The Lincoln Park neighborhood is the area between the railroad overpass, Erlanger, Third Street and Riverside Drive.WHAT’S NEXTHere is a general timeline of events connected to the plan to create a Third Street to Riverside Neighborhood Plan:Oct. 11: Walkabout / site visitNov. 11: Opportunities & constraints analysisDec. 5: Workshop #1/Visual preferenceDec. 6: Workshop #2/ Design charetteFeb. 10: Draft concept plansJune/July 2015: Final plan presentation
City planners want to transform Third Street and the traffic-racing Riverside Drive into a more connected, pedestrian-friendly zone, and they want to know what residents think about the idea.
“We’re hoping to uncover the vision for the area,” said Heather Shank, Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency senior planner.
At present with no plan, Riverside Drive functions as a highway, not a place where people feel safe walking. Yet the road is immediately adjacent to the riverfront, Shank said.
It’s also near the Chattanooga Zoo, Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences, and Erlanger hospital. Third Street is more urban and pedestrian in some places, but as it gets closer to Veterans Bridge it loses integrity, with very wide lanes and traffic going in both directions, she said.