Tennessee Temple University Executive Vice President Dr. Byron E. Edens, right, leans in to speak with Woodland Park Baptist Church Administrative Pastor Steven McCary Monday during the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission meeting. The longtime Highland Park school wants to move to the campus of the Church in East Brainerd.
Property owned by Woodland Park Baptist Church in Tyner could be a possible future home of Tennessee Temple University.
Looks like there will be a traffic study after all as Tennessee Temple talks with Woodland Park Baptist Church about moving the Highland Park university across town to share a suburban space in Tyner.
At Monday’s planning commission meeting, representatives of Woodland Park came ready to answer questions about the traffic concerns planning staff cited in their recommendation to planning commissioners regarding the proposed 160-acre school and church combo.
Steve Carroll, principal architect at Rardin and Carroll Architects, told planning commissioners that if Temple and Woodland Park agree to combine their campuses in Tyner, it would be “a very low-impact development.”
He said Temple’s intention is to grow slowly, aiming for 800 students in 15 years. And the project is to grow out over a total period of 25 years, he said.
Stephen Meyer, branch manager of Alfred Benesch Engineering, brought numbers that he said refuted claims that bringing Temple to Tyner would clog up Hickory Valley and Standifer Gap Roads.