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Chattanooga Presents! and Friends of the Festival in competition for riverfront management contract

Staff photo by Tim Barber Eastern Daylight Time brings an early sundown to the banks of the Tennessee River in Chattanooga on Monday. A trace of rain for the date left water puddles along the 21st Century Riverfront at the Tennessee Aquarium's River Journey.
Staff photo by Tim Barber Eastern Daylight Time brings an early sundown to the banks of the Tennessee River in Chattanooga on Monday. A trace of rain for the date left water puddles along the 21st Century Riverfront at the Tennessee Aquarium's River Journey. Staff photo by Tim Barber Eastern Daylight Time brings an early sundown to the banks of the Tennessee River in Chattanooga on Monday. A trace of rain for the date left water puddles along the 21st Century Riverfront at the Tennessee Aquarium's River Journey.

By Tyler Jett 4 min read

After a deadlocked vote earlier this month, the Chattanooga City Council will revisit a proposed management contract for the Tennessee riverfront.

Mayor Andy Berke’s office has proposed taking the management contract away from Friends of the Festival, which has overseen the 21st Century Waterfront for 12 years. The organization’s latest contract expired in December; the city is currently managing the waterfront. The administration has recommended signing a contract with Chattanooga Presents!, even though owner Carla Pritchard’s offer of $70,000 a year is $15,000 more than what Friends of the Festival would charge.

During a meeting Feb. 5, four council members voted to accept the contract and four voted against it. District 5 Councilwoman Carol Berz abstained from the vote.

But during a planning meeting Tuesday, Berz asked to revisit the issue. The council agreed to put the item on an agenda at the Feb. 26 meeting.

Berz told the Times Free Press on Wednesday she hasn’t decided how she will vote yet. She said she abstained from the vote last week after other members of the council raised questions about the process of awarding this particular contract to Chattanooga Presents! She believed the council should have delayed the item to gather more information.