It's really interesting, because from a regional perspective, we've always said [Ooltewah] was a hotspot for growth. When you look at the map, its located between Chattanooga, Cleveland and Ringgold. … The growth there is higher than the percentage growth rate of Hamilton County and Chattanooga.
Artist’s rendering of Cambridge Square.Learn more
For more information on the mixed-use development and a list of the shops, visit cambridgesquaretn.com.
Thrive 2055
With growth like is being experienced — and is expected to continue — in places like Ooltewah, the surrounding 16-county tri-state region is coming together to plan for the future and protect what’s valued in the present. The volunteer-led endeavor has several focuses: education and training, regional economic development, regional transportation, natural treasures and a strategic action plan, which will be carried out in phases over a three-year period. Visit thrive2055.com to learn more.
Not so long ago, the Ooltewah area was known as a one-stoplight kind of town. Largely rural, it was the kind of place where roads without signs were common, four-way stops were unnecessary (and virtually non-existent) and people only stopped if they needed gas to continue on to their destination.
“It was a two-stoplight town even 15 years ago,” says local resident Steve Ray, who for the past several decades has operated Steve Ray’s Midnite Oil gas station on Lee Highway, just off I-75’s Exit 11. “It was what I’d call a bedroom community: Everyone who lived here came home and slept and then woke up and went back downtown.