City Council - Regular Meeting

Good afternoon, everyone.

I'd like to call to order the July 21st meeting of the Chattanooga City Council and recognize Councilwoman Hill to lead us on our Pledge of Allegiance and Invocation. Welcome, everybody. I'd like to, at the beginning of these meetings, just kind of give a rundown for how our meetings operate for any who might be new. And just as a refresher for those who have been with us before, first of all, if you would, just silence or turn off your cell phones so we don't have any interruptions during the meeting. That would be much appreciated. Our meetings are handled in two parts. And so the first part, which is our agenda session, we cover special presentations, of which we do have one today that Councilman Harvey will be doing in just a minute on our behalf. We also look at our minutes from our last meeting and our agendas for tonight and next week, as well as items that are coming before the council three weeks or more into the future. so that we're well prepared for all the items that come before us. Sometimes during this agenda session we'll have a committee meeting or department report. We do not have that this evening. And so after we've looked at all of our agenda items and had discussion as needed about those, we'll take a recess during which we normally have an attorney-client meeting with our city attorney, and we will have one of those today to discuss a few items with our city attorney. And so when we get back from our recess, that will be the business portion of our meeting in which we vote on all the items that are on our agenda before us for a vote this evening. At the end of that, at the very end of our meeting, we do have a period of for public comment, during which we're happy to welcome members of the public who are here to talk to the council. And so at that time, we'll have folks to line up at the podium down front, and our city attorney will give some rules at that time that govern our public comment sessions. So with that, I would like to invite Councilman Cody Harvey to the podium to deliver a special proclamation recognizing this 36th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'll ask some members of the Disability Council to come up and join me. Today I'm joined by Deborah Duncan, who is the chair of the Mayor's Council on Disability, and my lifelong friend, Lindy Locke. Thank you for being here today as I read this proclamation. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to present on behalf of the city of Chattanooga a proclamation honoring the 36th anniversary the Americans with Disabilities Act. Whereas the Mayor's Council on Disability had its inception in 2006 as a council whose focus is to provide direction and guidance to the Mayor and the Chattanooga City Council by proposing policies, programs, practices, and procedures that give equal opportunity for all individuals with disabilities, empowering them to achieve inclusion and integration in all aspects of society. Whereas, in 2026, nearly 25% of adults in the state of Tennessee have some form of disability and deserve equal access to all aspects of living as those without a disability. Whereas Chattanooga's residents with disabilities are actively engaged, resourceful and involved and are a valuable asset to the city of Chattanooga's government, citizenry, commercial and private businesses and participate in community functions and overall growth of the city. Whereas the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed on July the 26th, 1990 to ensure the civil rights of citizens with disabilities. Whereas this year, the City of Chattanooga's Mayor's Council on Disability celebrates 20 years of existence, while also commemorating 36 years since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, a time when we can come together as a community to recognize and support our fellow residents with disabilities, their unique needs and their special interests. Now, therefore, the City Council of Chattanooga proclaims July the 26th, 2026, as Americans with Disabilities Act Day, inviting all citizens to celebrate this 36th anniversary and reaffirm our commitment to an inclusive community that values the contributions of every resident. Be it further proclaimed that we honor the Mayor's Council on Disability for their years of dedicated service, leadership, and advocacy in ensuring that Chattanooga remains a city of equal opportunity for all, dated this 21st day of July. Let's give them a hand for their service. I'd like to invite the Chair of the Mayor's Council on Disability to say a few words.

Thank you, Council. I would just like to make two points to you. One, the composition of the Mayor's Council on Disability is about 50% self-advocates, like Lindy Locke, who is our Vice Chair. About 40% are representatives from agencies that support those with disabilities, and then about 10% are people like me who have a family member or a loved one with a disability. And we are a very active council. I also wanted to make a point, too, of how important the ADA is. After 36 years, I think we might take it a little bit for granted. But one of the things I learned about the ADA is that in the spring of 1990, when Congress was considering it, it was open to the public to give comment. But the congressional building was not accessible to those with disabilities. So all of these people who wanted to advocate for themselves could not access the building. So on March, I think it was March 12th of 1990, these advocates left aside their mobility devices and crawled up the stairs of the Capitol in order to get to the room where they could advocate for their own rights. And we're not in that place anymore. And I'm sorry, as you can tell, I care a lot about this. Lindy gets to go wherever I get to go. And that shouldn't be a special right that she has. And I'm just so glad by you signing this proclamation, you just affirm that right for Lindy and for all of us. So thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Ms. Chairman, are you back?

Thank you, Councilman. All right. Council, could I get a motion on our minutes from the previous meeting? So moved. All right. The minutes will stand as published. Council, if you would, look with me at the items on our agenda for this evening to be voted on. We'll start with ordinances on final reading. We do have three planning items on for final reading. planning ordinances, I should say, and I do intend to take those as a package unless there's any objection there. We also have a couple of public works ordinances on for final reading, and I'll take those as a package as well. Any questions about any of those?

Okay.

We have one ordinance on for first reading. And I believe Councilwoman Dottley.

