A giraffe in front of Sir Goony’s Family Fun Center towers over traffic Thursday on Brainerd Road. Merchants hope that revitalization efforts, new businesses and storefront upgrades can help remake the area into Midtown Chattanooga.FAST FACTAt Brainerd Village, one of the city’s oldest shopping centers, a pair of new businesses have opened in recent weeks — Ollie’s Bargain Outlet and Chick-fil-A.
Chattanoogan Alan Richelson has lived and worked in Brainerd for years, and he’d like to see more entertainment, education and cultural choices help lift the historic area to its former glory.
“There’s not any one thing that would make a difference,” he said. “I’d like to see a general increase in activity.”
Nearly 100 Brainerd area business people and others turned out Thursday to learn more about efforts to breathe new life into the district that’s just minutes from Chattanooga’s thriving downtown.
“People have forgotten about the Brainerd area,” said Chuck Lawson, president of the MidTown Council of the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce.