Scenic Roots

(City of Chattanooga) The City of Chattanooga wants to hear from you. Recently, it launched an online platform - Engage Chattanooga - for residents to share their input and shape this community’s future. Haley Bartlett and Kristen Templeton are with NOOGAtoday.

At the first Chattanooga Outdoor Festival in 2024. (Chattanooga Outdoor Festival) For people of all ages who enjoy the outdoors, one place to be this weekend is in downtown Chattanooga. On Saturday, the Chattanooga Outdoor Festival returns for an expanded second year at the Choo-Choo Gardens and Station Street, from 11 AM to 7 PM. Sunshine Loveless and Robby Eskridge are the festival’s organizers....

Trees along a path at Enterprise South Nature Park in Chattanooga. (Laura Bellucci via Instagram) An overhaul of the City of Chattanooga’s tree ordinance is now winding its way through the City Council - as William Newlin of Chattamatters tells us.

Farmers near Juliaca, Peru winnow quinoa on a windy day. (Courtesy of Dr. Emma McDonell) Quinoa is known as an ancient grain, grown for centuries by indigenous farmers in the Andes Mountains in South America. In the past generation, quinoa was touted as a “superfood” around the world - soaring, then falling, in the global market. Dr. Emma McDonell tells the complicated story in “The Quinoa Bust: T...

(Chattown Press) What are the stories of people who are homeless here in Chattanooga? “Chattown Chatta: Our Homeless” is a collection of interviews with some of those people. The book version, edited by Mark Anderson, contains twenty-one interviews - transcribed from three-and-a-half hours of video, while the documentary film runs 58 minutes. This weekend, the film will be screened - on Saturday a...

Sarah Whitney (Provided by Sarah Whitney) Sarah Whitney is a violinist celebrated around the world for pushing the boundaries of classical music by blending contemporary sounds. A performer, an educator and a career coach for musicians, Sarah will be in residence this week - Wednesday through Friday - here on our campus, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. On Friday at 7:30 PM, Sarah will...

The Hamilton County EMS Administration and Training Center. (Hamilton County EMS) This month, Hamilton County Government launched a new initiative to help fight the opioid crisis. The Overdose Prevention Team through Hamilton County EMS will deliver lifesaving medication to people with opioid use disorder - and connect people struggling with substance abuse to recovery resources. Hamilton County M...

Fighting opioids: Hamilton County’s Overdose Prevention Team. Music + entrepreneurship: Violinist Sarah Whitney at UTC. Their words, their stories in “Chattown Chatta: Our Homeless.” These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”

(Goodwill Industries of the Greater Chattanooga Area) (Aired Thu 3/27/25) Goodwill Industries of the Greater Chattanooga Area serves Southeast Tennessee and Northwest Georgia. The nonprofit provides education, training and employment for people across 23 counties - and it partners with our campus, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Gena Weldon is Goodwill’s president and CEO.

(Barking Legs Theater) (Aired Thu 3/27/25) If Chattanooga is a crossroads, the new play “InterseXtions” has plenty to say. Written by Peggy Douglas of Southern Exposure - and directed by Jason Tinney of Next Exit Productions - the play opens Friday at Barking Legs Theater, for mature audiences only.

(Chattanooga Theatre Centre) (Aired Thu 3/27/25) At Chattanooga Theatre Centre, “Dreamgirls” takes the stage. The musical about a trio of African-American female singers during the 1960’s and 1970’s premieres on Friday and runs through Sunday, April 13th - recommended for ages 10 and older. Shawn Whitsell is the director.

A view of stadium construction in Chattanooga’s South Broad District. (Chattanooga Lookouts) (Aired Thu 3/27/25) Last summer, a groundbreaking was held to begin construction on a new multi-use stadium that will become the home for the Chattanooga Lookouts baseball team. Drive by the site today - or watch the webcam online - and the progress is plain to see in the South Broad District, where U.S. P...

