| Name | Mark |
|---|---|
| Last Name | McKnight |
| Home Address | 400 Garden Road Chattanooga, TN 37419 United States |
| Organization Name | Reflection Riding Arboretum and Nature Center |
| Describe Your Role In The Organization | President/CEO |
| Organization Address | 400 Garden Road Chattanooga, TN 37419 United States |
| Website | https://reflectionriding.org/ |
| Best Phone Number To Reach You | (423) 596-1573 |
| Alternate Phone Number | (423) 255-7579 |
| Email Address | mark@reflectionriding.org |
| Alternate Email Address | heather@reflectionriding.org |
| Please Describe Your Project In Detail | Project Name: Pathways to Understanding Project Philosophy. For more than 65 years, Reflection Riding Arboretum and Nature Center has been hard at work restoring the vital connection between people and nature. In the last two years, we have renewed our commitment to the basic principle that the outdoors is for everyone, all the time, everywhere. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to experience nature, regardless of where they live or their economic status. We believe that when the benefits of the outdoors are accessible to everyone, Chattanooga becomes stronger and more connected. We believe that young people deserve opportunities to learn in and appreciate the outdoors so they become lifelong champions for the natural world. This philosophy is the lens through which we view our mission to reconnect people to nature. This project will provide free, easily-accessible green space and guided outdoor experiences within the City limits for all Chattanoogans. Reflection Riding is free and open to everyone. We are committed to the work of making every community member feel not only welcome in the outdoors, but excited to get out and explore. Why is this so important to us and the Chattanooga community we serve? Because access to nature is marked by stark inequalities. People of color are three times more likely to live in places without immediate access to nature. Low-income families are much more likely to live in areas that are nature deprived. Creating more opportunities to engage in the natural world that are free and close to home may be the antidote to at least some of these disparities. For more on these disparities, take a look at these two sources: https://cnr.ncsu.edu/news/2020/12/nature-gap-why-outdoor-spaces-lack-diversity-and-inclusion/ and https://www.csp-inc.org/public/CSP-CAP_Disparities_in_Nature_Loss_FINAL_Report_060120.pdf. For more on potential solutions to these disparities, see: https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-nature-gap/ Project Summary. In 2021, Reflection Riding completed a comprehensive planning process resulting in a long-term vision for building one of Chattanooga‘s legacy organizations into a city-wide hub for exploration of our natural, cultural and historical resources. This Framework for the Future (https://reflectionriding.org/framework) casts an inclusive and equitable vision that builds an immersive, accessible and public-facing outdoor experience across our 300-acre campus. We took on this work as the pandemic began and visitorship increased dramatically. In fact, since the pandemic began, Reflection Riding has served more than three times the visitors it did before the pandemic. More than half of those visitors are from right here in Chattanooga. Though full implementation of the Framework will likely take a decade, the first two components of this vision are: 1) an already-funded new way-finding and interpretation system for our 300-acre campus, and 2) ADA-accessible pathways, restrooms and facilities connecting visitors to thematic Learning Loops. These Pathways to Understanding create the physical and digital infrastructure to connect our community to its world-renown natural resources and unique history. Today, we request consideration for funding for the second component, which we call Pathways to Understanding. What will the accessible pathways, facilities and Learning Loops look like on the landscape? These components build on our existing infrastructure and trail network to provide a self-guided, immersive and educational overlay across the entire campus, and creates a network of thematic “Learning Loops” that make connections between key points of interest on-site. These Loops highlight important and interesting Chattanooga themes, such as Civil War history, Native American culture, ethnobotany (which incorporates the geology, hydrology and ecological aspects of our community), and weave these themes together to tell the rich story of the natural history of the Chattanooga region, particularly those stories that have been overlooked for years. These Loops will be accessible to the entire community, and are most likely to be used by school groups composed of students, teachers and chaperones; families with children; and those who recreate on our campus, typically senior citizens and families. This project, and Reflection Riding’s work as a whole fits squarely into Chattanooga’s vision for the future of this community. The Velocity 2040 study (https://www.chattanoogachamber.com/velocity2040) explores our community’s priorities for what life will be like in the year 2040. This project aligns with many of the top priorities listed in the Velocity 2040 report exploring “what we should do first” to get ready for the future: 1) engaging students so they can be successful in