Thank you so much, Mr. Chair. This is in Councilwoman Burr's district. She is out today, but she did send a note to planning as well as to myself with her intent to deny. So, Karen, could you please come up and give confirmation or details of that recommendation to deny for item 2026-0057 for Bill McCauley? Do you have the details of that? So for this one, Council Member Burrs, and I want this on the record too, and I just wanted you to confirm that this all was correct, that Mr. McCauley wants assurance that the property can continue to operate as a record service, and he has been told by Brian Schultz and Council Member Burrs that he could. He also has the letter of legal nonconforming use for the city that ensures that as well. And then also the only thing that would change the use of will change to use if the business shut down for more than 100 days, then it will lose its non-conforming use. This also has been explained to Mr. McCauley in this outcome that the neighborhood opposes the rezone and is aware and understands that Mr. McCauley can continue to operate a record service with no change in zoning. So that was her reason for denying it.

And that information is correct. I also have a copy of the Chapter 3897, which has the change of use and the 100-day language in it that I can share with Mr. McCauley just so he has a copy on hand.

Okay, that works. Thank you so much. I just wanted to get that information on the record, let Council know what was going on in the absence of Councilwoman Burrs and that she does request that we deny that one with the understanding that and the applicant understands that they can continue to operate their record service as is with no changes to the zoning. So just wanted to note that, Mr. Chair. Sure. Okay. Thank you, Karen. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I believe it's Councilwoman Burrs' birthday today. I just can't believe she wouldn't want to be with us on her birthday. Here we are. If she's watching, I'm sure she is on her birthday. I wish her a very happy birthday. All right, Council, any other questions on ordinances on our agenda this evening? We do have one economic development question. Resolution and one finance resolution. Any questions on those? Councilman Clark, you're recognized.

Chairman Davis, I have a question regarding the mayor's office. Are you there yet?

We can be. That's fine. Resolutions? Yes.

Okay. I guess this might be a clarifying question regarding how we do appointments. This is not in particular to the reappointment of Reginald Washington, but the city council makes appointments to the beer board. Are those recommendations that come from city council, like if they're representative of our district's Do we make those appointments that, for instance, Reginald Washington, does he represent a particular district?

That's half right, and that's the confusing thing about the Bureau Board. Chris Anderson, Mayor's Office, Reginald Washington is on the agenda because this is the one board out of our 50 that is structured where they are all mayoral appointments, but they have to live in a certain district to make sure that every district is represented with a member, but they're all mayoral appointments.

And Reginald Washington lives in what district?

District 8.

District 8. The great District 8. Gotta love it. So just for clarity, so this is the one board that the mayor makes the appointment respective to our districts and then it comes to us for approval. Is that correct? Okay. Yes. I did not know that. So like, for instance, I think I have a board appointee that's up for expiration. Do you know which one? For the beer board. Okay. I think I have exploration coming up in what month is this? Excuse me. In August.

So with beer board appointments, generally what the procedure is, is we take recommendations from council members for who they would like to see in the seat, and we're generally pretty agreeable to those recommendations. I'll tell you that I have this happening right now with one of your colleagues where the council person and I are going back and forth on names and having that discussion. So I'm happy to have that also with you.

Thank you. I appreciate that. I would appreciate the dual conversation. I know there's We get requests. I know sometimes when you all put solicitations out to the public about appointments, people call us and say, I want to serve on that board. Right. And again, this is the one board that has a different way of coming to council, ultimately still by approval by us. And so, yeah, I'd be more than happy to have that conversation. The beer board has been a very active board. I know some, I think District 2, Councilwoman Hill had one roll off in July. Is that correct? Gotcha. Okay. So yeah, I'd be interested in having that conversation. Matter of fact, I'll send a recommendation via email.

Please do. Yeah. And this is the board that we get probably more applications for than any other. I think people sometimes regret it when they get on there and see how much it is. But I haven't seen anybody from District 5. So yeah, great.

I think also while we're having this conversation, Mr. Chair, I would like for us to maybe have a broader conversation about how to streamline, right, how board appointees work. I know there's some language in our charter regarding filling vacancies and the terms of that nature, but I'd be interested if there's a conversation that we could have about how to streamline how we appoint boards. Happy to have that anytime. Like you said, there's different systems per board. And it could be confusing to us and the general public. So I would like to have that conversation about how to maybe overhaul that system and discuss how to make it more uniformed where there's a dialogue between the executive branch and the legislative branch about who serves kind of like an equilibrium style appointment, so to speak. Happy to have that any time. Certainly, yes. All right. Thank you, Mr. Anderson.

And Councilman, that might be a good topic for strategic planning for discussion coming up. So make a note of that.

Okay. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Councilman Harvey. Mr. Chairman, I just wanted to provide a little clarity on item A under economic development. regarding the Gray Road land acquisition, which is going to be a park in my district. This is simply just a requirement that the Department of the Interior has for us when we do something like this. I'm pretty sure that's my understanding of it. So this is just a procedural thing that we have to do because of the Department of Interior. So just wanted to provide a little extra clarity there. I'm excited to get another park in District 4.

