Parts of Missionary Ridge will remain green for the foreseeable future.
With an almost 8-acre plot of forest behind him, Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly signed a covenant Tuesday preserving five parcels of land at Missionary Ridge. The parcels have historical and environmental importance, encompassing “Civil War battlefield terrain, mature hardwood forests and other vital natural landscapes,” according to a press release from Coeo Strategies on behalf of The Trust for Public Land.
In total, the five parcels transferred by The Trust for Public Land add up to 13 acres, including the 8-acre forest plot.
In the 8-acre forest at Ridgecrest Drive near historic Billy Goat Hill, there is thriving poison ivy and mosquitoes, David Johnson with the Trust for Public Land said during a signing ceremony for the land donation. But, also in the forest is trillium and strawberry bush, also known as hearts-a-bustin’. The forest is “a little piece of wild land,” which is why it is important to protect, Johnson said.
“We know that in Chattanooga, there’s a lot of pressure to use land in a lot of different ways, and we wanted to make sure that we protected this land and its importance to Missionary Ridge, to this community,” Johnson said.