The Brand
“Chattanooga Choo Choo” single turns 75, while iconic downtown property turns a corner
History: In May 1941, American swing music star Glenn Miller released the single “Chattanooga Choo Choo” and put the Scenic City on the map for decades to come. The song chronicles a trip between New York City and Chattanooga onboard a steam locomotive. Chattanooga was an important city on the rails, especially for passengers coming and going from Atlanta.
Chattanooga’s largest train station, Terminal Station, operated on the city’s Southside for 60 years before closing with the general demise of railroad travel in 1970. Seeing an opportunity to save the old Beaux-Arts brick depot and station, investors purchased Terminal Station and re-opened it as the Chattanooga Choo Choo hotel – playing off the famous ’40s tune – in 1972. The Choo Choo main building still features the original 90-foot ceiling and one of the largest freestanding brick arches in the world.
In 2014, the Choo Choo announced a major, $8 million renovation. The changes added restaurants and long-term apartment units to the site, as well as the addition of new entertainment venues for downtown Chattanooga.
Location: The Chattanooga Choo Choo is located at 1400 Market St.
Leadership: Choo Choo Partners LP, parent company of the Chattanooga Choo Choo property today, is owned by principals Frank Fowler and former Chattanooga mayor Jon Kinsey. Adam Kinsey is president of the company and largely responsible for operation of the Choo Choo property.
Renovations: The Choo Choo property is at the center of a new entertainment district in Chattanooga’s Southside neighborhood. Nearly 100 hotel rooms were retrofitted and are now small-footprint apartments. The Comedy Catch, the well-known 30-year-old Chattanooga comedy club, moved into the Choo Choo property in November 2015.
Track 29 and The Revelry Room, a pair of music venues, operate at the Choo Choo. A 7,300-square-foot guitar museum called Songbirds is scheduled to open in fall 2016. The ultimate site plan calls for two to three on-site restaurants. Currently, STIR, a cocktail lounge and restaurant, and Hush Lounge are open on-site.
Meanwhile the Choo Choo continues to operate The Empress hotel building, with its 125 hotel rooms, and The MacArthur, with its 95 updated rooms, as well as meeting spaces and an indoor swimming pool.