John Shearer: Random Thoughts About Parkway Towers, Medical Arts Building (Again) And Tattoos

Chattanoogans received the somewhat surprising news in recent days that the old Parkway Towers Building at 1823 Reggie White Blvd. across from Finley Stadium might be preserved as longtime owner Maurice Kadosh of KH Property Group develops condominiums at the site.

He told the Chattanooga Times Free Press that the preservation depends on the condition of the building after further and more detailed inspection is done.

To some people, the building has been an eyesore amid a revamped Southside around the stadium. It even has a building’s equivalent of a tattoo with the giant graffiti word, “Junk,” written on an old sign atop it. But to others, the structure is a historic and architecturally unusual building worthy of preservation.

I tried to find a little history on it and could not locate a definitive reference to exactly when it was built, although one story said 1920. Based on the writing (legit, not graffiti) on top of the building saying “Chattanooga & Tennessee Electric Power Co.” on the side facing West 20^th Street and south, it was built as a substation for that firm.

That company was founded in 1905 by locals Jocephus C. Guild and Charles E. James and New York investor Anthony N. Brady to build the Hales Bar Dam in 1913 to create power to sell in a private capacity and aid development. The firm in 1922 merged to become part of Tennessee Electric Power Co., so it was likely between 1913 and 1922 that the Parkway Towers building was constructed. It looks very similar in appearance to the former Hales Bar Dam powerhouse in Marion County.

Some subsequent research by the staff of the Chattanooga Public Library’s Local History and Genealogy Department found an article stating that construction on the Chattanooga building began in 1909, so the substation was likely constructed by the time the Hales Bar Dam opened in 1913.

I walked around the Parkway Towers building this week, and it is fenced off but has a nice grassy area around it. Because it was used in the power industry, it does not seem to have a typical interior, a long-distance peak through some of the windows seemed to reveal. Its natural front side also appears to be more toward 20^th Street, not toward the stadium as most people see it.

For a number of years after its life as a substation had ended, Gary Fillers of Classic Refinery had used it as a storage facility and put a billboard on top of it. During that era and while the stadium was being developed around the time of its opening in 1997, plenty of debate that even went to the courts occurred regarding whether the city and county could take it over by eminent domain for parking or other uses.

The building was also the unfortunate scene of a 2005 fall by young Asher Love Mendonsa, who became an inspirational person as a quadriplegic before his death in 2015.

In 2008, the building had been bought by Mr. Kadosh and Joshua Olsin.

And it still stands, defying some odds of being called the equivalent of the ugly duckling of Chattanooga buildings in its current mothballed state. But it is appreciated by historic preservationists for its history and unique architecture of not being a typical building.

As mentioned in recent local stories, another building with an uncertain or even doubtful future is the R.H. Hunt-designed Medical Arts Building, which owner First Presbyterian Church is currently planning to tear down. After I had written one or two stories about it, one church member sent me some information discussing issues with the condition of the building.

Included in the material was a newsletter article to the church’s senior adults by Dale Rardin, a local architect and secretary of the diaconate. He writes that when the Medical Arts Building was built, it was not originally designed for the ministries of the church, and many renovations were required. “Even to this day, the building has never been fully utilized by the church as many of its rooms/floors currently stand vacant or underutilized,” he said.

He added that beginning in 2021, when the deacons with a directive from the church’s Session started the process of creating a master plan of the church’s campus looking at the next 50 years, the Medical Arts Building and any deferred maintenance needs were documented.

He wrote that those needs include a boiler system that had reached its life cycle, a needed fire protection sprinkler system, and faulty and inappropriate windows installed in recent years.

Mr. Rardin in the article also cited a basement larger than the building and which allows water to enter the lower area. As a result, this has caused erosion and corrosion of the structural aspects of the building. He also said the fire pumps in the basement don’t work and that area has a “woefully inadequate” electrical system, and that a water tower on the top of the building is no longer operational.

“The Medical Arts Building served our church well during the last 44 years, but it has become apparent that this nearly 100-year-old building now is in need of replacement with new facilities that will allow our church to impact the greater Chattanooga community for another 100 years…,” he said.

The church member who passed the information along said that another issue is that the church is growing under senior pastor Gabriel “Gabe” Fluhrer and more space is needed. The overall building project that includes a planned replacement building shown in the article is $34.5 million, the person said.

