Over the past year, thousands of residents have shared their hopes and desires for the Riverfront Parks, the collection of greenspaces, including Ross’ Landing, that runs between the Tennessee River and Riverfront Parkway near the Aquarium.
Through an extensive community-wide planning process, the City of Chattanooga and Hamilton County, along with River City Company and the Chattanooga Design Studio, have created a plan to build upon the legacy of the iconic Riverfront Parks to create a place where everyone can play and be active year-round.
Renderings of the future of the parks can be found here.
Last summer, River City Company shared three conceptual designs for the Riverfront Parks and has been soliciting the community’s response since then through open houses, focus groups and stakeholder input sessions. The expert consultant teams identified specific features from each of the designs that were most important to community members. The plan presented today is a combination of the best of all three.
To ensure the next iteration of the Riverfront Parks reflects the community desires, guiding principles have been established. These include honoring history, connecting district corridors, enhancing the ecology, providing shade and soften spaces, and using inspiration from a “southern porch” for the parks.
“When I was mayor in the early 2000s, our community came together in an unprecedented way to launch a public and private initiative that totally transformed our waterfront in just 35 months. Two decades later, it is time to take the next step. I am grateful to River City Company and our two Mayors for building upon our city’s unique waterfront history, for listening to the public’s desires for this unique space, and for believing that our community can always aim higher,” said former U.S. Senator and City of Chattanooga Mayor, Bob Corker.
“While our Riverfront Parks are in the heart of our city, they are not widely used outside of a handful of large-scale events each year. Our community clearly told us that they want this to change. This plan provides the opportunity to enhance large-scale events with infrastructure upgrades and amenities but also create a place that you would want to visit with your family on a summer afternoon,” said Emily Mack, President & CEO of River City Company.
The plan proposes enhancements from just west of the Olgiati Bridge to the edge of Ross’ Landing to the east. Each distinct area of the larger park is presented as a unique “Porch”.
- Memorial Porch: A new space will be provided to honor our local and national heroes. Memorial statues and spaces for reflection will be incorporated. A new loading zone will be added under Olgiati Bridge to serve as an ADA accessible drop-off.
- Recreation Porch: Taking inspiration from other cities that have reclaimed underpasses for recreational use, a series of sports courts will provide space for pickleball, basketball, biking, and roller skating.
- Everyday Porch: Features will include shaded swings, tables with chairs and other places to relax and gather. A signature one-of-a-kind structure will become the centerpiece for a new playground along with formalizing the hillside play where many slide down the hill with cardboard today. A new watercraft launch will be installed along with riverside perches for people to have easier access to the river. The loading zone on Riverfront Parkway could also be utilized for boat drop-off before launching.
- Civic Porch: The Chattanooga Green will be improved with trees, places to sit under shade, and extensive underground infrastructure enhancements to improve drainage, electric and water hookups, and places for food trucks to access easily. This will all enhance both large-scale events and everyday enjoyment of the park.
Ross’ Landing will be home to a new iconic pavilion structure that will serve multiple purposes. Every day, it will provide shade for new seating, and incorporate dynamic lighting to brighten the area in the evening. During large events, the pavilion will be designed to accommodate high-quality sound and light systems. An amenities station west of the pavilion will house a ranger station, public restrooms, and storage space. The Chattanooga
Pier will receive new lighting and seating sections.
- Cultural Porch: The area across the street from the Tennessee Aquarium is set to become a storytelling trail, showcasing our local cultures and history. Potential enhancements, such as new features, may be introduced to enrich the experience. A grab-and-go style café is proposed at the edge of the park, but additional food and beverage options will be explored through a feasibility study conducted by Hamilton County leadership.
Throughout the parks, a refreshed and identifiable Riverwalk allows for easy navigation. Traffic calming measures will also be added on Riverfront Parkway.
“Chattanooga’s Riverfront is iconic. But it needs to be updated. The plans unveiled by River City Company would add new green spaces, recreation areas and gathering places that can be enjoyed by Chattanoogans and visitors alike,” says Mayor Tim Kelly. “These upgrades to the Riverfront will complement the plans for a new mixed-use neighborhood on Hawk Hill, the site of the current Lookouts Stadium. This is another step forward in our journey to become America’s first National Park City.”
“Two decades after the Chattanooga riverfront was redesigned to international acclaim, we have an opportunity to make it more inviting and engaging for local families and visitors alike, “said Hamilton County Mayor Weston Wamp. “As new developments draw interest to the west and the south of downtown, we should refuse to allow our strengths to become weaknesses. Ross’ Landing is the crown jewel of our region and it’s encouraging to see a bold vision coming together for its future.”
The next steps in the planning process are to create design and engineering documents. Technical teams of local and regional experts will guide the design process to select materials and identify exact locations for installations. The types of materials selected, and the engineering documents will provide an overall cost for all renovations to be complete. The timeline for the first phase of construction is anticipated to commence after the Head of the Hooch in November 2025, with completion for phase one in 2026.
“We are beyond grateful that both Hamilton County and City leadership have placed funds in their 2025 budgets to support the work for design, engineering and additional feasibility studies,” said Mack. “We anticipate that this plan will provide the opportunity for the community to come together once again to create a destination enjoyed by millions annually.”
The “Evolving our Riverfront Parks” plan spawned from the ONE Riverfront plan which outlined eight priorities for the Riverfront District.