Collegedale is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 11,109 at the 2020 census. Collegedale is a suburb of Chattanooga and is part of the Chattanooga, TN-GA Metropolitan Statistical Area. Collegedale is home to Southern Adventist University. The median household income is one of the highest in Hamilton County. It has been ranked as one of the best and safest places to live in Tennessee. The unincorporated community of Ooltewah is an enclave in Collegedale.

History

Collegedale was founded as the site of Southern Adventist University (then Southern Junior College) in 1916. It was incorporated under a city manager government in 1968. J.M. Ackerman was the first city manager, and Fred Fuller served as the city's first mayor.

Geography

Collegedale is located in southeastern Hamilton County at (35.051578, -85.047004), in the valley of Wolftever Creek. Just west of the city center, the creek cuts through White Oak Mountain, forming Collegedale Gap. Tennessee State Route 317 passes through the city center and Collegedale Gap, leading southeast to State Route 60 and northwest to Interstate 75 in the northeastern outskirts of Chattanooga. Downtown Chattanooga is west of Collegedale. Tennessee State Route 321 runs through the western part of Collegedale, leading north to U.S. routes 11 and 64 just north of Ooltewah and south to the Georgia state line.

As of the 2010 census, the city had a total area of , all of it recorded as land.

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2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there was a population of 11,109, with 3,979 households and 2,485 families residing in the city.

The median age was 32.9 years, 15.1% of residents were under the age of 18, and 18.5% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.0 males.

There were 3,979 households in Collegedale, of which 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 48.3% were married-couple households, 18.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 29.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

! Race !! Number !! Percent

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| White || 8,466 || 76.2%

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| Black or African American || 846 || 7.6%

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| American Indian and Alaska Native || 36 || 0.3%

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| Asian || 414 || 3.7%

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| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 16 || 0.1%

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| Some other race || 444 || 4.0%

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| Two or more races || 887 || 8.0%

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| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 1,207 || 10.9%

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2000 census

As of the census

Economy

thumb|McKee Foods headquarters and plant in Collegedale

McKee Foods is headquartered in Collegedale. Originally launched in Chattanooga in 1934, the company moved to a facility on the campus of Southern Adventist University in 1956. McKee Foods is the producer of Little Debbie and Sunbelt snack foods.

Arts and culture

In August 2011, the city took over control of the Collegedale Public Library, which was previously operated under the Hamilton County library system. Library membership is available on a paid subscription basis, free to residents of Collegedale.

Parks and recreation

Six parks are managed by the Parks & Recreation Department of Collegedale:

  • East Hamilton County Park has a high school baseball field and three youth fields.
  • Wolftever Creek Greenway is a greenway which spans throughout the city and continues to be expanded upon by the city.
  • Collegedale Dog Park provides dog-owners with a dog park for unleashed dog socialization.
  • Imagination Station & Pavilion is a playground and rental space located behind City Hall with a train theme.
  • The Nature Nook is an amphitheatre built by the East Hamilton County Kiwanis Club for the city.
  • Veterans Memorial Park is located along the Wolftever Creek Greenway and features plaques, sculptures and flags as a memorial to United States war veterans.
  • Little Debbie Park is a park that opened in 2023 and features a children's zipline, fiberglass sculptures of Little Debbie snack cakes and wide walking paths.

The town has youth and adult softball leagues. It also has four pickleball courts adjacent to the Imagination Station and City Hall.

Government

Collegedale was incorporated in 1968. It operates under a City Manager-Commission form of government. Five commissioners are elected by popular vote and they are responsible for choosing a city manager, who then proceeds to implement the commissions policies.

On 5 August 2013, Collegedale became the first city in Tennessee to extend health benefits to same-sex couples.

Postal service

The city of Collegedale has a unique situation in terms of postal service. The city has its own zip code and post office however the Collegedale post office only does post office boxes and not mail delivery. The city's mail and package delivery is handled by the three other zip codes in which the city is located: Apison 37302, McDonald 37353 and Ooltewah 37363.

Education

thumb|Southern Adventist University campus

Southern Adventist University, a private Seventh-day Adventist university, is located in Collegedale. It has an affiliated K-12 education system, Collegedale Academy, which includes Collegedale Academy Middle School, and Collegedale Academy Elementary.

Wolftever Creek Elementary School and Ooltewah Middle School are the two public schools inside of city limits. Both schools belong to the Hamilton County Schools system.

Infrastructure

Transportation

thumb|Collegedale airport

The city is located just off the I-75 corridor. Collegedale Municipal Airport is owned by the city of Collegedale and has about 120 aircraft stationed there. In 2003, the airport was awarded the Tennessee Aeronautics Commission's "Airport of the Year" title.

Utilities

Collegedale has a recycling program which requires the public to bring their recyclables to the city public works department. The city uses recycling to reduce the costs of landfill waste disposal and offsets the cost of recycling by selling the recyclable materials. Comcast provides cable services and CenturyLink supplies landline phone services. Electricity is supplied by EPB and the Chattanooga Gas Company supplies gas needs. The city and/or Hamilton County handles resident sewer needs and Eastside Utility District handles water services.

Health & safety

The city utilizes Hamilton County Emergency Medical Services for emergency medical services and contracts fire & rescue services to the Tri-Community Volunteer Fire Department located in Collegedale. The local volunteer fire department, at Station 1, has 100 members and support staff and an ISO Class 2 rating. The Collegedale Police Department provides police services for the city.

References

  • City of Collegedale official website