That is good information to know. As just a layman sitting on the outside, I have always wondered if different observations of a building’s or house’s condition can sometimes bring different results. I know I used to watch the show, “Rehab Addict,” on HGTV with Nicole Curtis, and she has been able to restore and renovate and bring back to life many seemingly unsalvageable houses.

Although I am probably the most non-mechanically inclined person in Chattanooga, in another life and with a few construction skills and knowledge and a little investment cash, I think it would be fun to try and bring back to life old homes and buildings. Such abandoned schools as the old White Oak Elementary/Dawn School or the former Elbert Long/Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts are two places I would start, and I bet people would love to live in those old schools if they were renovated into residences.

Those who are artists or at least appreciate art and architecture – as my late mother, Velma Shearer, did – are naturally idealistic. That has become apparent with the recent news story that not everyone is happy with the new blue color starting to appear on the Walnut Street Bridge, which is undergoing some touch-up and rehab work.

I know some historic preservationists would probably take pink if it meant saving any historic or architecturally significant structure and bringing it back to life instead of seeing it torn down.

And speaking of art and building tattoos, the Red Bank Public Art Citizens Advisory Board helped the city of Red Bank unveil a mural last Saturday on all four sides of the restroom building behind Red Bank City Park. Done by mural artist Adam Stephenson, it is called Appalachian Sunsets and includes a painting of a white oak leaf, in part as an ode to the community of White Oak.

As part of Red Bank’s 70^th anniversary Saturday, I also ran in the 5-kilometer race sponsored by the Chattanooga Bakery/Moon Pie folks. It went up and down parts of Dayton Boulevard, and it was interesting to get a feel from a human perspective of some of the homes and buildings along that stretch from near Morrison Springs Road to near Memorial Drive and back.

In what is kind of unique for one of the main thoroughfares of Chattanooga, Dayton Boulevard still has a number of houses within its commercial sector. Some of them might have been converted into businesses, but I noticed for the first time a few actually still have nice grassy yards behind them. So, it was neat to get to see this street on more of a human scale after having driven up and down it in a gas-guzzling automobile all my life.

I also noticed some art along the way in the form of tattoos on the backs and arms of competing women mostly in their 40s and younger. That is one aspect of life that is much different from when I was young.

Back in the old days, the only tattoos I ever saw were seemingly faded anchors on Navy sailor men perhaps as some bodily souvenir they brought back after serving in the Pacific. But that is not the case anymore. Although you still do see them on young male rock music stars and maybe on male criminals as well – based on some of the arrest photos – tattoos have definitely gone mainstream. They give an edgy vibe and a sense of rebellion, which we all have felt at times.

Although I would not get a tattoo, I must confess as a male that they have an appealing and fashionable look to me on females, as long as there are just two or three smaller ones and they do not cover one’s face.

But I have not quite gotten used to young women with rings in their noses. I have not been “nosy” enough to ask why they do that but would like to know. It might have started as rebellion but now it is fashion!

What are your views of tattoos?

Also competing in the 10K version of the Moonpie Race Saturday in Red Bank was Red Bank city manager Martin Granum. Despite being 62 years old, he ran 6.2 miles up into the White Oak Park and back in a competitive time of exactly one hour. If that is not enough to turn one’s head, he is also a graduate of the Air Force Academy.

Apparently, he is not the only government official in the Volunteer State who is health conscious. Local 3 News reported that Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, who is 65, competed in the Publix Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon this weekend and finished 226^th out of 376 competitors. He swam one mile, biked 25 miles and ran 6 miles in all just under three hours.

Seeing him competing might have turned one’s head more than the tattoo-adorned competitors.

When I lived in Knoxville, I used to see then-Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam, a future governor, compete in a race or two in which I was also participating. Unfortunately, my view of him was from behind, as he easily and quickly moved ahead of me with his slender frame.

I understand that University of Tennessee President, successful businessman and former gubernatorial candidate Randy Boyd, who is 65, has also been an avid runner.

With all these public officials over 60 still trying to maintain their youthful health, maybe we need to have a race among them. Better yet, we could have a race that connects the Medical Arts Building and the Parkway Towers and have them go up and down each building.

That would be one way to check the runners’ – and buildings’ – physical sturdiness and strength! And maybe the winner could receive an opportunity for a free tattoo from a local parlor!

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Jcshearer2@comcast.net