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Chattanooga City Council approves 2020 budget, sets Business Improvement District public hearing at fiery meeting

Buildings inside a proposed Business Improvement District are seen on Tuesday, April 16, 2019, in Chattanooga, Tenn. The proposed district would encompass downtown Chattanooga from the Riverfront to 11th Street and from U.S. Highway 27 to different areas bordered by Cherry Street, Lindsay Street and Georgia Avenue.
Buildings inside a proposed Business Improvement District are seen on Tuesday, April 16, 2019, in Chattanooga, Tenn. The proposed district would encompass downtown Chattanooga from the Riverfront to 11th Street and from U.S. Highway 27 to different areas bordered by Cherry Street, Lindsay Street and Georgia Avenue. Buildings inside a proposed Business Improvement District are seen on Tuesday, April 16, 2019, in Chattanooga, Tenn. The proposed district would encompass downtown Chattanooga from the Riverfront to 11th Street and from U.S. Highway 27 to different areas bordered by Cherry Street, Lindsay Street and Georgia Avenue.

By Sarah Grace Taylor 3 min read

photo Mayor Andy Berke is shown in this 2018 staff file photo.

The Chattanooga City Council on Tuesday set a public hearing for the council resolution to establish a controversial Business Improvement District and unanimously approved the 2020 city budget.

Mayor Andy Berke’s nearly $270 million 2020 budget, which emphasizes roadwork and homelessness initiatives in the city, was approved for the second time unanimously and finalized at Tuesday’s meeting.

Not everything went that smoothly.

With six council members in favor, one abstaining and two opposed, a public hearing for the reintroduced council resolution to form the highly debated Business Improvement District was set for July 30, with a first reading to take place on July 23.

As with previous meetings when the district has been discussed, public comments got unruly as members of the audience spoke out and fought council members on the restrictions to public comment that only allow members of the public to speak for three minutes, twice in 30 days time, not more than once in the same day and only on items not on that meeting’s agenda.