All right. Thank you, Councilman. And Councilman Henderson, you're recognized.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Item C under the Mayor's Office, the Child Savings Account Initiative. I'm assuming this is a little different than the Trump account that are set up.

under the 538 IRAs. This is part of the Chattanooga Future Fund obligations that the City of Chattanooga along with Hamilton County as a partner committed to under the ARPA fund allotments back in 2021. Is that, so how are these funds allocated? These funds, right, if we want to get into the Chattanooga Future Fund definition, did I have someone, yeah, I'm so sorry, you are here. I did anticipate some questions about how the Chattanooga Future Fund operates, if you'd allow. Please. Yes, sir, thank you.

Hi, Haley Nottage, director of the Chattanooga Future Fund. As far as allocation, so... We, Chattanooga 2.0, hold the accounts online. So student sign-ups are with their student numbers at code birthday. And after opening the accounts, they're held in a census account online. And students can access the accounts from there.

Held in a what?

I'm sorry. It's in a census banking account. So it's an online banking account that students and parents can access there.

Their accounts through. But I think the initial setup is like $250 or something. Is that correct?

Yeah, the $100 for opening the account, then up to $50 more for taking two more steps. So $150 off the bat for opening the account.

How do they access the $900,000?

Yeah, so that's going to be when a student graduates, they're going to request that amount online. And we either cut a check to them or the university or the tech school that they intend on going.

Which would be a total of like, each student is eligible for how much?

So each student is eligible for initial $100 plus the possible.

The $900,000 is what we're asking for council approval today. Yeah, I understand that.

Okay. But I guess I'm – so is the $900,000 to be placed in account to earn interest that then is – that money is allocated? In other words, the $900,000 is not going to be depleted. Is that what you're telling me?

So each year, so I guess if it helps to break down the program real quick, we began with kindergarten and middle school when we first launched, and because we have commitments for funding yearly, we began with kindergarten and middle. Each year we'll add two more grades. So, for example, last school year, K-1st, 6th, 7th, 8th became eligible, 9th, and then this coming school year, K-1st, 2nd, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th. So each year a new grade of students becomes eligible, which adds a group of students who receive that $150,000. Okay. So the amount of students that are able to pull from those funds yearly grows.

So kids will get $150 until the $900,000 is used up? Is that what I'm understanding you're saying?

Yes, as well as program operations.

Okay.

All right. Thank you.

Yes.

Yeah. So it's a five-year pilot with hopes of continuing the program and continuing this for all of our Hamilton County Public School students. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Okay.

And Councilman Clark, do you have a question about this item as well?

We can come back to the podium. I need a clarifying question. Yeah, please. To Councilman Henderson's question. The amount you're asking from the City Council is $900,000. Is that correct?

No, that is not the... we initially when talking to the city and sorry i'm i will jump in and say the initial conversations with our previous executive director carrie randolph and so i'm hopping in as director to cover today but um the city committed i believe it was 200 yearly about 250 000 yeah yearly this this commitment uh councilman clark uh will take us to our full commitment in one payment

And it's in the effort to, well, not dispose of, but to spend down our ARP funds.

Okay. So going back to my clarifying question, you're asking $900,000 from the city council, which takes us through the five-year pilot, which basically once we approve this allocation, that's it for us investing because we don't have any more, we will not have any more ARPA dollars, I'm assuming, after this. I'm not sure, actually. So that's my first question. Okay. My second question is to clarify what he's asking, I believe. Is the $900,000, and you don't have to answer this question because I know you're not the CFO for this, but someone should know this. Is the $900,000 going into an interest-bearing account from the city that will draw interest and then will be used as payment for once the students graduate from this initiative?

Do you? Yes, that is correct.

Okay. Yes. That's what he was asking. Yeah. Part of what he's asking. The other part is, is that once a student, after we've made this investment, I know there's other investors other than the city of Chattanooga. Once we, a student who signs up for this fund, And what, through kindergarten through 12th? Is that right?

So it will eventually hit K through 12th.

So I graduate from 12th. I'm enrolled in a program K through 12th. What will the disbursement be to me as a student recipient? What do you estimate, like per student?

So this is... likely also where that 900 comes in, which may help to answer more of that question. So students receive the initial 100 to 150 in the Future Fund account. We have an agreement where we have some focus schools, we call them, where parents within a certain income eligibility level can receive a 4 to 1 match by a collaboration with the state. So it's the Future Fund, community giving, 150, and then collaboration with the state. And so... students will likely not in their future fund have more than depending on school giving 500. Now the opportunity for that money growing is going to be in that connected personal savings, that Tennessee stars.

So there there's, it could vary based off what the market is, right? How much parents are giving is that there's money being put at a savings account. Yes. And that the interest off of the money that we're investing will be used to create that savings account is that correct yes and it will also grow on on our end and the parents end okay yeah i think that's important for the public to notice i think you do an amazing job but by the way haley's a district five resident um and i think you're doing an amazing job um I think you're doing an amazing job, but this is very difficult for people to wrap their head around all this actual science type stuff. But I think the public needs to know that what we are investing is more than the $900,000 because it grows in interest. But the idea is that please, and really what you need to be telling the public at the microphone today is, is to get your kids enrolled into the saving accounts, because that's kind of the lag right now, is that more students are not enrolled. That way, when you do graduate, it may not be a lot or a huge honeypot, but you will have money to start your college journey with an investment of at least $900,000 from the city council. Is that correct? Absolutely.

