After President Obama traveled to Chattanooga in late July to talk about the middle class and tout the city's local economy, National Journal's Nancy Cook check it out (and check the facts) for herself. She documented her trip on Instagram and shares the results with us here. She did not, however, bring back any Moon Pies to share.
A big part of the way Chattanooga has tried to reinvent itself is by developing the downtown areas along the river. Here is a walking bridge, connecting two burgeoning neighborhoods. (National Journal) Moon Pies, a tasty local favorite, are produced by Chattanooga Bakery, one of the many businesses that make up the city's diverse economic base. (National Journal) Painted portraits of great entrepreneurs of the past on a building in Chattanooga (see Steve Jobs on the far right). Only question: Where are the women?? (National Journal) At a startup demo day called GigTank, a young entrepreneur from Bulgaria pitches Hutgrip, a business that she and her team developed this summer in Chattanooga. The business collects and tracks data from manufacturers using sensors to help them make more efficient decisions. (National Journal) Pure Sodaworks is a homegrown Chattanooga startup that produces small batches of soda, with unique flavors like honey lime. They're serving it at the Gigtank Demo day. (National Journal) The two co-directors of the non-profit The Company Lab talk about how they're trying to nurture tech start-ups in this former industrial city, once deemed the worst city for air pollution in 1969. (National Journal) A nice piece of public art off MLK Boulevard near the university. (National Journal) The Chattanooga Public Library's downtown branch turned its fourth floor into a public co-working space for any resident to use. Here, one works on a library computer with a sign that says "Don't Feed the Developer." (National Journal) A mirror in the Chattanooga Library's downtown branch tries to encourage people to be innovative, which seems to be the buzzword here in this Southern city of roughly 160,000 people. (National Journal) Huge swaths of downtown Chattanooga have been rebuilt but you still see lots of empty storefronts or places boarded up, like this storefront on MLK Blvd. (National Journal) The view from Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, overlooking the downtown. (National Journal) Justin Smith, 37, looks through a stack of free suits at a job training program in Chattanooga. (National Journal) Duane Parks (right) and William Darden (left) are native Chattanoogans, learning to drive forklifts as part of a job training program. Both say they've been frustrated by the low-paying hourly jobs they find in the area. These jobs offer little opportunity for advancement and no job security, they say. (National Journal) This walking bridge in downtown Chattanooga connects two parts of the city and is used by tourists and locals for walking, jogging, and biking. (National Journal) Another view from Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga. This one shows the prominence of the river within the geography of downtown. (National Journal)
