A New York firm has won a competition to bring new life to one of downtown Chattanooga's largest alleyways that's located behind one of the central city's newest apartment complexes.
The winning proposal called "City Thread" will be a ribbon-like, steel sculpture that will snake through the alley behind the $30 million Market City Center apartments in the 700 block of Market Street.
About City Thread
A painted graphic will peak its way out onto the East Seventh Street entrance to the alley. The sculpture will offer informal seating for visitors. The undulations in the bench areas can be utilized as the framework for small stages, or the infrastructure can be used for film screenings or digital media, according to the winning firm.
Created by the design firm Sports of Syracuse, New York,, the installation will permit a variety of uses such as a stage, lounge area, and framing for artwork, said Amy Donahue of the River City Co.
"It creates zones of activity," she said.
Sports is receiving $80,000, with the help of the Benwood and Lyndhurst Foundations, to build City Thread in the 6,200-square-foot alley, Donahue said.
"The installation is public and it's permanent," she said.
Molly Hunker, who with Greg Corso entered the winning concept, said it was evident the city wanted compelling space creating the opportunity for diverse uses.
"We cannot wait to complete the project," she said. Completion is slated for this fall.
Kim White, who heads the downtown nonprofit redevelopment group River City, said City Thread was "the best choice" in creating a high-quality installation and a unique place.
She said the space will cater to everyday use by the surrounding properties, which include the 10-story Market City Center apartments at 728 Market St. The rear of the lobby area in the building, the tallest to go up in the central city decades, opens to the alley.
River City plans to set up programming in the alley after the work is completed to help attract people, Donahue said.
The alley behind the Market City Center apartments at 728 Market St. is slated to undergo a revitalization. (Staff file photo by Doug Strickland)River City officials, who directed the competition along with Cogent Studio and Public Art Chattanooga, said the competition drew 45 proposals representing 11 countries.
Called Passageways 2.0, the competition piggybacked a similar one that took place in 2016 that enlivened a handful of alleyways in the city and drew interest from more than 80 architectural firms and design groups worldwide.
Sports was one of three semifinalists for Passageways 2.0
The two other were:
» Graffix Collective from Chattanooga, which offered a street art intensive installation with dynamic lighting and a central linear multipurpose table. Team members included Wayne Williams, Aaron Cole, Ray Padron, Jason Meyer, Strat Parrott and Eric Finley Jr., the artist also known as "SEVEN."
» New Office of Boston, which provided interactive sculptures that mimic large scale blades of grass that gently glow a variety of colors at night.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318. Follow him on Twitter @MikePareTFP.