Yeah, yes, absolutely. And is it okay if I add on real quick what the Future Fund is for those who may not know? I think it was a little rocky start, but if this helps to frame what the program is. So it's a career and college savings account for our Hamilton County public school kids, but it's community supported. So again, it's meant to be for all. So again, student numbers, zip code birthday is how students sign up. So every kid's able to sign up. There's no barriers there. After a student enrolls, we put $100 in just off the bat to start growing. And then I mentioned that second account where parents can give personally. If they connect a personal giving account, we give $25 more. If they give $5 or more of their own money, we give $25 as an incentive to begin saving. research shows that when kids drop out of school or don't have enough money to continue it's for lack of a hundred to five hundred bucks so it's usually that flat tire or transportation issue and they had that money in an account and because they have to use that now to fix their car they're likely not going back to school they're likely taking a break and then going back to work and then that's kind of it for them life happens so I describe the future fund as a community way to support our kids to build our workforce and to make sure that we're taking away some of those barriers for students but the biggest goal is to make it an easy access point. So parents sign up by, it's a three-minute process, we say, again, with those three things. But then, with us building community and workshop opportunities and learning opportunities for parents, we're hoping then it'll move to the personal savings so that we're building that empowerment and ownership within our community for our kids as well. So the Future Fund itself, smaller amount, but the idea is that we're growing our workforce and that money's being multiplied as well once parents decide to begin saving on their own.

Thank you, Hayley. Councilman Henderson, the next. help a little bit? Okay. Thank you. That's my buddy. Sorry. Thank you, Chairman Davis. I appreciate it.

Any other questions or comments? Council on resolutions on tonight's agenda?

Chairman, if I might just add, because Councilman Clark made a really good point, by investing the $900,000 now, I think the interest that we can build is a greater opportunity. But this is not the total investment, and I will get that number for you, but it's over $1 million was the original commitment. We have made a payment to this fund already.

You haven't made a payment?

We have. We have. Yes, sir. But I appreciate you bringing light to the point that this interest will be able to accrue faster and grow faster for sustainability of the fund into the future. So thank you for that.

So quick question there. After this $900,000 payment, will there be a subsequent payment is what you're saying?

No, sir. This will fulfill our obligation. Yes, sir.

Thank you. Thank you. Sure. You good, Councilman? Yes, sir. Thank you, Councilman.

And I will say, counsel, on all of these mayor's office board appointment resolutions, I intend to take those as a package unless there's any objection there.

All right.

Let's turn then to next week's agenda. And please hit your lights if you have any questions. We do have one ordinance on final reading next week. No ordinances on first reading. And then... SEVERAL RESOLUTIONS. ANY QUESTIONS ON ANY OF THAT? ALL RIGHT. VICE CHAIRMAN ELLIOTT, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED. NEW SPEAKER Oh, I'M SORRY. I LOOKED AT IT WRONG.

I'M CLEARED UP.

NEW SPEAKER OKAY. IF THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS, THEN, COUNSEL, ON NEXT WEEK'S ITEMS, WE'LL LOOK AT OUR PURCHASES FOR THIS EVENING. We do have two. And just hit your light if you have any questions or comments on these two purchase items. And seeing no lights on the board here, we'll look at future considerations. Are there any questions, council, on any items on future consideration.

Okay. Councilwoman Hill, you're recognized.

you I'm sorry I was having a side conversation about the future fund and I missed when you asked about purchases I do have a question about that mr. chair if we may go back sure go ahead so there's a police department purchase one-time purchase for a replacement of 500 rifles and my question is what will happen to the old rifles are they destroyed what happens

Toby Hewitt, Deputy Chief of Police Department. That's a valid question, and thank you for posing it. The plan is that once we acquire the new rifles, we will be trading the existing rifles in to the manufacturer for a credit.

Okay, fantastic. Thank you very much. That's all.

Quick question. But those rifles cannot be put back out for resale, like it has to go back to the manufacturer for the rebate. Like for instance, if we wanted to sell those rifles, like let's say an officer wanted to purchase the firearm or maybe one of us, like could, What is the rules regarding resale of those rifles?

Well, those rules are regulated by the ATF, which is why we as the police department are not interested in engaging or are we authorized to engage in the selling of those weapons other than trading them in to a manufacturer who is a, you know, they process that through qualified FFLs, federal firearms license holdings. And so there are a whole... set of rules and U.S. laws that govern that. We're not the SMEs in that, nor do we want to engage in that process. So we relinquish that responsibility to them by trading them in, and then they must follow all the applicable statutes for that.

Thank you.

