Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly on Thursday unveiled the city’s first-ever brand, which was co-created by local talent with input from residents across the community.
The city realized the need for a unifying visual identity as part of the redesign of the city website, which is expected to be finished next month. The city’s new brand is a comprehensive toolbox that will flex and grow across city departments, initiatives and agencies in the years to come, unifying what in the past has been a fragmented and discordant public presence.
- Arrow notch: The notch gives this the feeling of a physical sign, representing our complicated past, and shows forward progress from a little arrow of change to a big arrow of change.
- The arrow: The right facing arrow of the logo container represents forward movement. Forward from the past. Forward to the future.
- The type: The geometric sans-serif font represents the rich history of Chattanooga while maintaining a clean, modern appearance.
- The leaf: Represents nature, clean air, and 33 years of being designated a Tree City. The angled lines not only mirror the veins of a leaf but also reflect the gentle slopes of our mountains and the diverse angles found in our bridges and buildings.
- The water: Represents the rivers, streams and lakes that course through our city. And the balanced waves signify our community's dynamic energy and ongoing pursuit of equilibrium and unity.
The city seal, which is part of Chattanooga’s city charter, will not change but will begin to return to its proper use as an authenticator in official documents.
“One of the things I learned in 30 years of business is the power of good branding,” said Mayor Tim Kelly. “Our lack of branding has caused confusion for Chattanoogans about what is and isn’t a city service, and our upcoming website redesign gave us the perfect opportunity to solve this problem. We received a lot of community input, and I think this new branding honors our history while celebrating the progress we’ve made and looking forward to our bright future.”
The city solicited feedback from a diverse group of residents and partners about what a future city logo could look like. Those conversations, happening over many months, painted a picture of a community that aspires to be the best in the world, but is still growing from its complicated history of pollution, economic disparity, and segregation.
“It was important to everyone at the table that this was something we did with the community, not something that was thrust upon the community,” said Carmen Davis, senior director for Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy. “While these conversations take time, it was critical for us to engage with residents in order to get this right.”
The brand will be phased in over time. Chattanoogans will start to see it soon on city uniforms, vehicles, signs, in parks, on buildings, and across our digital footprint.
The brand is designed as an overall system, or toolbox, that can be deconstructed and reconstructed in various ways depending on the application.
The final iteration of the brand took shape under the guidance of local talents Steve Hamaker and David Littlejohn, both of whom are accomplished and acclaimed brand creators who have worked on both local and national-scale projects.
“My favorite part of this project has been what you don’t see — the work that we put into visually reflecting both where Chattanooga has been, and where it’s headed, ” said Hamaker, who has now joined the city as director of design. “The final product feels like it has weight and industrial roots, while the arrow points to our positive future. And I love that from an identity architecture standpoint, it’s simple, iconic and incredibly functional.”
Residents may purchase branded shirts, hats, backpacks and more at cost from cha.city/shop.