Construction in full swing for the Chattanooga Lookouts stadium. A musical in the key of soul: “Dreamgirls” arrives at CTC. “InterseXtions” from a dramatic duo at Barking Legs Theater. These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”

(Bridgman|Packer Dance via UTC) (Aired Weds 3/26/25) Dance and film blend to tell the story of vacant spaces in “Ghost Factory” - the next performance from UTC Live! on our campus, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. It happens Friday, starting at 7 PM, at the Roland Hayes Concert Hall in UTC’s Fine Arts Center - where there will also be a video installation in the lobby before and after t...

Capt. Larry Taylor - after he was awarded the Medal of Honor in 2023. (Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center) (Aired Weds 3/26/25) Medal of Honor Day - held on Tuesday this year - commemorates the men and women who have received the nation’s highest military award for valor. Chattanooga - the birthplace of the Medal of Honor - is the home of the Charles H. Coolidge National M...

An exhibit for Capt. Larry Taylor at the MOHHC in Chattanooga. “Ghost Factory” from Bridgeman|Packer Dance at UTC Live! These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”

An aerial view of Chattanooga’s Riverfront. (River City Company) A community open house is the next step in shaping the future of Chattanooga’s Riverfront Parks. The open house - on Thursday, from 4 PM to 7 PM, in the Tennessee Aquarium’s River Journey building - offers the public the chance to preview the latest designs for the Riverfront Parks, speak with consultants who crafted them and offer f...

(CrimeCast) These days, wherever you get your podcasts, “true crime” is a very popular category - steeped in details from the arcane to the macabre. Here in Chattanooga, a local podcast dives into crime - cases cold and active, famous and infamous - but it also focuses on policing and the community, all powered by two storytellers. David Roddy co-hosts the “CrimeCast” with Clint Powell. David is a...

CrimeCast: Chattanooga area stories of crime & policing. A community open house for Chattanooga’s Riverfront Parks. These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”

RangeOars Row, training off the coast of Florida this month. (RangeOars Row) Jere Hartman served as a U.S. Army ranger during the Iraq War. Today, he is among a handful of veterans who form RangeOars Row. Their journey is on the water - and their cause is to raise mental health awareness for veterans, to help in the fight against suicide and PTSD among veterans. I spoke with Jere earlier this year...

(ArtsBuild) Annie LaVoie is one of nine local artists to receive a recent grant from ArtsBuild, which supports the arts in Chattanooga and Hamilton County. In the past few years, the nonprofit has targeted its grants for local artists to break down barriers, make arts funding more equitable - and promote arts and culture through diverse artists across the community. The latest round of grants is f...

Annie LaVoie with a sample of her jewelry. (Mouthy Oddities) Annie LaVoie is a taxidermist and a bone carver whose own brush with death inspires the avant-garde jewelry she creates today. She uses stone, bone and organic remnants to fashion the pieces of her “Mouthy Oddities” collection. As Annie puts it - quote: “Life is beautiful - even after death. And through my art, I seek to celebrate this t...

Mouthy Oddities: Life and death, carved into jewelry. At ArtsBuild, opportunities for local artists with disabilities. Veterans on the water: The mission of RangeOars Row. These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”

(City of Chattanooga) (Aired Thu 3/20/25) In last week’s municipal elections here in Chattanooga, voters approved a change in the city charter to allow city employees to live outside the State of Tennessee. The charter is the city’s governing document - and the fact that Chattanoogans can decide to change it is rare for Tennessee, because Chattanooga operates under what’s known as “home rule,” as...

(The SEED Theatre) (Aired Weds 3/19/25) An epic story about an epic time takes the stage at Barking Legs Theater here in Chattanooga. The SEED Theatre presents “Angels in America, Part I: Millennium Approaches” - set in New York City in 1985, written by Tony Kushner - at Barking Legs on Friday starting at 7 PM, with two performances on Saturday: at 1 PM, followed by a talk back session - and at 7...