Montague Park, a 49-acre public space off East 23rd Street given to the city of Chattanooga by the Montague family in 1911, has had a myriad of lives in its 110 years – especially if you count what was planned to be there, what was there, what is there and what shouldn’t have been there.
Next week, the nonprofit Chattanooga FC Foundation will seek yet another new life for the park, one with synthetic turf soccer fields, sand volleyball courts and other upgrades.
It will request the Chattanooga Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission approve 13 acres of the park for a 40-year ground lease, which would next need a nod from the Chattanooga City Council.
That’s where conspiracy theorists might hold up a hand because the Chattanooga FC was founded by Mayor Tim Kelly. But Kelly resigned as chairman of the professional soccer team after the election, the foundation is a separate arm from the team and a request for proposals for use of the park was initiated under the tenure of former Mayor Andy Berke.
Since the proposal for the fields will come with a recommendation for approval from the Regional Planning Agency, we hope the planning commission will give the project its thumbs-up.