Okay. Council, any other questions on any of the purchasing questions or future considerations items? All right. Well, that takes us through our agenda session. We do need an attorney-client meeting, and so we'll be in recess until 445. we are back in session madam clerk if you would please read items 7a through c as a package

Item A, an ordinance to amend Chattanooga City Code Part 2 Chapter 38 zoning ordinance so as to rezone property located at 518 East Manning Street from RN 15 residential neighborhood zone to TRN 3 traditional residential neighborhood zone subject to certain conditions. Item B, an ordinance to amend Chattanooga City Code Part 2 Chapter 38 zoning ordinance so as to rezone property located at 6340 Middle Valley Road from RN 2 residential neighborhood zone to RN3 residential neighborhood zone, subject to certain conditions. Item C, an ordinance to amend Chattanooga City Code Part 2, Chapter 3A zoning ordinance, so as to rezone part of a property located at 3714 St. Elmo Avenue and a property located at 3717 Tennessee Avenue from CC commercial corridor zone and RN15 residential neighborhood zone to IMU industrial mixed use zone.

Council, we do have a motion properly seconded on these items. Are there any questions or comments before we vote? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? And the ordinance is passed on final reading. If you would please read item 7D and E as a package.

Item D, an ordinance closing and abandoning a portion of an unopened alley in the 300 block of Chamberlain Street as detailed on the attached maps subject to certain conditions. Item E, an ordinance closing and abandoning part of the unopened 6000 block of Dupree Road as detailed on the attached maps subject to certain conditions.

Second. Council, we have a motion properly seconded on these ordinances. Are there any questions or comments before we vote? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? And the ordinance is passed on final reading. And if you would please read item 8A, Madam Clerk.

In order to amend Chattanooga City Code Part 2 Chapter 38 Zoning Ordinance, so it's rezone property located at 6808 Connor Lane from CC Commercial Corridor Zone to IH Industrial Heavy Zone.

And this is planning item 2026-0057. Is the applicant present? Is there any opposition applicant? Okay. Is there any opposition present? Okay. And Councilwoman Dutley, you're recognized.

Yes. Thank you so much, Mr. Chair. And with that, I read the information into the record this afternoon. Presentation is not necessary. I do move to deny. Second.

Okay, so we do have the motion properly seconded, but we do need to allow time for the applicant and also the opposition to speak to us about these items. And so the applicant will have nine minutes, seven initially, and then two minutes for rebuttal if you want to join us at the podium. Okay. I just said if you want to join us at the podium, you'll have seven minutes to speak to us initially, and then after the opposition speaks, you'll have some rebuttal time as well.

There'll be a clock that shows the time.

Okay. So you have a question? For me, is that what?

Well, not necessarily a question. No, sir. It's just that as this is a public hearing on a planning item, you do have seven minutes to talk to us about the item if you'd like.

Well, I think we've worked with the planning and zoning department, and we've pretty much reached an agreement that it's grandfathered in. I guess this is a term for legal, nonconforming. And it will remain the same thing. The people moved out May 31st, and the Mosteller is moving in right now. Yes. So it's rented again as a record lot, and hopefully it will stay that way. And I was just worried about... getting it in the right zone because I'm 81 years old and I ain't going to be around here that much longer. And I wanted to take care of my kids and stuff. My brother's 83. So, you know, we need to get it straightened out. So I think this will straighten it out as far as I can say.

All right. Okay. I think Karen has a package of stuff to give to you here today that shows you the provisions about the legal non-conforming use requirements. You need to comply with that as far as that goes. And it's 100 consecutive days of discontinued use would result in it no longer having legal non-conforming use. So just make sure you do not have that occur if you've got lost dollars.

I have to pass that on to the kids, I think, so they know.

Make sure they know.

Yes, sir. Okay. All right. That's all I have. I'm satisfied with what we've done, and I think it's good. Okay, sir. All good.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And then, ma'am, if you wanted to speak to us as well.

I'm not sure I have too much more to add, but I represent the neighborhood that this surrounds. In the mid-90s, there was a chunk taken out of our neighborhood. And then since then, we've had new developments. There's houses that butt up to this piece of property. And so a heavier zoning is something that we just would not want. We understand the 100 days and that he's grandfathered in, and we're fine with that. And so it looks good if it is as it appears.

Okay. And what was your name for the record? Dee Dee Graham. Okay. Thank you very much.

All right. Thanks. Okay.

Now you've got your motion and second.

Right. Council, so we do have a motion on the table that was properly seconded. Are there any questions or comments before we vote? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? And the ordinance passes on first reading. Denied. Denied on first reading. Excuse me. It's a motion to deny. That is correct. All right. And if you would please read item 9A, Madam Clerk.

A resolution authorizing the administrator for the Department of Economic Development to execute the notice of limitation of use and substantially the form attached for the property at 1816 Gray Road further identified as tax amount number 159BA003 as a requirement of the acquisition process that was completed with the federal assistance provided by the National Park Service of the Department of Interior in accordance with the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act.

And Councilman Harvey, you're recognized.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. As I mentioned during our agenda session, this is simply a procedural resolution to comply with the National Park Service and the Department of the Interior and another great project in District 4 for more land conservation. So I move to approve.

Second.

Council, we do have a motion properly seconded on this resolution. Are there any other questions or comments before we vote? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? And the resolution is adopted. Item 9B, please, Madam Clerk.

A resolution revising the city's purchasing policy to Section 2.14, Request for Qualifications, RFQ, Item 6A, and to add Item 6B related to the composition of RFQ selection committees.

