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Sohn: Officials must limit steep slopes development

A crew from American Track Generations replaces cross ties Thursday on the tracks near the top of the Incline Railway on Lookout Mountain. The work has been going on for the last 14 days, and CARTA hopes to reopen the Incline on Monday.
A crew from American Track Generations replaces cross ties Thursday on the tracks near the top of the Incline Railway on Lookout Mountain. The work has been going on for the last 14 days, and CARTA hopes to reopen the Incline on Monday. A crew from American Track Generations replaces cross ties Thursday on the tracks near the top of the Incline Railway on Lookout Mountain. The work has been going on for the last 14 days, and CARTA hopes to reopen the Incline on Monday.

By Pam Sohn 4 min read

photo The Incline ascends Lookout Mountain on Friday. A new website, www.ridetheincline.com, allows people to buy tickets and obtain information about the Incline.

Growth is hard.

Especially in our Chattanooga-area geography.

We’re surrounded by natural beauty that we seem determined to despoil for a buck.

The slopes of our blue-hazed mountains and ridges are often steep. The valleys, carved by the meandering Tennessee River and its many tributaries, are pastoral – and flood-prone.

The smart way to deal with our twofold blessings and challenges is to have thoughtful land-use policies and common-sense stormwater regulations.