The Mayor's Centennial Park Master Plan Committee
Mayor Dean charged the Centennial Park Master Plan Committee with one overarching purpose: to revitalize a park that is at once a prime player in Metro Nashville's network of greenspaces while also serving as Nashville's central park. The Committee's objective was a long range plan that acknowledges past and future simultaneously, respecting the tradition of Centennial Park as a showcase for Nashville's culture, arts and history, while transforming the park into a model of sustainable ecological practice and horticultural excellence.
The park, which was the site of the 1897 Centennial Exposition, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. “The Exposition was the catalyst for municipal park systems here and across the state,” Dean said. “But despite its historic significance and prominent location in our city, the monuments, historic architecture, and grounds of Centennial Park are in great need of repair.”
The Committee’s first order of business was to issue a Request for Proposal to create a Master Plan for the park. The Conservancy coordinated funding for the contract. “Every member of this Committee is a community leader dedicated to making Centennial Park not only the signature park in Nashville, but also a model for great inner-city parks across the country,” Dean said.
George Anderson chaired the Committee, with Nicholas Zeppos serving as Honorary Chair.
“Centennial Park is a Nashville treasure that is an incredible destination and resource for faculty, staff, students and visitors of Vanderbilt, and I am honored to work on the restoration of this historic site that includes classical ties to my Greek ancestors,” Zeppos said.
Committee members
- George Anderson, former Board Chair of The Conservancy for the Parthenon and Centennial Park, current member of the Metropolitan Board of Parks and Recreation, partner with Wade & Egbert Insurance
- Ben Armistead, Executive Board Member of The Conservancy for the Parthenon and Centennial Park, and principal of Greenwich Transportation Underwriters Inc.
- Stan Fossick, Chair of the Metro Board of Parks and Recreation, and Vice President of Midsouth Wire
- Aubrey Harwell, managing partner of Neal & Harwell PLC
- Christine Kreyling, architecture and urban planning critic
- Chris Kyriopoulos, co-founder and principal of Compound Capital
- Judson Newbern, Deputy Vice Chancellor of Vanderbilt University
- Reavis Mitchell, professor and Chair of the Department of History at Fisk University, and chairman of the State Review Board for nominations to the National Trust
- Nicholas S. Zeppos, Chancellor of Vanderbilt University