Second one. Council, we have a motion properly seconded on this resolution. Are there any questions or comments before we vote? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? And the resolution is adopted. Madam Clerk, if you would please read Item 9C.

A resolution authorizing the mayor as a need to award Chattanooga 2.0 unallocated and accrued interest of American Rescue Plan funds as part of the Chattanooga Relief and Recovery Allocation Plan for the Child Savings Account Initiative for an amount not to exceed $900,000. Second.

Council, we don't have a motion properly seconded on this resolution. Are there any questions or comments before we vote? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? And the resolution is adopted. And then, Madam Clerk, if you would please read items 9D through P as a package.

Item D, a resolution confirming Mayor Kelly's reappointment of Reginald Washington to the Beer Board for a term beginning on October 21, 2025 and ending on October 20, 2028. Item E, a resolution confirming Mayor Kelly's appointment of Betty Dugan to the Head Start Governing Board for a term beginning on July 22, 2026. AND ENDING ON JULY 21, 2028. A RESOLUTION CONFIRMING MCCALLEY'S APPOINTMENT OF BETHANY GARDNER GRANT TO THE HEAD START GOVERNING BOARD FOR A TERM BEGINNING ON JULY 22, 2026 AND ENDING ON JULY 21, 2028. ITEM G, A RESOLUTION CONFIRMING MCCALLEY'S REAPPOINTMENT OF PIPER STRUMMET TO THE HISTORIC ZONING COMMISSION FOR A TERM BEGINNING ON JUNE 9, 2026 AND ENDING ON JUNE 8, 2031. A RESOLUTION CONFIRMING ITEM H, A RESOLUTION CONFIRMING MAYOR KELLY'S REAPPOINTMENT OF CLIFTON MCCORMICK TO THE HISTORIC ZONING COMMISSION FOR A TERM BEGINNING ON JUNE 10, 2026 AND ENDING ON JUNE 9, 2029. ITEM I, A RESOLUTION CONFIRMING MAYOR KELLY'S REAPPOINTMENT OF REGINALD JORDAN TO THE STORM WATER REGULATIONS BOARD FOR A TERM BEGINNING ON AUGUST 9, 2026 AND ENDING ON AUGUST 8, 2029. Item J, a resolution to confirm Mayor Kelly's appointment of Brad Polanka to the Stormwater Regulations Board for a term beginning on July 22nd, 2026 and ending on July 21, 2029. Item K, a resolution to confirm Mayor Kelly's appointment of James Beshears to the Stormwater Regulations Board for a term beginning on May 9, 2026 and ending on May 8, 2029. Item L, a resolution confirming McKaylee's appointment of Leanne Morrow to the Stormwater Regulations Board for a term beginning on July 22nd, 2026 and ending on July 21, 2029. Item M, a resolution confirming McKaylee's reappointment of Mark Miller to the Stormwater Regulations Board for a term beginning on April 13, 2026 and ending on April 12, 2029. Item E, a resolution confirming Mayor Kelly's reappointment of Micah Price to the Stormwater Regulations Board for a term beginning on May 26, 2026 and ending on May 25, 2029. Item O, a resolution confirming Mayor Kelly's reappointment of John Cofelt to the Stormwater Regulations Board for a term beginning on May 8, 2026 and ending on May 7, 2029. Item P, a resolution confirming Mayor Kelly's reappointment of Anna Massey to the Stormwater Regulations Board for a term beginning on June 17, 2026 and ending on June 16, 2029.

Council, we do have a motion properly seconded on these resolutions. Are there any questions or comments before we vote? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? And the resolutions are adopted. Are any of the appointees in the OKAY. WELL, IF YOU'RE WATCHING ONLINE, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO THE CITY ON THESE VARIOUS BOARDS. IF YOU WOULD PLEASE READ ITEM 9Q, MADAM CLERK.

A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE OFFICE OF CITY ATTORNEY TO ENGAGE THE FOLLOWING FIRMS FOR LEGAL AND LOBBYING SERVICES. ONE, BAKER DONALDSON. TWO, BATSBERRY SIMS PLC. THREE, BUTLER SNOW LLP. FOUR, CHAMBERS BONNER AND STOFEL PC. 5, Gearhouser, Peters, Elliott, and Cannon, PC. 6, Adams, Sawatska, with McGuire, Woods. 7, Miller, and Martin, PLC. 8, Hidwell, and Associates, PC. 9, Evans, Harrison, and Hackett, PLC. 10, Brian Corbett of the Title, Guarantee, and Trust Company of Chattanooga. 11, Logan Davis of Davis and Haas. 12, Jones Title Company, LLC. 13, Robinson, Smith, and Wells. 14, Bridge Public Affairs. 15, Public. phillip m myers the second and 16 grant kamalinka and harrison for the period of july 1 2026 through june 30 2027. council we'd have a motion properly seconded on this resolution are there any questions or comments before we vote all in favor aye any opposed and the resolution is adopted

That takes us to purchases. We're happy to welcome Weston to the podium. Go through those.

Good afternoon, Council. We have two purchases recommended for approval this evening. First is with Head Start Early Learning. This is a one-year agreement for on-site specialized training for Head Start staff. The annual spend limit will be $53,350. The award will go to Loving Guidance as a sole source provider. The second item is with the Police Department. This is a one-time purchase of 400 rifles for the Police Department in the amount of $300,000. The award will go to Smith & Wesson as the best bid.