graduating from high school and finding their pathway forward to living wage jobs and opportunity, 2) providing ways for people to live healthier lives, both physically and mentally, and 3) doing this work in a way that especially positively impacts historically disadvantaged communities. Pathways for Understanding provides the infrastructure and resources necessary to fulfill all three of these priorities Pathways to Understanding engages people of all ages and backgrounds. On any given day, you might find a three year old and her parents going on her first hike at Reflection Riding, a fifth grader exploring food webs with his class, or a high school student doing an internship or apprenticeship to illuminate a green jobs career pathway. You would also see adults, in particular senior citizens, exercising and “getting their steps in” out in the fresh air. You might also see a large group of volunteers pulling invasive plants or caring for the native gardens across the property. A perfect place to play, exercise and gather for community, Reflection Riding is already a generational asset to our City, and with investment, can become an even greater asset. Project Detail. Pathways for Understanding is a shovel-ready infrastructure project that will catalyze lasting change at Reflection Riding, for the benefit of our community. The Pathways for Understanding project comprises two components to be completed over two years: a comprehensive series of thematic Learning Loops that create physical and digital infrastructure to guide our visitors in engaging with the world-renowned natural resources and unique history of Chattanooga; and ADA-accessible pathways to connect the parking lot and existing visitor amenities with the Loops, and ADA-accessible restrooms and facilities at our Nature Center, so that all visitors find our campus open and accessible allowing full engagement with our outdoor resources. Today, we request consideration for these components. This will allow for full deployment of our Learning Loops to the community by the end of 2024. A complete description of both components follows. 1 - Thematic Learning Loops. The Learning Loops will connect key points of interest and inspiration along existing trails, providing a self-guided educational overlay across our campus. The Learning Loops will build on our popular naturalist-guided tours using physical and digital interpretation to provide a deeper experience to the visitor. Both are described in detail below, but the digital interface is in the early design phase and will be modeled on the Cincinnati Nature Center’s mobile experience here: https://bycell.mobi/wap/default/stackedindex.jsp?entryid=ECMzEyNg==&category=20352#m). The entire Loops experience highlights important local themes, like geology, hydrology, cultural heritage, and ethnobotany, and weaves them together to tell the rich stories of Chattanooga. Beginning and ending at the Nature Center’s main entrance, each Learning Loop will use interactive Learning Labs and digital and physical interpretive signage to guide visitors through an immersive experience of Chattanooga’s natural and cultural identity. The Learning Labs will allow for both teacher-, naturalist- and self-led learning, featuring physical and digital interfaces that accommodate users of all abilities and backgrounds. Essentially, the visitor picks the components and formats that will serve them best. Digital experience options will connect users to supplemental digital media, and create opportunities to participate in citizen science and crowd-sourced monitoring of Chattanooga’s natural landscapes. These connection points allow visitors’ curiosity to take the lead. The first, and most important Loop to understanding Chattanooga’s natural history, is the Eco-Communities Loop. Much of the research and development, along with some design work, for the Eco-Communities Loop has already been completed. Several other Loops, described below, will offer in-depth exploration with Learning Labs strategically placed to engage visitors, highlighting the connections between the physical, historical, ecological, and cultural narratives of the region and guide them through different experiences on our campus. Collectively, this system offers a narrative framework for understanding the site through multiple lenses, ensuring that no matter how many times one visits, there is always a new way to experience Chattanooga’s natural history. How will Chattanoogans use these Learning Loops? Each Loop will explore a different yet interconnected topic, and offer differing lengths and difficulties. As an example, the Eco-Communities Loop will cover about 3.5 miles in distance, at a moderate level of difficulty over about three hours. This Loop will introduce Chattanoogans to the major habitat types present on our campus. This Loop functions as an overview of the remarkable biodiversity in our area. Visitors will explore the flooded bottomland forest before winding along the banks of Lookout Creek. Wildflowers (and the pollinators who love them) appear along restored wet meadows. The Loop will climb up the forested slopes of Lookout Mountain and call attention to how the landscape changes with elevation, and how that affects the surrounding forest and water resources. As Chattanoogans explore the Eco-Communities Loop, here are the stops they’ll find, the key content they’ll discover and the connections they will