Chattanooga, the 4th largest city in the state, is located in Southeast Tennessee near the border of Georgia at the junction of four interstate highways. The city has received national recognition for the renaissance of its beautiful downtown and redevelopment of its riverfront. The city boasts the most productive affordable housing program in the nation, and is notable for   leveraging development funds through effective  public/private partnerships, with   significant civic involvement on the part of  private foundations. Chattanooga   was one of the first US cities to effectively  use a citizen visioning process to   set specific long-range goals to enrich the lives of residents and  visitors.

Attractions such as the Tennesse Aquarium, Lookout Mountain, Civil War battlefield sites, the African   American Museum, and the Appalachian Trail bring thousands of people to the   area, as do events like the Riverbend Festival , Bessie Smith Strut, Fall Color   Cruise,  the Creative Discovery Museum for children, and the Southern Writers Conference. Chattanooga is the home of NCAA Division I-AA national football championships and hosts the national softball championships every year. People who love the out-of-doors use Chattanooga as a base for hang-gliding, bass fishing, mountain climbing and caving expeditions; the verdant Smoky Mountains and Tennessee River watershed support the greatest variety of flora of any area  in the United States.