In 2023, the Kelly Administration earned accolades in financial strength, made significant progress toward One Chattanooga goals, and continued its commitment to responsive and effective governing.
Chattanooga, Tenn. (December 2023) – Last week at year’s end, Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly and his administration released a snapshot of the team’s achievements in 2023. From the City’s AAA bond rating and accolades in financial reporting to the largest grant for urban forestry in our history, the Kelly Administration remains committed to a responsive and effective approach to governing and to improving the quality of life for every Chattanoogan in every corner of the city.
“I’m excited about the momentum we are carrying into the new year, and I’m proud to know that we are making our city an even better place for everyone who chooses to call Chattanooga home,” said Mayor Kelly. “While we haven’t yet arrived, the progress we’ve made in 2023 is substantial – and we’re going to continue to execute on the priorities and issues that matter most to Chattanooga’s residents in 2024.”
Building a Universal Path to Early Learning:
- Established the One Chattanooga Institute for Early Care and Learning at Tyner Academy.
- Launched Early and Often, a kindergarten preparation program where participants receive educational materials, experiences and resources.
- Expanded Early Learning seats and developed an 84% total enrollment in programming, an improvement from 75% in 2022 and toward the goal of 100% enrollment by summer of 2024.
Catalyzing Economic Vitality in the Black Community:
- Launched Chattanooga’s first Mentor Hub, a tool designed to foster meaningful connections between community members and organizations offering mentoring services for youth.
- 400+ participants in Employment Resource Fairs at City Community Centers.
- 1 of 16 cities participating in the Good Jobs, Great Cities Academy through US Dept. of Labor, which will lead to innovative and scalable city-supported solutions that upskill and reskill workers into quality, high-demand jobs.
- Named finalist for Economic Development Administration Recompete Grant for workforce development in distressed neighborhoods.
Ensuring Affordable Housing Choices for All Chattanoogans:
- Placed almost 1,000 individuals experiencing homelessness into housing through direct support or investment.
- Invested in about a dozen down payments for first-time homeowners through Down Payment Assistance Program.
- Created a draft ordinance to update the City’s zoning laws for the first time since the 1960’s.
- Establishing a Payment-in-Lieu-of-Taxes (PILOT) Program to bring more affordable housing units online.
- 3D-printed tiny homes pilot program with Branch Technology.
- Awarded $12.5 million ‘Freedom Homestead’ by Frontline Response to house and support veterans experiencing homelessness.
- Prevented evictions for 279 households through the Eviction Prevention and Diversion Initiative.
Improving Local Infrastructure & Public Transit:
- Paved nearly 70 lane miles + repaired more than 18,000 potholes, cracks, and divots.
- First comprehensive Parks and Outdoors Plan in 25 years adopted by City Council.
- Awarded a $500,000 U.S. Department of Transportation grant to study the feasibility of creating an Amtrak line from Memphis-Nashville-Chattanooga-Atlanta.
- Unveiled plans to redesign Montague Park, connecting to Alton Park and Historic South Chattanooga.
- Awarded $1.8 million grant to prevent soil pollution in Mountain Creek, a major tributary of the Tennessee River.
- Piloting advanced solutions to make our rail crossings safer and easier to navigate.
- Collected 30+ tons of plastic recyclables with the Hefty Renew Program.
- Treated more than 22 billion gallons of wastewater and cleaned more than 1.5 million feet of sewer lines.
- Received the Environmental Stewardship Award from Tennessee Governor Bill Lee.
Building a Competitive Regional Economy:
- Launched America’s first commercially available Quantum Network.
- Attracting more than $2 billion of new investment through South Broad and One Westside projects.
- Job growth at twice the pace of the national average and record-low unemployment.
Closing the Gaps in Public Health:
- Awarded $6 million urban forestry grant, which will account for 95% of the City’s forestry budget.
- Offered WIC Clinics at East Lake Community Center weekly on Tuesdays.
- Significant investments into mental health resources and initiatives like the Co-Response Unit in CPD.
- Added nursing staff and expanded programs at Community Centers.
Providing Responsive and Effective Government:
- Awarded AAA bond rating by S&P and Fitch for the third consecutive year.
- Recognized by the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) for excellence in financial reporting.
- Announced waste-to-energy system to convert city’s wastewater into renewable energy.
- Property crime rates down by double digits and an 80% clearance rate, roughly 30% higher than the national average.
- Improved 311 request completion times and reduced 311 wait times.
- Secured more than $61 million in direct and pass-thru federal funding to supplement City operations and initiatives.
Doubled the number of neighborhood associations compared to 2022. These organizations are a critical component of healthy neighborhoods, and we’ve been working hard to return to pre-Covid participation.