We believe urban design can improve quality of life for all Chattanoogans.

Chattanooga Design Studio is an independent non-profit community resource that promotes excellence in urban design through education, facilitation, and collaboration.

The Work

A unifying vision for montague park

A collaboration with the City of Chattanooga, a steering committee of park-adjacent stakeholders, and the Reed-Hilderbrand Design team to envision a unified Montague Park.

WESTSIDE EVOLVES

A collaborative process with Chattanooga Housing Authority, the City & the Westside community to create a vision for the long term future of the neighborhood.

THE PORCH: EVALUATION

A post-occupancy public space evaluation of The Porch pilot project. The report summarizes the quantative and qualitative methods and results with extensive community feedback and on site observations.

Learn More

Recently Shared

You’re Invited! Optimizing Downtown Chattanooga Streets -come learn more and share your input- Tuesday, November 19th 6:00 PM Waterhouse Pavilion, Miller Plaza This event will kick off with a formal presentation by Walkable City author @jeffspeckfaicp and the project consultant team to introduce the project to the community. This will be followed by an open house where data will be shared and public input will be gathered.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 21 The team at @nelsonbyrdwoltz uses a research-based approach in every project, creating designs that reveal cultural and ecological narratives that are embedded in the land. Thomas Woltz, senior principal and owner, will present some of these projects including national memorials and public landscapes that reveal powerful histories while connecting communities to our shared past and each other. We are proud to offer this special CIVIQ in partnership with the local team @trustforpublicland As always, thank you to @chattlibrary for sharing space with us that is built for community in the heart of the civic center. CIVIQ is always free due to the generosity of the Lyndhurst Foundation. Please join us! 🎟️ in bio

Thanks to Alan Mallach for taking the CIVIQ stage to share about uneven revival and how we might ensure that the benefits of growth are spread equitably. Mr. Mallach hoped that the community would walk away with a greater commitment to take steps to encourage more equitable growth. If you were there, what was your biggest takeaway? We love when the CIVIQ community comes together to celebrate the power of this program. Thanks for showing up to get inspired, informed, and activated! Who still needs to add a book to their fall reading list? We’ve got you covered. If you missed Alan’s book signing for The Divided City and Smaller Cities in a Shrinking World, we have copies available at the Studio. Email Ginger Birnbaum if interested: Ginger_b@chattanoogastudio.com Full lecture available at the link in our bio or chattanoogastudio.com/civiq

We are eager to introduce you to Alan Mallach this Thursday, September 26. With an emphasis on research, he untangles policy, dives into historical context, and uses real world examples to illustrate the need for greater equity amidst growth. Mr. Mallach will be available following CIVIQ to sign two of his books, The Divided City and Smaller Cities in a Shrinking World. Both will be available for purchase by check or cash for $25. Hear from city planner, advocate, and writer Alan Mallach in this interview with Ray Bassett of @wutc_88.1 @scenicroots423 at the link in our bio. ::: CIVIQ with Alan Mallach 9.26.24 Chattanooga Public Library, Downtown Branch 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm All welcome. Always free. 🎟️ in bio

“How do vacant spaces become vibrant places for cities and neighborhoods - and how do they become vibrant for everyone?” Check out this conversation (linked in bio) between upcoming CIVIQ speaker Alan Mallach, Ray Bassett of @wutc_88.1 @scenicroots423 , and Studio Executive Director Eric Myers to find out. CIVIQ with Alan Mallach 9.26.24 @chattlibrary All welcome, always free.

Park(ing) Day: The Parklet of Your Dreams is this Friday, September 20! This is a global event where people temporarily repurpose street parking spaces to be used for playful, creative, enjoyable community space. This Friday 10-4. Two blocks. Fifty parklets. Broad Street between 6th Street and 8th Street. Keep an eye on our stories for a sneak peek. HUGE thanks to all the groups signed up to create community space! (Is that a parking space or a 🌸🪵🌴☁️🪑🍿🎬💻🫧🎉📸🚍💦🌻?)

Let’s celebrate our next Steward Level Sponsor @modusbuildllc for supporting the mission of Chattanooga Design Studio through City Celebration 2024! We are grateful that they recognize the value of urban design education and placemaking across generations and communities. Thank you to the team at Modus Build LLC for believing in the work of the Studio! ::: CITY CELEBRATION a conversation over breakfast to benefit CDS Friday, November 1

We are thrilled to welcome @ragansmithtn as a Steward Level Sponsor of City Celebration! With this support, the Studio is able to inspire more people across projects and throughout our programs. Thanks to the team at @ragansmithtn for recognizing the value of creating joyful, thriving communities through urban design! ::: CITY CELEBRATION a conversation over breakfast to benefit CDS Friday, November 1

CIVIQ with Alan Mallach Thursday, September 26 5:30-7:00 @chattlibrary All welcome. Always free. 🎟️🎟️in bio. City Planner. Advocate. Writer. Alan Mallach is bringing a wealth of knowledge laced with creative policies and strategies to the CIVIQ stage. As American cities have revived, their revival has been uneven, polarized between poverty and prosperity. As Chattanooga grows, it faces unprecedented challenges if it is to escape uneven revival and spread the benefits of its growth equitably. Mr. Mallach will lay out this picture nationally and locally and suggest ways Chattanooga can foster greater equity as it grows.

