DisConnected Communities
Our Community Deserves Action
When I imagine Chattanooga based on its perception from others, I see something far different than what we have at the moment. We are moving in the right direction, but we have a long way to go.
In 1990 Chattanooga received the designation “Tree City USA” by the National Arbor Day Foundation, its first recognition of efforts to change perception and move toward becoming a prime destination for the outdoors and outdoor tourism. The Tennessee Aquarium opened in 1992 and in 1996 the city was given recognition on the world stage at the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements, for its efforts to revitalize the city’s living environment after decades of being one of the worst for air pollution. The year 2000 saw Chattanooga become one of Outside Magazine’s Best Adventure Towns. Over the next 25 years Chattanooga would receive numerous awards and recognition, cementing its place in the US and even globally as one of the best places to live and to travel to. All culminating in Chattanooga becoming the first National Park City in North America. For many that is just a hollow moniker. For others, myself included, it is a symbol of what Chattanooga strives to be.
There is a real disconnect for many residents living here, we often do not feel the benefits that come with the awards, accolades and tourist dollars. For Example:
Public transportation is lacking and CARTA is consistently struggling to stay funded. It doesn’t even operate in municipalities that Chattanooga surrounds. If you live in East Ridge you don’t have access to CARTA nor can you safely walk to the nearest bus stop because there are little to no sidewalks. For a place with so many accolades how can you let something as simple as a sidewalk be a barrier of entry to a National Park City.
The state of Tennessee has poured a massive amount of money into Chattanooga for Interstate improvements and has plans to start a nearly half billion dollar project of widening I-24 around Moccasin Bend. I understand the need for improvement, but we know from decades of studies that adding lanes does not ease congestion. Traffic through Chattanooga will only increase and we can not go back in time to build a bypass around the city. Residents of Chattanooga and Hamilton County should have options that do not contribute to the traffic woes on our roadways.
I live in East Ridge. If I could safely bike to my local grocery store or take convenient and reliable public transit to work I would. If I want to take public transit to work now, I have to walk 25 minutes to the closest bus stop, down a busy road with little to no sidewalk. To do so safely I would have to walk through multiple neighborhoods, adding 10 to 15 minutes. Then take a 35 minute bus ride, transfer to another bus downtown, and then another 15 minutes across the river. Nearly an hour and a half is something rather normal in a larger city. But when public transit is unreliable and using it is unsafe, I have to use a car. Which is one of the leaders’ biggest failures - making cities accessible for cars but not its people.
I see my home, a place that is trying so hard to be a shining beacon, with so many people working toward making that possible. What I don’t see is enough people at the table. A National Park City should not be an idea or a title, it should be a better way of life. A National Park City should be to the benefit of the people who live here; tourism should be a positive side effect.
Connected Communities should mean a better quality of life for the people that live in them. Residents should not have to constantly navigate the gaps that separate them from the people who visit their home.
My campaign is about understanding where these gaps exist and trying to find solutions. I am not going to claim to have all the answers, but I am going to ask questions and I am going to bring people who live within those gaps into the conversation. We cannot expect to connect our communities in Hamilton County if we do not listen to the people who live in them.
I will continue this conversation and many others to fill in the gaps that affect the residents of Hamilton County, but I need your help. Join me, you can donate to this campaign or volunteer your time at www.electwichman.com.
