“Forever.” “In perpetuity.”
The language in the deed by which a former military site became Enterprise South Nature Park preserves all 2,750 acres for recreational use, for keeps.
But a plan proposed by Hamilton County Mayor Weston Wamp would carve out 500 acres of the southern end — a little over a sixth of the Ooltewah park — for industry instead. It’s been called a deed restriction swap by Wamp and other county officials because, alongside the rezoning for industry, the county is offering the preservation of 1,300 acres of the historic McDonald Farm in Sale Creek.
The announcement in early October — first reported by the Chattanooga Times Free Press — came as a shock to Nathan Griffin, who visited the nature park back when he was living in Kansas City with his wife, Elspeth Haire, while he was looking for houses in Chattanooga.