For those communities that visited Chattanooga to understand the reconstruction of downtown, there may be at least one new chapter to add to the presentation.

The takeaway from most sessions is that community leaders were successful in pulling together people of divergent points of view to create a common set of strategies and goals. As some would say, “It’s the vision thing,” meaning group gatherings where a range of topics were discussed and a consensus was reached on a path of focused change.

Government served as both a catalyst and partner with business, volunteers, foundations and others.

There were critics of the charted course and of the linchpin that spawned the riverfront revitalization.

Whether the brickbats came from those not wanting an economy based on tourism or those longing for the days of smokestack manufacturing, some voices argued that the best days of Chattanooga were over.

Tying the community fortunes to an aquarium, even one undergirded by private investment, was not enough to ameliorate the concerns.

On a recent trip by Chattanooga and Hamilton leaders to the Spartanburg/Greenville, S.C., area, community leaders there pointed out that they had dipped a toe in the Chattanooga water to learn how the central city was done.

Judging from a drive down the main street in Greenville, they apparently learned quite a lot. Pull-in parking frames the two-lane street, and restaurants, commercial buildings and suitable retail fill in the storefronts. An old bridge that split the downtown was removed, and in its place is a modified water walkway with street-side artists along the way.

Greenville started its work after landing a major manufacturer — BMW — as a multi-county catalyst for growth.

Chattanooga went at it a different way.

At the time and for a number of years — 15 to be exact — the assurance of “if you build it, they will come” was limited to the movies, Kevin Costner and a cornfield in Iowa. But building it, in fact, did make them come.

Some kicked the tires but went elsewhere. One did the same and chose to make the investment.

Volkswagen looked out at the Tennessee River winding through downtown Chattanooga, peered across the water to the revitalized North Shore and found a new home for its North American production facility and all of the component partners that will follow.

But the improvements that were made in advance of a Volkswagen decision were not done solely to attract a new manufacturer. They represented a community commitment to a lifestyle, to natural resources and to sustainability.

There is a model not to follow about 100 miles south. Atlanta went through a massive growth spurt only to end up with massive traffic tie-ups regardless of the direction of movement, a downtown that is trying to come back to life, and pockets of unplanned growth. Other communities in the Southeast

that captured major industry which resulted in a growth spurt rallied to the same message about Atlanta.

The greater Chattanooga area, while not on the same scale as Atlanta, faces similar challenges in the years ahead. The metropolitan area sits in the hub of spokes that extend to Southeastern Tennessee counties and some in Northwest Georgia. A seamless blanket will tie these communities together. Early planning will ensure responsible growth with adequate services, while maintaining quality of life.

A new role has emerged for government leaders and those in the business community. The goal is not to put new obstacles in place but to assist in helping in the digestion of the Volkswagen investment.

New manufacturing, attracted here by a community willing to invest in itself, opens the way for planned, reasonable development.

Years from now communities from outside will once more show up to see how Chattanooga and its partner counties demonstrated the way to integrate an expanding industrial base into an already great place to live.

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