Founded in 1952, the Hunter Museum comprises three interconnected buildings totaling 75,000 square feet and ranging from a 1905 mansion to a concrete Brutalist structure to a contemporary wing of zinc, glass and steel. It welcomes more than 65,000 visitors a year to its permanent collection, which includes more than 3,000 works of American art spanning three hundred years. In addition to its collection, the museum presents three to four special exhibitions each year which are chosen with an eye toward balancing historical and contemporary subject matter, various media, and emerging and established artists, and reflecting the wide variety of lived experiences in the US. From its collecting priorities, to programming and outreach efforts, to affordable access programs, the Hunter attempts to make the arts available to all.

The museum, comprising three multistory buildings that each represent a different moment in the history of Chattanooga, sits on a rock bluff, hanging 200 feet above the Tennessee River. The HVAC system serving the museum was designed more than forty years ago and includes no heat recovery or heat storage. The Technical Assistance grant would allow for a systems assessment to be conducted which would investigate solutions to those deficiencies. The proposed engineering firm is very familiar with the building envelope and the mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems of the museum, having provided the museum engineering services for approximately twenty years.