Hamilton Place, meet Stand. And vice versa
07.28.2009 // by: Sarah
After months of canvasing in the hot summer sun downtown, I’ll admit it was a bit of a relief to sit in the air conditioning of Hamilton Place Mall. Armed with a stack of free Chick-fil-A sandwiches, Great American Cookie Company cookies, and Barnie’s Coffee, I thought I was in a for a sweet deal. I had visions of mall patrons flocking to myself hungry for freebies and eager to share their thoughts on Chattanooga.
After about thirty minutes it is safe to say that fantasy was crushed.
The early morning “mall walkers” blazed by before I could even squeak out “WouldyoumindansweringfourquestionsforthefutureofChattanooga?” However, 15 years growing up in the suburbs of East Brainerd lead me to have confidence in Hamilton Place as meeting point for a whole variety of people… I would just have to wait on those that aren’t awake at 9:30 on a Tuesday. The infamous words of Kevin Costner “If you have free stuff, they will come” repeated like a mantra gave me hope for the next 30 minutes, gave me hope until I witnessed a most glorious sight.
Families. Families coming in droves. Moms, toddlers, teens and dads all coming together to fill out the survey. The variety of answers seemed endless and each family member brought a different perspective. Family engaging as a unit and talking about the future of their region, a region that looks different to every sibling but enjoyed together. I saw families from East Brainerd, Dalton, Ringgold, and downtown (just to name a few) sat down on the front benches of Hamilton Place Mall and discussed issues that matter to each person. A few days of canvasing brought in 286 surveys, but more importantly gave more than a few families the chance to share their vision for the future. So keep your eyes open for the bright yellow in and around Hamilton Place and talk to your family about the future of Chattanooga.
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