The ONE Riverfront District Master Plan

Woman standing at a podium with a presentation screen behind her

President of River City Co., Emily Mack, beginning the presentation | Photo by NOOGAtoday

Table of Contents

Yesterday, River City Co., community members + local leaders met at the Tennessee Aquarium for a presentation of the ONE Riverfront District Master Plan.

Since January 2020, the ONE Riverfront Cha project team has gathered feedback from more than 2,300 community voices in an effort to revitalize the riverfront area.

The company worked with the MKSK Studios consulting team to put together the final plan, including 4 aspirations + 8 strategies to achieve them.

Map rendering of the Chattanooga Riverfront district and master plan

Rendering of the Riverfront district and where some of the new amenities would be | Photo by NOOGAtoday

The 4 aspirations

  1. Activate the riverfront
  2. Create a place for all Noogans
  3. Develop a great sense of place
  4. Strengthen connectivity to the riverfront

The 8 strategies

  1. Humanize the parks | Provide comforting + exciting spaces that can evolve to meet community needs — movable chairs, umbrellas, etc.
  2. Come together at the river | Create a nucleus of activity, engage local chefs, creators, and artists + implement weekly programming
  3. Build inclusively | Establish the district as a place for everyone by adding business + housing with opportunities for grants, subsidies, and workforce development
  4. Establish the riverfront front door | Energize the parkway, complete the green + eat, drink, and socialize on the river
  5. Create a civic campus | Make the aquarium plaza active 18 hours a day, 7 days a week + have the block serve as both a destination and connective tissue
  6. Boldly connect downtown | Signal to motorists that this is a pedestrian-friendly space that serves as “civic spine through the urban core of Chattanooga”
  7. Refresh the riverwalk | Add wayfinding graphics + maps so visitors know all the great businesses and opportunities that are in close proximity
  8. Get your feet wet | Create a safe put-in for watercrafts, revisit the idea of a water taxi, and add floating features, like floating wetlands (which builds on the conservation mission of the TN Aquarium), piers, and platforms

Watch the presentation + submit questions and comments here.

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