Chattanooga’s got a lot going for it – mountains, a river, a vibrant downtown, not to mention crazy-fast internet.
The city also has a great story. People speak with pride about “the Chattanooga Way,” referring to the can-do attitude of the city’s residents and their willingness and ability to pull together and fix problems. Nearly four decades ago, the city’s residents collaborated in an effort that resulted in a transformation of the city’s downtown.
People from around the world still come to Chattanooga to study how it was done and to figure out how to replicate the Chattanooga Way in their cities.
Since the 1980s, the city’s reputation has been on the upswing. But we also face intractable social problems – the ranks of poor residents have swollen, families are slipping into poverty, affordable housing is in short supply, schools are not preparing their graduates for the workforce.
Chattanooga is on a cusp. The city has important decisions to make about what it wants to be moving forward.