Jerry Summers
There are no longer trolleys or other forms of affordable public transportation to convey a citizen or prospective immigrant to a higher elevation to enjoy the natural beautiful of the once highly proclaimed and touted “Scenic City of the South” (Choo Choo City).
However a rider to the top of the three highest and acknowledged historical panoramic view treasures reveals a dwindling preservation of the past beauty under the banner of necessary progress.
Daily positive predictions of “glory days ahead” resound from the lips of politicians, developers, etc. who wish to partake of the “manna from Heaven” under the theme of “bigger is better” (expand or your community will die).
Perhaps it will happen as a slow death that will take some time to pump the last gasp of life from the community as it was once known for its green foliage surrounding Lookout Mountain, Signal Mountain, Missionary Ridge, Elder Mountain, etc.
Unless the profiteers accomplish the nearly impossible, the view from Missionary Ridge may wind up showing only the greenery now permanently preserved in the Chickamauga National Battlefield on Lookout Mountain.
An eastern view from any of the aforementioned communities shows a continuing upward building boom of white buildings on the Ridge from Dodd’s Avenue skyward to the alleged 50 foot barrier below Crest Road on every postage size lot to several acres. The former haven for deer, squirrels, foxes, etc. is rapidly disappearing.
With politically appointed boards consisting of members with potential severe “conflicts of interest” (what’s that?) some cynical doubters claim that ordinary residents and taxpayers have slim chances of preserving the “Scenic City” image that now attracts legal and illegal fugitives from other states and countries.
In Zella Armstrong’s, “The History of Hamilton County and Chattanooga, Tennessee, Volume II” (1940- The Lookout Publishing Company), following a introductory tribute to soft drink magnate and philanthropist, John Thomas Lupton, the following prophetic passage is included: “Every city has a past, a present, and a future. The past is gone, the present is here, and the future is what the citizens make it.”
(The objective determination of the future of Chattanooga/Hamilton County is probably outside the life expectancy of the author.)
Jerry Summers