remarkably, in the space of ten years, we have gone from being a community that traveled elsewhere to find answers, to being a model that others want to study. We have become the experts. We are the ones with the answers. It was a marvelous sense of affirmation, and didn t it feel good to hear other communities bemoaning the fact that they weren t more like Chattanooga! Chattanooga has been praised in hundreds of publications. Some of the comments rendered during the past ten years: An industrial wasteland only a decade ago, [Chattanooga] has demonstrated a much-heralded wherewithal to bring its vision to reality and has become a model for other cities trying to rejuvenate downtowns. Atlanta Journal-Constitution, April 1998 Not only has this community visioning process become a self-generating source of new ideas for civic improvement, advocates say, but it has also built broad consensus along the way, creating the communal chutzpah needed to break through inevitable political barriers. Cleveland Plain Dealer, December 16, 2001 The Tennessee River sweeps through the heart of Chattanooga in a boomerang shape, the eternal symbol of a full-circle return. That s fitting, because Chattanoogans and visitors by the millions are rediscovering the city s roots down by the riverside. Cincinnati-Kentucky Enquirer, May 1997 Chattanooga s progress, past and present, demonstrates that problems, however onerous, needn t defeat people who care. Utne Reader, May-June 1997 Visioning has taken off in large part because there is one place where it can be shown to have worked spectacularly well. The story of Chattanooga s revival is legendary. Governing Magazine, May 1998 March, 2001 Chattanooga Conference Center opens March, 2001 Governor Sundquist announces state handing over Riverfront Parkway March, 2001 Groundbreaking for Convention & Trade Center expansion June, 2001 Construction begins on UTC Engineering Building

13 Chattanooga and its designers, planners and architects have won a slew of awards for its design and architecture. A sampling: National Waterfront Conference Waterfront Development Honor Award 1994 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Honor Award for Urban Design for Walnut Street Bridge 1995 Masterplan Design s Top 60 Great American Places (Tennessee Riverpark) 1996 Rebuild Tennessee Coalition s Award of Excellence (Southside Redevelopment Plan) 1997 Progressive Architecture Magazine s Outstanding Urban Design Award (Miller Plaza) 1998 American Planning Association s Outstanding Planning Award (Tennessee Riverpark) 1998 Tennessee Parks & Recreation s Outstanding Project Award (Battery Place Segment of Tennessee Riverpark) 1998 American Society of Landscape Architects Special Award (Coolidge Park) 2000 AIA s Thomas Jefferson Award for Public Architecture (Stroud Watson, Director of Riverfront/Downtown Planning and Design Center) 2001 International Downtown Association s Award of Merit for Planning (Southside Redevelopment Plan) 2001 American Society of Landscape Architecture s Honor Award (Coolidge Park) 2001 All month Morning Edition has pondered what makes cities great. So far it s been big cities, but today a place that... has civic pride and the ability to solve problems that are often daunting to bigger cities. It kept popping up every time NPR asked about a great smaller city: Chattanooga. National Public Radio, February 2001 June, 2001 Riverbend Festival celebrates twentieth anniversary June, 2001 Market Center opens first new office building in a decade Learning Chattanooga s Lessons From A to Z Chattanooga has hosted delegations from a host of cities and nations. Among them: Allentown- Athens-Asheville-Atlanta-Augusta-Austin- Baton Rouge-Birmingham-Boulder- Brentwood-Bristol-Buffalo-Cambridge- Charlotte-Cherokee-Chicago-Cincinnati- Clearwater-Cleveland-College Station- Columbus-Decatur-Denver-Detroit-Eugene- Franklin-Fort Meyers-Fort Pierce-Gainesville- Gatlinburg-Greensboro-Harrisburg-Honolulu- Huntsville-Indianapolis-Jonesboro-Knoxville- Little Rock-Los Angeles-Macon-Madison- Memphis-Miami Beach-Mobile-Montgomery- Nashville-New Bedford-New Haven- Newark-New York-Pigeon Forge-Pittsburgh- Portland-Raleigh Durham-Richmond-Rome- Sacramento-San Antonio-Slippery Rock-St. Paul-Syracuse-Tacoma-Virginia Beach- Washington DC-Australia-Bahrain-Bavaria- Bulgaria-Burma-Colombia-Costa Rica- Croatia-Cypress-Ecuador-France-Germany- Greece-Guyana-Hungary-India-Indonesia- Israel-Italy-Japan-Jordan-Netherlands- Pakistan-Phillippines-Russia-Sloval Republic- Sweden-Thailand-Turkey-Ukraine-Zimbabwe

