The Chattanooga Housing Authority Board on Tuesday afternoon approved the hiring of local architect Reggie Ruff to draw up plans for the first phase of the Westside Evolves project.
His SRR & Associates firm is to be paid $1,992,231 to complete plans for updates at the James A. Henry School, including an adjacent new recreation center and a new health clinic.
The project also includes redoing the Shelia Jennings Park near the school.
The Westside housing development will be taken down as new housing is constructed in the major make-over. There will be a mix of affordable and market rate housing at the reworked Westside.
Mr. Ruff said the lower floor of the James A. Henry School will be for an expanded Head Start program with 100 students. The upper floor will be used for student art programs.
He said the rec center would be on one side of the former city school and the health clinic on the other.
Plans are to tear down the current city YFD rec center, and at that location to build the first replacement housing.
Naveed Minhas of CHA said there is $7 million on hand for Westside Evolves and another $1 million is expected from the city.
Terms of the agreement call for the Ruff firm to have the plans ready to go out for bid in July of next year.
By September of 2023, CHA officials should know the full cost of the first phase of Westside Evolves.