Planning Commission Recommends Approval For $100 Million "Chattanooga Village" Project In Hixson

The Planning Commission voted Monday afternoon to recommend approval of the $100 million "Chattanooga Village" project in Hixson. It will go before the City Council on Jan. 8.

The Regional Planning Agency staff had recommended deferral and that was the request of a number of opponents who were clad in T-shirts reading "Don't Chop The Hilltop," but a motion to defer failed.

Mayor Ron Littlefield, serving on the panel, helped push the measure through, saying that further issues could be worked out prior to the decision by the City Council.

Developer Duane Horton said a public meeting will be Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at the Hixson Community Center to go over the latest revised plan.

Two out-of-state planning and land experts recently added to the project team told the commission that objections from the community have been heard and the hilltop "will not be chopped." They said the ridges around the 190-acre property will remain intact and the development will be clustered in the center at the site at Highway 153 and Boy Scout Road near U.S. 27.

Robert Ebert of the Hart Howerton firm said 67 acres of the site owned by Jack Lonas will be undisturbed.

He said there will be a "village concept" at the project that will include 280 "Class A" apartments, 250,000 square feet of corporate office space and 500,000 of retail, dining and entertainment. He said there will be up to 12 three-story apartment buildings and six corporate office buildings of four stories or less.

There will be between 30 and 100 feet of buffer between the project and adjacent residential property.

Rick Hart of Bardstown, Ky., said, "It's a great project that is gently nestled into the natural environment." He said it will be designed to retain up to an inch of rainfall for 72 hours on the site.

He said TDOT has approved the traffic plan.

Parking is evenly distributed throughout the project, he stated.

Rita Fehring, who lives near one of the two planned entrances, cited traffic woes. "We don't want to have to look down on Northgate Mall," she said.

Ellie Wallace said focus groups and other discussions with residents promised by developer Horton has not occurred.

Attorney Joe Conner, representing the North Chickamauga Creek Conservancy, said the plan keeps changing, including significantly in recent days, and that more time is needed for residents to digest it and give input.

He said, "We're not saying don't ever build there," but he said, "it's the process we need to respect."

Jerry Jones said in approving it now "you're making a great big mistake. This is being crammed down our throats. It's unbelievable."

Taylor McDonald cited the importance of clean water and the city's reputation for outdoor activities. Scenic North Chickamauga Creek does not cross the property, but is nearby.

City Councilman Jack Benson voted for deferral, saying, "This is a textbook example of how not to reconcile public and private interests."

He asked why the rezoning could not happen in phases and why it was not filed through the mixed-use zoning.

But Mayor Littlefield said, "I have never seen these type controversies get better by delaying."