All right, Council, we do have our motion properly seconded on these purchase requests. Are there any questions or comments before we vote? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? And the purchases are approved. Thank you, Weston. And that takes us to committee reports. We'll go around the dice here, starting with Councilwoman Noll.

No report.

Councilwoman Dotley.

No report.

And Councilman Henderson.

No report.

Councilwoman Hill.

No report.

Councilman Harvey.

No report.

Councilman Clark. No report. And Vice Chair Elliott. No report. All right. That takes us now to that portion of the meeting where we're happy to hear from members of the public who are here to speak to council. And if you are here for that purpose, if you would please line up at the podium down front here and listen while our attorney reads the rules. And we ask that you would just listen carefully and abide by those rules.

Yes, sir. At the end of each council business meeting, the chair will recognize members of the public who wish to address the council. And here's your rules. Each speaker wishing to address the council can only be recognized at the microphone provided up front for that purpose. No person can have more than three minutes to speak, and the speaker can address the council only upon matters within their legislative and quasi-judicial authority and not on matters which are not under their authority or regulated by other governmental bodies or agencies. Do not engage in any vulgar or obscene language nor use the floor to personally attack or personally denigrate others. and address the council as a whole and not make comments directed towards individual council members. And lastly, do not engage in disorderly conduct or disrupting a public meeting, which is prohibited by Tennessee law, and someone commits that offense if a person substantially obstructs or interferes with the meeting by physical action or verbal utterance with the intent to prevent or disrupt a lawful meeting or gathering. Having stated those rules, ma'am, please state your name and your district if you can.

Thank you. My name is Kennedy Garrett. Good afternoon. I am a resident of Ottawa, Tennessee, and I would like to thank members of the city council for the opportunity to speak today. For the past four summers, I've had the privilege of working in the great District 8 as a summer camp counselor at the Avondale Community Center. Outside of my summers at Avondale, I am a senior attending Middle Tennessee State University, where I have the honor of serving as student government association president. I am pursuing a degree in political science with a concentration in public policy and management and a minor in university honors. The reason I wanted to come before you today is to simply say thank you. Thank you to each of you for your dedication to serving the city of Chattanooga. And a special thank you to Councilwoman Noel for your continued advocacy for District 8 and the Avondale Community Center. Because of your leadership and the city's investment in our community, our center continues to have the resources needed to serve families and create opportunities for our youth. This summer alone, our campers have benefited from partnerships with numerous community organizations that have provided educational programming, enrichment activities, and memorable experiences. We've been able to welcome children into a safe, functional, and inviting facility every day, while continuing to show the Avondale community that their community center is a place where they are valued, supported, and always welcomed. Over the past four summers, Avondale has become much more of a summer job for me. It has shown me the true impact that community investment can have on the lives of children and families. While I spend much of my time learning about public policy and local government in the classroom, working at Avondale has allowed me to witness these lessons in action. It has taught me that the decisions made by elected officials are not just policies on paper. They directly affect whether community centers have resources they need, whether children have access to meaningful opportunities, and whether neighborhoods can continue to thrive. Experiencing that impact firsthand has only strengthened my passion for public service. It has affirmed my goal of one day serving as an elected official because I have seen the difference thoughtful leadership can make in a community. So I want to thank each of you once again for your service to Chattanooga and for your continued investment in communities like Avondale. I hope that one day I will have the privilege of serving my own community from a seat just like yours. Thank you.

Councilwoman, no.

Yeah, give me a minute.

Thank you so much. I really appreciate you have just definitely been a wonderful asset to Avondale Community Center and the students, the parents and your co-workers love you. So y'all pay attention to her because I'm looking for her to go places in a big way. So thank you so much. Thank you. Enjoy your summer here.

Thank you. Thank you.

Hello, my name is Justin Hobbs from District 8, I believe. I was just wanting to ask the City Council, has there been any discussions as of late about changing the meeting time or setting a specific voting time schedule? I know the County Commission a couple months ago changed their meeting times so that it would be more

