Three years ago this month, we wrote of Chattanooga’s collaboration with the National Recreation and Park Association and other partners to revitalize a park in what was once called “the most promising residential tract ever opened” in the city.
The goal of the $2.8 million project was to transform the unused, 1.4-acre Lynnbrook Park in the Oak Grove Community off Main Street into a place for outdoor recreation and to correct a longstanding problem with the 1930s-era storm drain that ran through it.
Last month, during National Parks and Recreation Month, the park opened, allowing 3,000 area residents access to nearby recreation and relaxation.
We suspect most mayors of municipalities across the country include in the platforms they run on that they want to improve parks. What could be more American?
Tim Kelly, like most mayors, made that promise, but he has put teeth in the promise. He hired an ambitious parks planner, the city has unveiled a long-term parks plan and officials have put Chattanooga on the track to becoming a National Park City, the vision for which — according to the international organization — is a city “where people, places and nature are better connected.”