build to the place they call home… and its rich natural history. Stop 1 - Floodplain Dynamics - Experience firsthand the seasonal fluctuations of the Lookout Creek floodplain, and learn how plants, animals, and humans respond. Stop 2 - Creek Ecology - Grab your nets and dip into the creek to learn about Tennessee's rich aquatic biodiversity and the food webs that exist underwater. Stop 3 - Bottomland Forest - Explore one of the most dynamic habitats on the property from top to bottom—and keep an eye out for the pileated woodpecker! Stop 4 - Water Level and Creek Gauge - Monitor the water levels at Lookout Creek, which feeds the Tennessee River, and learn about how the region's dams affect its waterways and aquatic ecosystems. Stop 5 - Riparian Buffer - Peak through birches and giant river cane to catch a glimpse of the amazing wildlife that call Lookout Creek home. Stop 6 - Cypress Swamp - Learn how trees like bald cypress, black gum, and overcup oak have adapted to survive the water-logged soils of the floodplain. Stop 7 - Wet Meadow Restoration - Learn about the importance of wet meadows as stormwater filters, and find out which native wildflowers don't mind getting their feet a little wet. Stop 8 - Research Station - Learn about the research and land management practices at the core of Reflection Riding's restoration efforts—and why fire is an important tool! Stop 9 - American Chestnuts - Learn about the importance of the mighty tree that once dominated Lookout Mountain, the disease that brought it down, and efforts to try to recover it. Stop 10 - Prairies and Pine Savannas - Learn about the role Southeastern grasslands play in supporting biodiversity and how centuries of agriculture have endangered these important habitats. Stop 11 - Mixed Mesic Forest - Birdsong, lichens, mushrooms, and moss! Contemplate the beauty of our native woodlands along a peaceful climb up the slope of Lookout Mountain. Stop 12- Mixed Oak Forest Ecotone - Explore the rocky transition where the soil begins to thin and where white and chestnut oaks begin to dominate the forest canopy. As visitors wind their way back to the Nature Center to close the Eco-Communities Loop, they’ll have a better understanding of the full scope of these habitats and why they matter to our community. Other Loops under development include the following, which will explore all aspects of the Chattanooga region’s natural environment and cultural history. Each offers a differing difficulty, length and depth to engage visitors of all abilities and interests. Geology Loop - 3 hours, difficulty: 2/3, distance: 3.2 miles - This Loop explores the fascinating geology of Lookout Mountain, as a part of the Ridge & Valley ecoregion. Large boulders and other geological features serve as landmarks to highlight local geology and illustrate how geologic processes like erosion and soil formation shaped our community and influenced its different habitats. Cultural Loop - 2.5 hours, difficulty 1/3, distance: 2.5 miles - This Loop tells the history of how humans have interacted with the natural environment over time both on-site and in the surrounding region. With a strong focus on the indigenous cultures of the region, the Loop educates visitors about fishing, foraging, and ethnobotany, along with land practices like controlled burning. The Loop also features lessons on the founding of Reflection Riding, the Civil War, and invasive plant threats such as Chinese privet, hemlock wooly adelgid and chestnut blight. The Loop ties together various existing elements such as the millstones, Cherokee cabins, Margaret Douglas medal, and Civil War monument. Grassland Restoration Loop - 2 hours, difficulty 1/3, distance: 1.8 miles - This Loop celebrates the importance of grasslands in Tennessee’s diverse mosaic of habitats, providing information about these endangered native landscapes and highlighting active restoration efforts at Reflection Riding. Bursting with wildflowers in spring and summer, this Loop takes visitors through restored prairie, wet meadow, and pine savanna habitats, including a stop at the Research Station. Floodplain Loop - 2.5 hours, difficulty 1/3, distance: 2.5 miles - Visitors engage in crowd-sourced citizen science, aiding Reflection Riding’s restoration efforts by actively monitoring the health of its landscapes. This Loop celebrates the dynamism of Lookout Creek and the seasonal variations within the habitats along its floodplain. Embarking from the Nature Center, visitors learn about the ecology of floodplains in the bottomland forest and monitor creek levels at the USGS gauge. At the southern end of the property, visitors can follow the riparian buffer to understand how plants and animals (including humans) make their homes in this dynamic landscape. Wildlife Loop - 2 hours, difficulty 1/3, distance: 1.2 miles - This Loop introduces visitors to eastern Tennessee’s remarkable native fauna. While the main path takes visitors into the Wildlife Center for up-close encounters with native raptors and critically-endangered red wolves, a spur trail nearby offers a self-guided wildlife experience during the center’s off-hours, taking visitors through wetland, forest, and grassland habitats and offering opportunities for insect and bird watching. Nursery Loop - 30 minutes, difficulty 1/3, distance: .6 miles - This Loop highlights the importance and beauty of planting with native species, taking visitors along