Opponents of the Hixson development sit wearing green shirts that read “Don’t Chop the Hilltop” during Tuesday evening’s city council meeting.
Rezoning opponent Ellie Wallis speaks Tuesday during the Hixson rezoning discussion at the Chattanooga City Council meeting.
Citing a need for more answers, Chattanooga City Council members on Tuesday put off a rezoning decision on a proposed 190-acre commercial and apartment project for two weeks.
“It’s causing a lot of stress. There’s a lot of passion,” said Councilwoman Pam Ladd about the $100 million Chattanooga Village proposal off Highway 153 near Boy Scout Road. “We want to get this right.”
For more than an hour, developer Duane Horton and critics to his plan offered their cases and took question after question from council members.
Horton said he would pledge not to take off the top of the hill on the wooded site.
“We’ll say it will not be touched,” he said in response to more than a dozen people in the packed council room who wore green “Don’t Chop the Hilltop” T-shirts.