You are invited to the Phillip Grymes @outdoorchatt Center at Coolidge Park for a Montague Park design update! Join the team on Wednesday, August 28 from 6:00-7:30 for a presentation and to share your input. We hope to see you there!

We believe a vibrant civic center is built by everyone, for everyone. That’s why Chattanooga Design Studio is working alongside you to ensure that the heart of our city evolves in an intentional and thoughtful way. Downtown is for everyone: a place where people connect as they live, work, and play. We know that great places take great work and the visionaries on this team know it too. @sasakidesign @tinkerma_llc @jameslimadevelopment and @velvetpoetry want to share 5 Big Ideas to refine and redevelop based on your feedback. The team is here! We just need YOU! Monday, August 12 4:00-6:00 at @chattlibrary

@aiatennessee hosted Grounding: Conference on Architecture this week in Knoxville where Executive Director Eric Myers was invited to be a part of the panel discussion "Future Visions 2024." The session showcased excellence in the categories for which AIA Fellowship is granted: Design, Management/Technical Advancement, Led the Institute (or related), Public Service, Alternative Careers, and Education. A discussion moderated by Marleen Davis, FAIA of the College of Fellows followed the presentation.

UPDATE: Hamilton County @hamcotngov Mayor Weston Wamp and @cityofchattanooga Chief of Staff Jermaine Freeman will deliver brief remarks at Monday’s charrette. Join them and make your voice heard! Check out our latest interview with Ray Bassett of @wutc_88.1 @scenicroots423 to get more info about this public input session. Head to the link in our bio to let us know you’re coming on Monday, August 12!

Some Wednesday Park(ing) Day inspiration! We'll meet you on Broad Street in front of @tivolichatt tomorrow, 12-1 for the Pop-up Picnic Parklet! This year's Park(ing) Day theme is The Parklet of Your Dreams, an effort to think big and dreamy. Like surrealism, our dreams don't necessarily make sense, at least not in the typical 9-5 way! This is a chance for the community to expand on the possibilities that we currently recognize and reach for the things that we've only dreamed of. After all, this is The Parklet of Your Dreams. What type of parklet do you dream of: a play area, pocket park, community gathering spot, community service, or space for entertainment?

T O D A Y Bring your lunch and come sit with us! It’s a Park(ing) Day Dream Lunch to fill you with inspiration as we kick off this awesome free community event that will take place in September. Thursday, August 1 12-1 Waterhouse Pavilion BYOL (that’s lunch!) We’ll provide dessert and bottled water!

Make plans to join us for a Civic Center District Plan Charrette on Monday, August 12 at @chattlibrary ! You will have the opportunity to meet with the consultant team at this public input session. Come draw, sketch, and share what you want to experience in downtown Chattanooga. Visit our website (www.chattanoogastudio.com) to register for the charrette. We hope to see you there!

Mark your calendars, pack your lunch, and come sit with us! It’s a Park(ing) Day Dream Lunch to fill you with inspiration as we kick off this awesome community event. Thursday, August 1 12:00-1:00 pm Waterhouse Pavilion Bring Your Own Lunch

Let’s kick off Park(ing) Day 2024! Bring your lunch and come hang with us at Waterhouse Pavilion on Thursday, August 1 from 12:00-1:00. Already registered for a parklet and need to brainstorm? Let’s do it! Need help getting registered? We can help with that! Just curious? Come learn more! Park(ing) Day 2024 : The Parklet of Your Dreams 💭🦄🐲🧚‍♀️🤾🏿‍♀️⛹🏽‍♀️🛝🎳⚽️🌸🌳🌿🌱🚴🏾‍♀️🚴🚴‍♂️🎭🎨🥁🪁🪀🫧👩🏽‍🌾🚶🏽‍♂️🚶‍♀️🚶🏻👵🏾👩🏿‍🦳👨🏼‍🦳🧑‍🦽‍➡️👩🏻‍🦽🎪🤹🏽🎠

Come visit the Civic Center Big Map @chattlibrary !!

Downtown is for everyone, and the library sits right at the center of it. Here are two (of many!) reasons why you should plan a visit: 1. The Civic Center District planning team wants to hear from you as they work to complete the plan slated to include urban design recommendations and visions for key sites and blocks within the district. A BIG MAP on the first floor offers the opportunity for you to imagine a more livable and vibrant heart of the city. 2. Also on the first floor is @songbirdsfoundation newly unveiled Songbirds Impressions Exhibit! This exhibit showcases one of the world’s most influential soul groups from their start in Chattanooga to becoming the soundtrack of America’s Civil Rights Movement. Thanks to the @chattlibrary for sharing space that is urban, accessible, and built for connection. We’ve got The Impressions chart toppers “It’s All Right” (1963) and “Keep on Pushing” (1964) on repeat!

Thanks to Alan Mallach for taking the CIVIQ stage to share about uneven revival and how we might ensure that the benefits of growth are spread equitably. Mr. Mallach hoped that the community would walk away with a greater commitment to take steps to

Park(ing) Day: The Parklet of Your Dreams is this Friday, September 20! This is a global event where people temporarily repurpose street parking spaces to be used for playful, creative, enjoyable community space.

This Friday 10-4.
Two blocks. Fifty

Come visit the Civic Center Big Map @chattlibrary !!

OPERATIONAL SUPPORT

A big thank you to our current funding partners for ongoing operational support of the Chattanooga Design Studio.