restored wetland and prairie habitats and through a variety of habitat Demonstration Gardens, including the pollinator bioswale at the Nature Center entrance. Highlights of this loop include our native plant nursery and the greenhouses and other infrastructure that make our restoration work across the city possible. Each garden features tags and information on native plant species available for purchase at the nursery. The Loop also connects to the Demo Pavilion and Soil Shed, where visitors can learn about horticultural practices used at the nursery. Woodland Understory Loop - 1.75 hours, difficulty 1/3, distance: 1.6 miles - This Loop celebrates the botany of the woodland understory, highlighting everything from striking spring ephemeral wildflowers and native azaleas to edible and medicinal plants traditionally used by indigenous peoples. Set along the multimodal, ADA-accessible pathways described below, this Loop serves as an extension of the nursery Loop, with many of the featured plants available for purchase upon return. The thematic Learning Loops will also include Learning Labs, which are expanded learning stations offering additional educational opportunities. While typical learning stations are geared toward self-guided individuals or small groups, learning labs are designed to accommodate a larger group of people, providing space for education staff to conduct guided tours, presentations, and large group activities. Serving as outdoor classrooms, Learning Labs feature flexible seating and gathering space; equipment storage for butterfly nets, binoculars, or other activity materials; and curated access to Reflection Riding’s various protected habitats. Infrastructure for Learning Labs can range from naturalized gathering circles to dedicated structures depending on the location, surrounding context, and educational focus. Covered stations are arranged strategically throughout the property to allow easy access to shelter during inclement weather. The system of self-guided learning trails is designed to be intuitive and easy to navigate, with the majority of trails being accessible to users of all ages and abilities, including those who require rollable surfaces to explore. A consistent and comprehensive graphic system for all wayfinding elements will establish a cohesive identity across the entire property. Signage will be placed along each trail and at key intersections to orient visitors to their location within the larger trail network, using a system of symbols or shapes to clearly mark individual trails and providing information on distances, inclines, and nearby amenities. Digital and physical maps will correspond to wayfinding signage to make exploration more comfortable. Wayfinding elements such as trailside maps (“you are here”)are useful in quickly orienting visitors and can be used in tandem with printed or digital maps. Throughout the Loop network, trail grades, path materials, seating elements, signage heights, and text language and size will be considered carefully in order to maximize accessibility for a wide variety of users. The use of Braille and other tactile elements will be considered wherever possible to aid navigation for those living with visual impairment. To ensure the quality of wayfinding at Reflection Riding over time, all trail and signage materials should be selected to be durable, weather-proof, low-maintenance, and easily replaceable. Components to make exploration more accessible to Spanish-speaking visitors will also be considered. Collectively, this Loop system offers a sense of identity and a narrative framework for understanding our city’s landscape through multiple lenses, ensuring that no matter how many times one visits, there is always a new way to experience these stories. The Loops operate independently, but in support of one another, allowing for a flexible, phased approach to implementation. The system can be realized in whichever order desired, with each Loop setting the foundations for subsequent, connected Loops to be realized in the future. 2 - Accessible Pathways, Restrooms and Facilities. Since the pandemic began, the need for accessible pathways and facilities has become even more apparent and critical. As noted above, our campus, staff and volunteers are serving 200% more people than before the pandemic. The volume of visitors is both exciting and overwhelming, but in order to serve them better and inspire their lifetime love of nature, they have to feel welcome and comfortable on our campus. One major part of providing this engagement is to create ADA accessible, easy-to-navigate pathways and facilities at our nature center building, where everyone arrives. In order to do this, we envision level and ADA-accessible pathways between our main parking lot and the Nature Center building. Currently, the pathways are more than 40 years old and weren’t installed in a way that makes them ADA-accessible. In addition, they can be difficult for the elderly and the very young to navigate. Repairing these pathways will welcome people of all abilities to our campus and ensure their first impressions of Chattanooga’s natural resources are positive. In addition, our restroom facilities are more than 40 years old. The infrastructure of these facilities needs to be redesigned and updated to not only be ADA-accessible, but also to provide private spaces for families with young children, people who need assistance in the restroom and those who deserve a non-gendered restroom facility. While these improvements are unlikely to be very expensive in the grand scheme of things, this is the kind of work that can completely change a person’s perspective on whether the outdoors is a safe, welcoming space for them. We believe that the outdoors are for everyone and our commitment to that extends to every corner of our facility. |