14 A Decade Down, Generations to Go The past, it is said, is prologue. The last decade, as impressive as it has been for Chattanooga s civic rebound, does not constitute a job well done. It is rather, a job well begun. Cities are dynamic constantly changing. The challenge is to make sure that the changes are positive. Part of our challenge will be to hew to the formula that got us where we are today bold visions, solid and manageable plans, and partnerships for progress. It seems almost ridiculously obvious, yet other communities still come to study how we do it here. One of the models they want to learn about is the RiverCity Company, the organization that was put in place fifteen years ago with the mission of developing downtown and the riverfront. As they did in 1986, the staff of RiverCity wakes up every morning and goes to work on that mission. In considering its long-range plan, the RiverCity Company divided its future work into three core strategies: Completing the return to the river that was begun with the Tennessee Riverpark Master Plan. The 21st Century Waterfront planning process will address this strategy, determining the best way to complete the connection, including possible changes to Riverfront Parkway. Revitalizing the central business district. Since 1992, we have focused vast energy and resources in Ross s Landing and the Southside. In between, the CBD has been left wanting. The next few years will see much more activity there, starting with the Central Block soon to be the home of the United Way. Attracting more residents downtown. Restoring two-way traffic to Third and Fourth Streets will help. So will the continued addition of shops, markets and other services and amenities. So will the opening of two new schools. So will the completion of projects like Loveman s, which will be aided by incentives like the new tax abatements. As residents return, momentum will build, and Chattanooga will be more than a center of government, education, commerce and culture. It will once again become a prestigious residential address. More downtown visions ready to become reality. Clockwise from above: two images from the Riverfront Parkway study Second Street reconnecting to the Parkway and Hunter Museum; the proposed new look heading into Ross s Landing; three images from the 21st Century Waterfront study a boardwalk spanning the North Shore wetlands; schematic plans for the Riverfront at M. L. King; First Street stepping up the hill eastward from Market Street. Below left: the panoramic vision for Ross s Landing. Building great cities is a generational task handed down from one to another. Although the work is never done, this generation can certainly take pride in the torch they pass along. Downtown Chattanooga is a profoundly different place than it was when a group of citizens first published a bold twenty-year vision of what the riverfront might come to look like. So much of their dream has come true. Now it s time to create a new vision, new excitement, a new portfolio of commitment opportunities, new partnerships for progress, and to press ahead with the daunting work of creating a great city. As we go, let s remember what the past ten years have taught us... there is nothing we cannot do... July, 2001 Groundbreaking for two new downtown schools Fall, 2001 UTC opens first phase of new student housing December, 2001 Development Resource Center opens January, 2002 UnumProvident announces Chattanooga will be corporate headquarters

15 The Place with the Models and the Drawings on the Wall Since the eighties, the Planning and Design Studio has been Chattanooga s urban idea incubator. Beginning in a storefront on Vine Street, the Design Studio has housed Stroud Watson s UT architecture students, who have taken on a Chattanooga design challenge for their course work each semester. Among other things, the aquarium was first given form and location during one of these classes. Today the Design Studio is housed in the Development Resource Center on Broad Street, and it is still the place where urban design concepts are nurtured and turned into shining urban design realities. Created through significant public interaction, the 21st Century Waterfront Plan will be our blueprint for completing the connection to the river and making our riverfront the most exciting, prosperous one possible. Mayor Bob Corker, February 2002 Celebrating a Decade of Design Chattanooga s renaissance bears the mark of several world-renowned planners, designers and architects. This spring, six of them will return to reflect on their work and offer some thoughts on the challenges that lay ahead. The panel includes Stephen Carr (design consultant, Tennessee Riverpark Master Plan), Peter Chermayeff (lead architect, Tennessee Aquarium), Kem Hinton (lead architect, IMAX Theatre and River Place), Fred Koetter (lead architect, Miller Plaza), Chris Leinberger (ULI Study Team-Moccasin Bend, facilitating consultant-1993 Downtown Plan), Shelley Poticha (project co-coordinator, Southside Plan), Stroud Watson (founder, Chattanooga Planning and Design Studio). February, st Century Chattanooga Waterfront planning process gets underway April, Downtown Plan process launched May, 2002 Tennessee Aquarium celebrates tenth anniversary!! 2003 Downtown Plan Great cities do not develop by accident. They take planning and cooperation. This is the objective of a downtown plan, and our last such undertaking happened almost ten years ago. It s time for another look and the Planning and Design Studio is currently coordinating that effort. To borrow from the Chattanooga Times Free Press editorial page: In the end, the new downtown plan will define not just common goals, but the future of the city and its potential promise. It merits significant effort and the contributions of all who value Chattanooga s progress.

16 RiverCity was created in 1986 with the mission of implementing the Tennessee Riverpark Master Plan, Chattanooga s twenty-year, twenty-two mile blueprint for riverfront and downtown development. For fifteen years, RiverCity has been the steward of downtown and riverfront development, a role that it continues to play today. Funded privately with board representation from both the public and private sector, RiverCity is itself a model partnership. The RiverCity Company gratefully acknowledges the ongoing generous support of the Lyndhurst Foundation, which has made the publication of this report possible.