Business Briefs: Waterfront plan and American Airlines

Waterfront plan wins U.S. honor

The Garden Club of America has recognized Chattanooga’s 21st Century Waterfront Plan as the winner of the Elvira Broome Doolan Medal for Innovative Work in landscape architecture in urban areas. The city project, which was completed in 2005, is one of only three recipients of the honor, which recognizes city planning and improvement projects. The waterfront plan stemmed from community planning sessions with more than 300 citizens and ultimately led to expansions of three major downtown attractions — the Tennessee Aquarium, the Hunter Museum of Art and the Creative Discovery Museum.

American wants union changes

American Airlines argued before a federal bankruptcy judge Monday that its union contracts need to be changed to make the company financially stable. The airline lost more than $10 billion in the decade leading up to its declaration of bankruptcy in November.

American wants to eliminate 13,000 union jobs — about one in every four union workers — freeze or terminate pension plans, curb health benefits, reduce time off, and impose many other cuts. “A restructured job is better than no job at all,” said Jack Gallagher, a lawyer for the airline.