| Please explain how your project meets the requirements of the American Rescue Plan | This project aligns very closely with the priorities set out in the Rescue Plan. First, the ARP specifically targets “nonprofits” in “impacted industries” such as “tourism and travel.” Reflection Riding is a nonprofit and about half of the 85,000 visitors we serve every year are tourists who have traveled into Chattanooga to learn and explore with us. The other half are Chattanoogans, including scores of school children on field trips, their teachers, families, and senior citizens. ARP funds also target organizations whose situation has been “exacerbated” by the pandemic. Reflection Riding fits squarely into this priority, especially when coupled with the priority to address “negative impacts of Covid-19.” In 2021, nearly 85,000 people visited Reflection Riding, up from an estimated 26,000 in 2019. This is a more than 200% increase. While we are thrilled to welcome these visitors and engage them in Chattanooga’s incredible outdoor resources, the pandemic produced this kind of unsustainable growth as people sought safe ways to recreate and exercise and focus on “behavioral health” and “pandemic-related stress,” as described in ARP priorities. The pandemic exacerbated the concept that without infrastructure, planning and resources, people are “loving nature to death.” Visitation has not slowed down in 2022, and in fact, appears to be increasing. As a nonprofit that does not charge admission, an increase in visitorship at this level is exciting, but it also creates a negative financial impact as we work to serve 200% more visitors with limited resources. “Physical plant changes” that “enable social distancing” and allow us to serve “disadvantaged communities” more effectively are specifically mentioned as priorities in the ARP guidelines. This shovel-ready infrastructure project proposes to do precisely that and will allow our community to engage better with our natural resources for decades to come. |
| Where would your project take place? | Our project would take place primarily at Reflection Riding’s 300-acre property, which is entirely located within the city limits of Chattanooga. The project will be constructed and installed on our campus, which is open to the public at no charge six days per week, seven days per week for members. Outreach efforts to engage the community at large, in particular to engage more communities of color and disadvantaged communities will take place across the city of Chattanooga. In working closely with the City over the last few years, through the Growing Resilient Neighborhoods initiative and a complex conservation easement project, Reflection Riding has expanded its reach into neighborhoods across the city, especially engaging people in the outdoors who have never felt welcome or not had access historically. Through long-term partnerships with organizations like The Net Resource Foundation, the Bethlehem Center and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Chattanooga, our team is excited to expand Reflection Riding’s impact for our entire Chattanooga community. |
| How much will your project cost in total? | 2675000 |
| Do you have any matching funding sources from other local governments, private entities, non-profits, or philanthropic entities for your project? | Yes |
| Please describe the source and list amounts of any other funding. | Yes. While our efforts to raise funds for this project have just begun (this is only the second request we will submit - the first was approved at $30,000 for the wayfinding and signage components listed above), we have already received funding for the initial wayfinding and signage components that will accompany portions of the Pathways to Understanding project. Given the community’s enthusiasm for this project, and their engagement with the planning process, we expect to launch a capital campaign in the coming months/years to make it a reality. Over the last four years, Reflection Riding has undergone an inspiring, comprehensive and lasting transformation. For a decade or more, community leaders had watched our beloved nature center decline - revenues and visitation were down, the property was poorly managed, the shrinking board barely met. It was a complex challenge, but in the last four years our leadership team has almost doubled our budget, creating huge growth in not only philanthropic support, but also earned revenue. For example, from 2020-2021, philanthropic support from major donors grew 167%, corporate support grew 134%, and memberships grew 244%. Our native plant nursery revenue grew by nearly 40% through the pandemic. This trajectory and the excitement around this work puts Reflection Riding in a strong position to seek further funding to support this work. |
| What portion of the project are you asking the city to fund? | 26.75% of the total Framework for the Future project, which we believe will cost around $10 million. |
| If funded, when would your project start? | June 1, 2022 |
