Chattanooga Pulse

On Tuesday night, April 28, the first Pulse citizens’ panel on sustainability met at green/spaces on E. Main Street. The discussion centered on the upcoming visit of the Sustainable Design Assessment Team (SDAT) , and the second lead article in a series of five The Pulse is producing to address the many aspects of this issue.

Steve Haase, a local architect and point person of the 18-member commission who obtained the grant enabling the SDAT team to evaluate Chattanooga and seven surrounding counties, noted that the team would be in the area May 3-5 conducting meetings and visiting parts of the region being considered, culminating in a meeting open to the public (details TBA). A final report will be presented in July.

Issues raised by the panel included:

• How will the team’s recommendations be implemented?

• How does the work they are doing intersect with the mayor’s recent calls for combing and increasing efficiency of services in city/county?

The Pulse cover story of April 30, by local architect Blythe Bailey, was presented and discussed, and the following suggestions were made for additional story topics:

• Balancing the “social equity” of growth and renewal, as in: When neighborhoods are changing, lower income people are often forced out. What is their role in projected growth and change?