open to the general public and so i was just wondering if city council if there's been any discussions about that taking place okay and thank you for the question this is a time for you um to to speak to us and for us to listen um and we certainly hear that that concern and that request and we'll take it under consideration so i i guess there there hasn't been any kind of discussions or Not that I'm aware of, but again, it's not really the forum for a question and answer. But we have heard that concern from others as well, and we'll certainly take it under consideration.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen of the City Council. How are you guys doing this afternoon? Good, good, good. My name is Rodney Roach, and if you don't remember me, I was here last week regarding a 24-hour center for the needy and the homeless and the handicapped, and also I ran around. We do not have a place for the disabled veterans to go to. I can't find any disabled veterans on the street. I've maybe ran into one. So I'm just here. I guess I'm needing more advice and help getting possession of an abandoned building and taking it over and lighting it up and making it look good down on East 11th and Houston. I know I need to get a hold of the health department, the LDO, and the registration of deeds. That's why I'm here to you, and also we'll cut that short. I've got help from Georgia's men's warehouse for clothing for people to get jobs. When they go into a job application for an interview, they're willing to donate clothing and discounted prices for people so they look good, feel good, and confident when they go into a job interview. I also got food distribution help from people that are going to donate food to this place. It's called Puckets. Grace Burnett, she is the owner of Grace Puckets. I have Buffalo Wild Wings on my side to donate food, you know, once a week or whatever. And also Brody is a GM there. I also have a little taste of Venezuela, a little Caesars pizza, and a lot of other places that are in the community that are, you know, locally owned. striving here in the city of Chattanooga. And my next one is an indoor skate park for the kids, for the bicyclists, for the rollerbladers, for the community, for the kids, because you've got to have a skate park going on here now, but it's not done yet, and it's going to be outside. Winter's coming. They can't skate downtown because they'll get in trouble, ticketed, trespassing, whatever. They don't want that. They can go skate underneath the bridge. They got a little area underneath the bridge they can go skate. But I want something for this community because there's so much opportunity in this community that's not here. And I'm here from Denver, Colorado, and I've seen it all. I've been through it all. And, yeah, I'm just looking for some help from you guys or anybody. I have a meeting with your fine mayor, Tim Kelly, coming up. I've got to make an appointment with him. We've got to fill out an online application. I've already went to the office and talked to him, and maybe he can help point me in the right direction. I know I have Chattanooga Police Department behind me. They filed a report regarding the place down on East 11th and Houston. So, like I said, my next thing was finding a blotted building, abandoned building, where we can take over and lighten it up and Put a skate park in there, you know, for the kids to come to, get off the streets, get away from what's going on in the world. And then you, Mr. Ron Elliott, I heard you talking about you need something for the elderly for tree trimming and lawn mowing services that are indigent and can't afford it. And also snow angels for people to remove snow and stuff like that that can't afford it. Thank you for your time.

Yes, sir. Thank you.

Do you guys have any questions for me?

No, thank you.

Thank you.

Okay. Councilman Harvey.

Come on. Yeah, hey, do you mind staying after the meeting, and I'll get with you once we're done. That'd be great.

Yeah. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, sir.

Yeah. Good evening. My name is Brian Lemieux from District 1, and I work closely with our unhoused neighbors here in Chattanooga. I want to speak about something that often gets lost in public conversations about homelessness. We talk about the issue, but we rarely hear from the people living it. There are close to 1,000 unhoused neighbors in our city. That means 1,000 individual lives and 1,000 different unique circumstances. But because so many of the unhoused people stay invisible for their own safety, and because the city often prefers that invisibility for political simplicity, their voices and perspectives almost never reach this room. And when their voices are absent, stereotypes fill the gaps. We start talking about the homeless as if they are a single category instead of real people with histories, hopes, and futures. I do want to thank you all for the effort you put into trying to make our city better. This is not an easy situation to solve. It's complex and I'm sure often frustrating. I know you carry the weight of difficult decisions. But I also want to ask something of you. When you think about the unhoused, please think of them as neighbors first. Many of them will never stand at this podium. They're less likely to vote, less likely to volunteer for campaigns, and less likely to be seen as constituents worth listening to. But they live here, they survive here, and they are part of this community whether they are visible or not. If we want a more compassionate and effective response to homelessness, we have to start by recognizing the humanity of the people living it. They are not an issue to manage. They are not a problem to push aside. They are our neighbors, and they deserve to be considered as such in every decision that shapes their future. Thank you for your time.

Thank you. Hello, my name is Evelina Rancute. I believe I'm temporarily a resident of Eastside, technically, but I'm, like, less than 100 feet from Chattanooga and I've lived to my life. I'm a proud member of the Democratic Socialist America and a local activist and one-time candidate. I'm here to speak again in reference to the timing of the meetings. By the way, quickly, I would like to re-emphasize the claims on supporting our homeless, but I would like to speak on the timing of these meetings. It's my opinion, deeply problematic. and undemocratic that these meetings are held on a Tuesday at 3.30 p.m. The vast majority of working people are working at that time and cannot make these meetings. That's union members, city employees, teachers, firefighters, many other jobs. Unless you think that people don't want to or are not interested, I've talked to people about this and other issues, and I've made sure to count responses. On this issue alone, just in the last week, I've talked to at least 12 people who cared about this timing issue but specifically could not be at this meeting because they are working. And that's many, many other issues. Even if they just wanted to be here for the comment period, that swings wildly based on the length of the reports, discussions, and there was no guaranteed time to show up. And what makes this situation even more galling is this used to be a solved issue. For the majority of my life, and almost my entire adult life, the reports and agenda review would be early in the day, but the actual voting agenda was always at 6.30 p.m. Only in November 2023, less than three years ago, did the city council move it back to 330. You made the meetings less accessible, but not more. And to speak specifically, not to name specifically, but many of you campaigned on making these meetings more accessible and getting more public engagement. So I urge you to make this issue right and return our meetings back to 630, or at least after typical work hours. Thank you for your time.

All right. Is there anyone else who would like to address the council this evening? Seeing none, council, that takes us to the end of our agenda. All right. All in favor?

Aye.

We are adjourned.