| How long would your project take to complete? | 3/2025 |
| What milestones would you use to measure your project’s progress? | If this project receives funding, it could start as soon as summer 2022. Our plan is to unveil the new signage and wayfinding components, which are already funded, in the summer of 2022 and then begin work on the Pathways to Understanding. components we have requested funding for here. Currently, we estimate that this project will probably take two years to complete, so through the end of 2024, possibly the first half of 2025. Estimates on timing are difficult right now, given supply chain issues, limited availability of some materials and a reduced number of available contractors. Even so, our team estimates about two total years, start to finish. We typically track a project’s progress by completion of items listed in the budget. Particularly for this project, much of the work will happen sequentially. Assuming funding decisions are made by Fall 2022, below is a projected timeline tied to each milestone. We request funding to implement Pathways to Understanding as described above. The budget below is designed to cover the total cost of the three components listed: creating ADA-accessible pathways, ADA-accessible restrooms and facilities, and a comprehensive series of thematic Learning Loops that create physical and digital infrastructure to engage our community in its world-renown natural resources and unique history. Design and development - $500,000 Construction - $1 million Fabrication and installation of Learning Loop components - $300,000 Digital interface for Learning Loops - $75,000 Accessible pathways, restrooms and facilities - $150,000 Outreach efforts - $50,000 Transportation - $50,000 Staff time - $500,000 Staff/volunteer training and education, including Diversity, Equity and Inclusion training - $50,000 Total - $2.675 million Detail for each line item: Design and development - we will work with a design firm to develop full site plans, architectural drawings and a plan for Pathways to Understanding project by early 2023. Construction - we will implement those plans with a contractor to install and complete construction on the year end 2024 timeline. We will hire a project manager with construction expertise to manage the entire project. Fabrication and installation of Loop components - simultaneously, we will work with an outside consultant, and our internal subject matter experts, to create the content for these physical and digital components, have them fabricated/shipped, then installed on-site by year end 2024. Digital interface - here too, we will work with an outside consultant, and our internal subject matter experts, to create content for the digital learning components, have them tested and launched by year end 2024. Accessible pathways and facilities - these components will be a part of the design and development of the entire project, but may be contracted for separately and so are listed that way. This work will happen simultaneously with the construction listed above to create ADA pathways from the parking lot to the Nature Center and to build out ADA-accessible restrooms in that building. This work may be completed before the main Loop by mid-year 2023. Staff time - while contractors and consultants will provide important leadership for this project, we plan to hire a temporary staff member, with specific construction expertise, to manage the project internally to ensure appropriate focus and progress. Our team will provide content development, advise contractors and consultants and liaise with our board and the community and the project unfolds. Progress here will be measured by hiring the project manager and overall project installation by year end 2024. Outreach efforts - we plan to work again with our partners who informed our Framework to develop a thoughtful community engagement plan to ensure that all Chattanoogans feel welcome and excited to get outside with us. Progress here will be measured by tracking development of the plan, and by tracking numbers and neighborhoods or people who help test and who help visit the installed components of the project through year end 2024. We feel the City, through YFDs, could be a valuable partner here too. Transportation - our past work indicates that transportation barriers are often the reason people from marginalized communities don’t access the outdoors more. In fact, US Forest Service research clearly shows that lack of resources (e.g. money or access to transportation) was a major barrier to engaging with natural areas for people from marginalized communities. We plan to work with our existing partners, like The Bethlehem Center, Hamilton County Schools and the Net Resource Foundation, to make a transportation plan to ensure broad participation in project planning, testing and launch. The City might also be a strong partner here. We will track those partnerships, the participants who come to us through those partnerships, their needs and the resources used to eliminate those barriers through year end 2024. Staff and volunteer training and education, including Diversity, Equity and Inclusion training - Our internal teams, both staff and volunteer, will need to be trained on how to guide visitors through our new Pathways to Understanding components. We expect this to take place in the summer and fall 2024 and plan to include DEI training, like that our leadership staff is currently taking from the Urban League of Greater Chattanooga. We’ll track the development of training materials, participation rates among staff, among volunteers, and numbers participating in DEI training as well. |
