Program seeks to turn Chattanooga's dirty alleys into people-friendly walkways

The alleyway off of Lindsay Street runs behind Patten Parkway Friday, April 29, 2016.
The alleyway off of Lindsay Street runs behind Patten Parkway Friday, April 29, 2016.

Graffiti, weeds and food scraps mark the wearily trodden way separating The Honest Pint and The Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul off Lindsay Street downtown.

Friday afternoon, HVAC units hummed in the back alley, at the height of the humid spring afternoon. Walkers passed by without a glance. A gray pigeon patrolled the dirty ground.

It's areas like this around downtown that designers and development officials want to reclaim - existing alley space that's overlooked, unused and for the most part abandoned by people. The downtown development agency River City Co. is partnering with the American Institute of Architects Tennessee to do it.

The program is called Passageways, and it has identified at least seven target alleyways around downtown Chattanooga that can be transformed into quality, people-friendly spaces. Passageways calls for open submissions for alleyway upgrade ideas from anybody, from anywhere in the world with any degree of design or architectural experience.

Submissions (which must be entered by May 23) will pass through a series of reviews and selections over the summer, until the very best Passageways ideas remain. When AIA Tennessee holds its annual state convention in Chattanooga in August, winners will be announced.

Those with the winning submissions will be awarded between $5,000 and $10,000 to make their plans a reality. That funding is available through donations from AIA, ArtsBuild, Benwood, Causeway, Cogent Studio, the Lyndhurst Foundation and River City Co.

The number of winners will be determined based on submissions.

Amy Donahue, marketing and communications manager at River City Co., said Friday that downtown development officials had considered an alleyway upgrade project for a while, and the partnership with AIA "was pretty perfect, because we had already been thinking about alleyways as a project."

For River City Co., the alleyways project this year is what the shop front art and dressings program was last year. Through its Open Spaces program, River City Co. seeks to liven up empty downtown areas, "to create a better and brighter sort of pedestrian experience," said Donahue.

She pointed to the dressed-up alleyway off Chestnut Street, that DeFoor Brothers Development recently improved near the Read House as an example of the general idea behind Passageways, "as far as making (alleyways) comfortable and more inviting."

Closer to the waterfront, Jack's Alley runs between Market and Broad Street as a pedestrian walkway for such restaurants as Sticky Fingers, Taco Mac and Panera Bread.

Jared Hueter, an architect at Chattanooga-based Cogent Studio and current chairman of AIA Tennessee, said Friday that Passageways has the potential to create people-only walkways and paths through the city, not unlike what exists in large European cities, which grew up before the rise of automobiles.

"Alleyways have that opportunity to be that kind of space that's scaled down to the human space," said Hueter. "Often we just put Dumpsters in them, mechanical systems and trash, and stuff like that."

Hueter was involved with the rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina wrecked the city in 2005. He said a similar project there was immensely popular. Passageways, he said, will potentially bring residents and visitors alike to "spaces that you typically wouldn't get to experience."

He said participants in France and Egypt have already registered for Passageways, and he fielded calls this week from potential participants in Boston.

"We purposefully made it open to anybody," Hueter said. "It's not just a state thing or a Chattanooga thing."

Hueter also said in the midst of what's become a violent spring for the city, there is still good reason to focus on things like urban design and alleyways.

"There is definitely a lot of research suggesting that you can design in a smart way that could impact crime," he said.

While secluded, dimly-lit areas of the city might present opportunities for crime, well-lit and highly-trafficked areas might discourage it.

"In that sense, bad design creates the opportunity for crime, and good design can limit it," said Hueter.

He said there will be issues and questions to work out going forward, especially since some alleyways are private property, while others are public right-of-ways and spaces.

"There are a lot of things that definitely still have to be figured out," Hueter said. "It's kind of an unknown. We'll see what we can get from it."

Passageways is accepting open submissions through May 23. Standards and criteria can be reviewed at www.passageways chattanooga.com.

Contact staff writer Alex Green at agreen@timesfreepress.com or 4230757-6480.

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