John “Thunder” Thornton talks Thursday, March 31, 2016 at the Jasper Highlands office about the Jasper Highlands development getting Gigabit fiber optics broadband via Alabama for his 3,000-acre project.John “Thunder” Thornton, a Chattanooga developer who has built major scenic, upscale residential developments in East Tennessee, Wyoming, Utah, North Carolina and Hawaii, is turning his development interest closer to his North Chattanooga home with plans for what could become the largest new residential and commercial project in the city in decades.
Thornton’s Thunder Enterprises last week finalized the purchase of more than 200 acres in Lupton City on the Tennessee River, where developers of the Riverton mixed-use community have drawn up plans for some 400 homes around a village of neighborhood restaurants, stores and medical offices. Although the new owners are still studying the site and developing their plans, Thornton estimates the project should bring $300 million of investment to the riverfront site as it is built out over the next five years or so.
“To have 200 acres so close to downtown Chattanooga along the Tennessee River looking across the river at forests and the beautiful Lookout Mountain in the background makes this a spectacular piece of property,” Thornton said.
The site has 3,500 feet along the river just upstream from the Champions Tennis Club near the abandoned Lupton mill site where Dixie Yarns and later R.L. Stowe once operated a thread mill. The property, which includes the nine-hole Lupton City golf course, is the biggest privately owned undeveloped site on the river within Chattanooga’s city limits.
Dane Bradshaw, president of Thunder Enterprises, said the new owners plan to create home sites with dense, large-acre lots that will offer residents views of the river and Lookout Mountain. Near the entrance to the complex, a commercial village is planned to offer a fitness center and other commercial amenities.