| How would you ensure accountability and transparency throughout the project lifecycle? | We ensure accountability and transparency for all our project-based work in a number of ways. First, we have a record keeping system that creates a digital “paper tail” for all expenses and prepares us for audit. This system includes components like Divvy and Quickbooks. That system was designed by our attorney and CPA and has been in place three years now. We provide quarterly tracking and financial reports to our board of directors for large projects, like this one, along with year-end reporting. We use an outside bookkeeper, a separate outside CPA and a separate annual auditor. We have a licensed attorney on staff who provides regular legal advice, as well as independent outside counsel, whom we rely on for advice as often as is needed. We received a “clean” 2020 audit, as we have every year and are in the process of beginning our 2021 audit. This year, we will implement a new tracking system for grants, which will be developed in partnership with our outside CPA, as more and larger grant dollars have become the norm over the last few years. She has years of experience building out these systems and we are excited to move that work forward. We are also happy to provide in-person updates as requested. Transparency has traditionally been one of the organizational values included in our Strategic Plan, along with Inclusivity, Connection, Experiential Education and Restoration. Our federal Form 990 and audit reports are available on our website here: https://reflectionriding.org/who-we-are. Reflection Riding is committed to accountability and transparency and is happy to make any of these reports available to the City or other City entities or committees at any point. |
| If successful, how would your project benefit the community? | For more than 65 years now, Reflection Riding has engaged Chattanoogans in our mission to connect them to our natural resources and, through those connections, bring them better health and well-being. We asked the community what it needs and wants from us for the next generation and they said: 1 - Accessible, inclusive, easy-to-navigate access to the outdoors, 2 - The healing, wellness and health benefits that come with exercising and recreating outdoors on our peaceful campus, and 3 - More options for guided, facilitated outdoor experiences so they can learn from our expertise. This project brings all of those components directly to the community in a location within the city limits, 10 minutes from downtown, and even closer to several neighborhoods that often lack access to the outdoors and safe green spaces. Reflection Riding is free of charge for anyone wanting to get outside, and we especially welcome those who have not traditionally had access to or felt welcome in outdoor spaces. Nature has incredible benefits for people who are able to access and enjoy it. This project will build the infrastructure needed to engage Chattanoogans with the natural world, offer them all the health, wellness and education benefits that come with it, and offer an antidote to the systemic disparities our community, and our country, faces. We know that: Children spend half as much time outdoors as they did 20 years ago Children who spend more time outside in the natural world show improved health and cognitive functions, strong motor coordination, reduced stress, and enhanced social skills. Students who spend more time outdoors, including students from low-income backgrounds, tend to perform better on standardized tests, demonstrate more enthusiasm toward school, and have fewer attendance problems. People of all ages gain mental and physical health benefits, including cognitive gains, improved attentional functioning, and improved memory function from spending time in nature as well. Lack of resources (e.g. money or access to transportation) was a major barrier to marginalized communities engaging with natural areas. People with limited mobility can gain physical, mental, and social benefits from nature. Sources for the data points listed above: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3162362/#:~:text=The%20positive%20effects%20of%20nature,children%2C%20and%20improved%20social%20skills https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10871200600803010 https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/connecting-kids-with-nature https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature https://doi.org/10.18666/JOREL-2017-V9-I2-8231 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5551141/ |
