George Calhoun, president of the Alton Park Development Corporation, talks about the 15 computers and free Wifi donated by EPB for the new Chattanooga Civic Center on Friday inside the old Piney Woods Elementary School.On the same day that the Alton Park Development Corp. celebrated a $170,000 playground and the revitalization of the community, three residents got into a fight that ended with the fatal shooting of Orlandas Gay, the city's 14th homicide of the year.
The two men who allegedly fought with Gay are brothers. One sits in jail and a warrant is out for the arrest of the other. All three were in their 20s.
Despite repeated instances of violence, George Calhoun, president of the Alton Park Development Corp., is set on community revitalization and has no intention of giving up.
"Crime. Shootings. Gangs. We are the catalyst to resolve it," Calhoun said. "The Chattanooga Civic Center at Mountainside is a place for options."
He wants the center to be a place where people find solutions to the social and economic problems plaguing Alton Park, a neighborhood where 63 percent of residents live in poverty, according to city data.
The Hamilton County school board donated the old Piney Woods Elementary School to the corporation. The building is worth more than $4 million, Calhoun said.
The group owns 8 acres of land surrounding the building from Wilson Street past Edingburg Drive.
Calhoun plans to host a grand opening for the building and start community programming in July.
Joyce Knox, a musician for Second Missionary Baptist Church, will teach piano and sewing classes at the center this summer.
"We haven't had ownership of anything on this scale in the black community," she said. "This is an opportunity to excel and offer things like music, ballet and tap to kids who are less fortunate."
Hamilton County Commissioner Warren Mackey said he supports the work the corporation wants to do in the community.
"I know they will eventually come to the county for help to make the facility go," he said. "I am going to help as much as I can."
The corporation is in the process of forming an agreement with the early childhood program at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where students in its early childhood development program staff a daycare for children ages 0-4.
UTC officials already have toured the site, and toddler beds, cribs and toys are in place.
"We have some real strong allies who want to wrap their arms around what's happening and resolve some issues," said Dr. Elenora Woods, who has discussed early reading programs with UTC staff and retired Hamilton County School teachers.
Woods, a local dentist and executive director of the corporation, will operate Family Dentistry II in the site. One room already is decked out with a reclining exam chair and dental equipment. She is able to do exams and simple cleanings at the site. She sends patients needing more assistance to her office on Bonny Oaks Drive.
The civic center will also be the new site for computer classes.
EPB donated two dozen computers to the site and is providing free Wi-Fi for a year.
James Mathis and Gil Wideman, who designed the playground for the site, will continue working with other volunteers. It is expected to be complete in July.
The development corporation plans to be a long-term force toward the progress of the Alton Park community, said Calhoun.
"We'll be here for the rest of our lives," he said. "We're going to keep being blessed, keep moving."
Contact staff writer Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 757-6431.