ABC News Health Experts recommend two key elements for improving your health:

• Skip the fast food and eat more “slow” food

• Whenever possible, eat more local food produced within 150 miles of your home.

Read the full article of tonight’s national broadcast online here.

from the Chattanooga Times Free Press

Chattanooga Market will open its seventh season from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday at First Tennessee Pavilion, 1826 Carter St. The openair market features locally grown produce, handcrafted arts, live music and prepared foods.

It will be the first market under new owner Chris Thomas and his staff. Thomas said the theme for the market this year is “Local Is Better.”

In addition to the nearly 100 expected vendors, Sunday’s market will feature twotime Grammy winner Gary Nicholson, Australian Anne McCue and Texan Amy Cook performing throughout the day.

Representatives from the Make-A-Wish Foundation will be collecting coins for their Coins for Kids program at their booth during the day. Among items for sale Sunday will be handcrafted

jewelry, locally designed and handmade clothing and produce, original paintings and local carpentry. According to Thomas, marketgoers also can find fresh-baked breads, handmade pizza, made-toorder tacos and hometown barbecue.

The EBP stage will feature talent from all over the world every Sunday with everything from Americana music, big band, rock ’n’ roll to dance troupes, he said.

Visit www.chattanooga market.com for more.

Article by Barry Courter, Chattanooga Times Free Press

The Chattanooga Market has officially been sold, and new owner/operator Chris Thomas and his staff are busy getting ready for opening day on April 27.

Over the last six weeks, Thomas, market director of operations Paul Smith and marketing and media director Melissa Siragusa have been contacting vendors, talking with sponsors, finalizing the schedule and getting the Web site ready. The site went live this week, and fans of the market who visit will notice a few things right off the bat.

Continue reading Chattanooga Market sale finalized

Chattanooga Named Among Top 5 Small Cities in America by Leading Expert in Revitalization of City Places

Article by Reneé LaSalle, WDEF News 12

Chattanooga’s parks and public spaces were under the microscope Tuesday… and they passed with flying colors.

Fred Kent is a leading authority on revitalizing city spaces.

He says its one of the best ways to keep a city growing and healthy…

A bike ride through downtown Chattanooga was all it took for Kent to name it one of the top cities in America.
Continue reading Chattanooga Named Among Top 5 Small Cities in America

Article by Barry Courter, Chattanooga Times Free Press

Within a day of announcing he was closing the open-air Chattanooga Market, co-owner Nick Jessen got the phone call he was hoping for.

Mr. Jessen, who agreed to sell the market he manages, announced today that it will open April 27 under new ownership. “We’ve always hoped the market would continue, and we’d like to hope that people will continue to buy locally,” he said. Chris Thomas, founder of Palo Duro Records based in Ooltewah, said he has begun establishing a nonprofit organization to run the market. “My involvement will be limited,” he said. “Eventually, it will be a stand-alone operation with a separate board.”

The market will operate much as it did last year, including its involvement with charitable events, Mr. Thomas said. “We want to keep 2008 as close to what the 2007 market was,” he said. His interest in the market lies in its value to the community as a whole, but to the arts and entertainment communities in particular, Mr. Thomas said. “We are obviously heavily involved in the entertainment business, but we also support the arts in general,” he said. “The bottom line, though, is that it struck me as something that needed to be saved.”

Mr. Thomas said he expects to finalize the sale no later than the end of March. Mr. Jessen, who has accepted a job as regional sales manager with Chattanooga-based Heil Trailer International, said he is pleased the market will continue and that vendors will have a place to sell their products.

Two weeks ago, Mr. Jessen said he decided to discontinue the market because it had not “reached a point of independent operation.” Diane and Terry Hughes of Flat Top Mountain Farm Market have sold produce at the market for five years. She said the venue gives them an opportunity to put their product in front of potential customers. “It gives you more exposure,” she said. Rick Thompson, a principal at Artech, said he and his wife, Susie, are regular market shoppers and also enjoy the social aspects of attending. “I am thrilled to hear someone is stepping up,” he said. “It has become part of our routine to go down there after church and shop for fresh vegetables and cheese, the goat cheese, and the different items.”

Melissa Siragusa, who has a background in sales and marketing, will be in charge of running the market, Mr. Thomas said. “I’m very excited about this,” Mrs. Siragusa said. “One of the things I like about Chattanooga is that you can get involved and make a difference.”