| How will you attract community buy-in for your project? | More than 800 Chattanooga community members informed the Framework plan and gave us ideas, feedback, and advice over the course of a nine month planning process, led by SCAPE Landscape Architecture (https://www.scapestudio.com), based in New Orleans and New York City. A steering committee composed of Reflection Riding staff, trustees, partners and community members guided the effort and coordinated stakeholder engagement. As we work to implement that plan, this project will be one of the earliest components to happen, and we are committed to continuing that community-driven process. The Framework was developed through a nine-month long planning process and included input from Reflection Riding staff, board members, volunteers, members, partners, and community members. The team took great care to consider not only existing stakeholders, but also a broader group of people who live and work close by, but have not yet engaged with the organization. Building on this work, SCAPE, the steering committee and additional Reflection Riding staff developed goals and objectives for the plan. The design team developed four distinct planning scenarios emphasizing a specific theme or site program—ecological restoration, recreation, education, and regional restoration—in order to explore the implications of different programmatic priorities on the future of our campus. Stakeholders provided feedback on the scenarios in online workshops in December 2020. Supporters and members added feedback via an online engagement platform, then in person tours and exhibits. This early scenario development explored the planning and design implications of different program priorities and engaged stakeholders in the process of reflecting on and evaluating the inevitable trade-offs involved with any improvements. In order to support this effort, the SCAPE team used various digital tools including webinars, virtual meeting rooms, digital sketch tables, and an online platform to share progress updates and conduct surveys. While the pandemic could have been a limiting factor for the development of the plan, SCAPE and the steering committee successfully created a strong stakeholder-informed design process, engaging more than 800 individuals. In-person walking tours with our CEO and other leadership staff began in summer 2021 and have been expanded to include an exhibit in the Nature Center, which is currently open to the public during business hours and on Saturdays, when we often welcome hundreds of local community members to explore. Feedback came from more than 40 workshop participants, 118 online survey responses, and dozens of additional interviews and focus group workshops with Reflection Riding staff and the steering committee. SCAPE’s design team then developed the preferred scenario: a bold vision for the future respecting the site’s rich cultural and ecological history. A draft vision was shared with stakeholders in a workshop in March of 2021. Feedback from this event informed the final Framework for the Future plan, released in summer 2021. We also engage 2,500 household members, 8,000 newsletter subscribers, 5,000 direct mail subscribers, and more than 13,500 social media followers, the majority of whom are Chattanooga residents. This responsive community isn’t afraid to let us know what they want from us and we plan to use those relationships to build buy-in and listen carefully, as is our habit, to make sure we deliver what the community wants, will use and will celebrate. Surveying tells us that people have better outdoor experiences with us when they are guided in their exploration, and this project provides that curated, guided experience Chattanoogans are looking for. We partner closely with a number of organizations to broaden our reach and ensure all Chattanoogans feel welcome and excited to explore nature with Reflection Riding. We also offer programs that engage the community further and more deeply. A great example is our Native Landscape Apprenticeship program which employs under-engaged youth in land conservation work, starting with invasive plant removal and restoration, building the skills necessary for long-term employment in green jobs. Another great example is our nature playscape, which opened two years ago and is a free, outdoor exploration area for all Chattanooga’s children. We removed all the hazards and provided some basics for exploration in the stream, along the rock area and in the woodlands. Our friends at organizations like the Bethlehem Center, the National Park Service, the Net Resource Foundation, Hixson High School, UTC, Bess T. Shepherd Elementary, St. Peter’s School, Normal Park, East Ridge Elementary, and many others will guide us and help us engage our whole city in this work. We expect many partners will help us test out designs on the ground too. |
| Name | Nans Voron |
| Contact Information | nans@scapestudio.com |
| Name | Karen Erwin |
| Contact Information | karen@leonarderwin.com |
| Name | Matt Whitaker |
| Contact Information | wmw@wmwala.com |
| Name | Karen Erwin |
| Contact Information | karen@leonarderwin.com |
| Is there anything else you would like us to know about your project? | The list of "other people" above is our key leadership team for the Framework plan; they will continue to advise and support us, along with our community partners mentioned above. We have a number of useful renderings that would be really helpful for envisioning the project. We are happy to provide them digitally if you can let us know how to do that. Renderings and maps for the Learning Loops are available and bring this work to life. We are happy to provide them in print or digitally or you can find a short summary of this work at https://reflectionriding.org/framework on page 23 of the full plan. There is also an exhibit open to the public in Reflection Riding’s Nature Center where people can explore the Framework plan and the components for which we request funding in this proposal. |