Chattanooga gets a lot of acclaim for its downtown renaissance, and deservedly so. From the 21st Century Riverfront to the Southside, the urban makeover has been extraordinary, and civic delegations from around the world have come here to learn about it. Interestingly, though, many have come to learn not so much what we did as how we did it.

In other words, they want to know about process. And they’re right in wanting to do so.

Back in the mid-eighties, Chattanooga made a conscious decision to make its civic conversations inclusive. It was more than a tacit recognition that citizens had something to offer; it was a commitment to invite them to the table and to make it easy for them to get there. The result was a marvelously motley cross-section of people coming together to share their visions for the future of the community. In sharing, they enriched each other’s view and elevated the collective sense of possibility. Twenty years later, the city reflects the richness of that process with public spaces that were born out of public dialogues.

It seems like an obvious way to do things, yet even today, we encounter communities that prefer to have a group of hand-picked experts mull over what is best for the rest of the populace and then make recommendations on their behalf. All too often the result is a chorus of, “What gave you that idea?”

Real public process is unashamedly public – throwing open the tent flaps so that any individual, regardless of agenda, may come in and participate. It’s never very tidy, but then, democracy seldom is.

Yet interesting things happen to pocket agendas when they are exposed and vetted before open-minded, well-intentioned people. The agendas tend to get discussed and dissected, and the valuable parts are embraced while the self-serving parts get dismissed. Suddenly, what was a hidden agenda is laid out for all to see, and its fate it appropriately met.

A few years ago I was speaking with a guy who prided himself on his ability to conduct a public meeting. “The key to my success,” he confided, “is that I never let go of the microphone. That way, if someone starts spouting his own agenda, I can just cut him off.”

Some process.

The fact is, hidden agendas that go undeclared and unaddressed can fester and infect any community vision. Only when they are aired can they become inoculated and transformed into productive elements of a larger plan.

If Chattanooga has no other lesson to teach, it certainly has that one.