We posted at almost the exact same time. We're down here in an accelerator right now, and the quality of designers and engineers is incredible. The city is working pretty hard to put itself on the map as a place to start a company, especially on the hardware/additive manufacturing side of things.
And there's great beer everywhere, three climbing gyms walking distance from my desk, and dirt-cheap office space.
I'm really glad to see EPB getting some good press: they not only took a really innovative step forward with their physical infrastructure, but also partnered with a local accelerator program (http://www.thegigcity.com/gigtank/) to give startups access to their expertise and grid data to help new companies in the smart grid/smart home space. This was the first year they've done so, but I expect they'll continue.
Full disclosure: we're www.gridcure.com in the smart grid track of the most recent cohort of the program (Demo Day is on the 29th. Ahh!), and can't speak more highly of the startup community in Chattanooga and the quality of work that goes on here. EPB's been a terrific pilot partner for us.
And there's great beer everywhere, three climbing gyms walking distance from my desk, and dirt-cheap office space.