Can we hear the future calling? We can. And in Chattanooga, it won’t be about attracting someone else’s talent. It will be – must be – about growing our own.
That is the message of Chattanooga and Hamilton County’s new visioning process known as Velocity 2040, unveiled Thursday on the heels of a survey involving more than 5,000 residents here thus far.
The survey finds that we’re looking to make five things right in our hometown area. The short list is learning, earning, moving, leading and collaborating.
Futurist and consultant Rebecca Ryan, who has been working with community leaders on the survey and 20-year plan, summed up our needs and goals this way: “There are things that are timeless and things that are timely. All of these hit on both of those points – timeless and timely.”
In a presentation about the findings on Thursday at Memorial Auditorium, Ryan made some insightful points about each of our five new goals: