Chattanooga, Tennessee, set along the Tennessee River and foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, is a thriving and vibrant City known for its scenic beauty. As people continue to migrate to the area to take advantage of these natural assets, the City recognized that it is imperative that the neighborhoods, commercial centers, parks, and natural areas in the City should become even more livable and reflect a healthy balance of development with conservation. This resulted in the comprehensive planning process, led by Planning NEXT, titled Plan Chattanooga.
We are getting close to a complete draft of Chattanooga’s first comprehensive plan and one of the most ambitious plans our Team has ever led. Plan Chattanooga addresses land use, housing, parks and placemaking, and transportation infrastructure at all scales from the region to the block. It is a coordinated effort with surrounding Hamilton County (Plan Hamilton).
The plan includes:
- A regional growth framework based on a scenario planning effort.
- A citywide centers and corridors approach to create walkable concentrations at various scales throughout the City and a supporting transportation framework that addresses street character.
- Eight district plans that address parcel-based future land use and character using a “place type” palette and priority transportation projects for each district.
- Block level demonstrations to show how the design concepts in the plan could apply to specific locations.
In April, we hosted team members from Mend Collaborative at our office for a two-day work session. The Team drafted concepts and “big ideas” for each area and began sketching concepts for the plan’s demonstration areas.
Meanwhile, Team members Croy Engineering and Kimley Horn worked on transportation recommendations for the areas.
The first draft of the plan document is nearly complete. Over the summer, the City will review the draft plan. Come early fall, the Team will begin production of the final plan.
