CHATTANOOGA

Had a quick visit over the holidays through Chattanooga. Chattanooga is becoming one of the great mid-rise cities in the United States. Downtown is pedestrian friendly with a growing residential market. Movie theatres, riverfront parks and greenways, public art, museums . . . and of course it is all centered around the Tennessee Aquarium.



HUNTER MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART

WALNUT STREET BRIDGE--SECOND LONGEST PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE IN THE NATION

Nashville has hired the same firm that redesigned Chattanooga's Riverfront to reinvent its own riverfront. The result: an eye catching propsal that could eventually turn LP Field into an island. The first phase of the proposal is being implemented and will last five years. At a cost of around $40 million initial improvements would include: a large fountain (lit at night) visible from Broadway, an urban forest around LP field, a new Amphiteatre near the new public square, improvements to the Woodland Street bridge (including lighting/making it more pedestrian/bike friendly), a Church St. pier, a Demonbreun Street pier, floating walkways and wharfs with docks for private boats, water play areas and additional park space. Click here to see details and renderings of the project (may take a few minutes to load--it is a PDF doc).

A similar fountain and floating walkway can be found in Chattanooga, where they have done an excellent job at making the river functional again. See below