Benchmarking Chattanooga

A Civic Design Exchange


In a 2003 PCDN article, we examined the value of publicly-funded enhancements to the public realm during a time of a severe financial crisis and great uncertainty about Pittsburgh’s future. A basis for comparison was found in an unlikely place – Chattanooga, Tennessee. With a history similar to Pittsburgh’s in many ways, Chattanooga had begun to implement a long-term vision for change by investing vast resources into improving the public realm based on the belief that private investment would follow.

		Photos from Chattanooga, TN Civic Design Coalition

Last month, a team from the Pittsburgh region visited Chattanooga to learn about the City and how it works, and to make their own observations about the efficacy of Chattanooga’s strategy. Made possible through funding from the Heinz Endowments’ Civic Design Coalition, approximately 30 people representing designers, government agencies, foundations and other civic-oriented organizations met with their Chattanooga counterparts for three days of tours, presentations and discussion.

Key similarities do indeed exist, according to Anne-Marie Lubenau, Executive Director of the Community Design Center of Pittsburgh, including Chattanooga’s geographic setting amidst rolling hills and adjacency to a river that was once occupied by industry. A significant difference, she notes, is that Chattanooga neighborhoods do not possess strong individual identities, and the city is of a smaller scale and population.


Michael Edwards, President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, agrees, and notes that Chattanooga has been more successful in creating strong neighborhood connections to both the riverfront and downtown. Citing a renovated pedestrian bridge tying an art gallery and aquarium to the waterfront and nearby business district as an example of smart connectivity, he hints at the planned Hot Metal Pedestrian Bridge as a move in the right direction.


Laura Zinski, CEO of the Mon Valley Initiative, emphasized the significance of Chattanooga’s remarkably healthy financial status. “When these developments began, the city had no debt,” she explains, “and therefore had tremendous borrowing power.” They used that opportunity to invest in public spaces and amenities that have made the riverfronts an attractive place for the private market to invest in downtown living.


While it’s too soon to tell whether their strategy will be successful, Chattanooga has begun to develop a healthy urban environment with a strong potential to become a vibrant American city. Despite Chattanooga’s ability to create a manageable environment with an appropriate human scale, Edwards maintains that Pittsburgh has an energy and vitality that isn’t yet present in Chattanooga. By any measure, he says, “Pittsburgh is a beautiful city that will thrive once its residents have the opportunity to re-experience urban life – through connections to its edges and rivers and between neighborhoods – in a new way.”


And one final thought from Edwards is that one factor that can’t be overlooked is that Chattanooga has been quite successful in marketing its story. Pittsburgh has been successful in maintaining its secrecy.



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