Recent Updates
On Wednesday, February 3, 2021, community members attended a Regional Resilience Action Workshop. The workshop was coordinated by the City of Chattanooga's regional resilience consultant Stantec. Lead Project Manager Josh Human, along with David Paschane, presented the importance of mitigating major disruptions from extreme weather events, changing climate conditions, and pandemic preparedness. You can see their slides below. You can also view a recording of the workshop below.
In addition to the presentations from Stantec, we also heard updates from several community partners who shared some of the work they've done to uplift communities as part of their response to the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the tornadoes that ripped through parts of Chattanooga on Easter Sunday 2020. We heard from the following community partners:
- Dwayne Marshall, Vice President of Community Investment for the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga. Mr. Marshall described the work the Community Foundation had done to support local communities and nonprofits.
- Geoff Millener, Senior Programs and Operations Officer for the Enterprise Center. Mr. Millener presented the Resiliency Toolkits that were designed to help small businesses, faith groups, and nonprofits to recover from major disruptions and be prepared to weather future disruptions. A link to the toolkit can be found HERE. Mr. Millener also provided an overview of HCS EdConnect, the collaborative between the City of Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Hamilton County Schools, EPB, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee Foundation, and the Smart City Venture Fund. With EPB's help, this initiative provides high-speed internet to K-12 students that qualify for free-reduced lunch, thereby making it possible for every student within EPB's service area to participate in distance, remote, and virtual learning. Learn more about HCS EdConnect HERE.
- Bill Ulmer, Director of Community Health Services for the Hamilton County Department of Health. Mr. Ulmer talked about the challenges of testing and vaccinating citizens in the face of a global pandemic, and about the importance of ensuring that communities of color were educated, tested, and vaccinated. You can learn more about the Hamilton County Health Department's COVID-19 response HERE.
- Bishop Kevin Wallace, Senior Pastor of Redemption to the Nations Church. Bishop Wallace discussed the social service support that his church and many others provided to community members in need from both the pandemic and the tornadoes.
- Miles Huff, Senior Director of Talent Initiatives for the Chattanooga Area Chamber. Mr. Huff discussed the Chamber's support for entrepreneurs and the small business community through the launch of a new website called StartingBlockChattanooga.com, which helps entrepreneurs navigate Chattanooga's entrepreneurial ecosystem to find the help in the form of technical assistance, coaching, and funding opportunities. Mr. Huff also showcased the Chamber's recently launched site for connecting individuals to careers at ChattanoogaCalling.com. In response to the economic downturn and rise in unemployment from the pandemic, the Chamber recognized the need to attract talented individuals to key industries in Chattanooga.
- Michael Walton, Executive Director of Green|Spaces. Mr. Walton discussed the workforce initiatives that Green|Spaces have been working on. He also discussed the new Integrated Community Sustainability Plan. You can learn more about Green|Spaces work HERE.
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If you have specific questions about the City of Chattanooga's Regional Resiliency efforts, please contact Jermaine Freeman at 423-643-7821 or via email at jfreeman@chattanooga.gov.