On the Waterfront: Safety, function to be studied by engineering firm

The Riverfront terrace has many cracks on the concrete surface that began appearing a few years ago. Staff Photo by Allison Carter/Chattanooga Times Free Press

Less than six years after the city’s 21st Century Waterfront opened to great fanfare, a big portion will undergo a comprehensive engineering study to assess its problems.

“This is a major infrastructure repair to the city,” said Larry Zehnder, Chattanooga’s parks and recreation director.

The study of more than 1,000 feet of the downtown waterfront’s concrete edge will examine not just cracking and soil erosion, but will look at the electrical, pumping, water and sewer systems that were installed before the project was completed in 2005.

“This study will identify the problems and then the solutions to the problems,” Zehnder told the Chattanooga Downtown Redevelopment Corp., which oversees the Ross’s Landing area and agreed to authorize the $610,000 study by HDR Engineering Inc.

The money for the study comes from the hotel/motel tax.