A North Chattanooga man is helping organize the growing number of neighborhood leaders and residents concerned about local planning decisions.
Chattanoogans for Responsible Development, which is in its infancy but already has more than 300 Facebook group members, will aim to give citizens a louder voice in the development currently reshaping the city by offering solutions rather than just criticism, said Jim Johnson, founder of the group.
The organization’s membership rules and legal status is still being determined, but an organizing committee met recently to discuss next steps.
“It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness,” Johnson said. “I want to work with the appropriate agencies and even developers in the city to identify best practices nationwide and leverage resources to the fullest extent that we can to make sure Chattanooga follows best practices moving forward.”
The group started as a band of neighbors opposed to the GreenTech development proposed for the North Shore, said Johnson, who lives on Berkley Circle, but it grew as he and his friends realized they weren’t the only homeowners trading lunch breaks for planning commission meetings.