From the Tennessean Newspaper:
Celebrate Nashville kicks off Sunday
Nashville's got an anniversary coming up. The city is embarking its 200th year as a chartered government, and area organizations are prepared to celebrate in a big way.
Celebrate Nashville, a nine-month program designed to commemorate the town through community events, kicks off at 2 p.m. Sunday with the dedication of the new park at Public Square. The ceremony, which features live music, fireworks and more, is the first of many local activities scheduled to take place during the program.
Mayor Bill Purcell will speak at the ceremony, as will Celebrate Nashville co-chairs Tim McGraw, Faith Hill and retired state Supreme Court Justice A.A. Birch. The new downtown courthouse is named in honor of Birch.
Artists including Bill Anderson, the Fisk Jubilee Singers, Kirk Whalum and the Nashville Symphony Brass Quintet are scheduled to perform, and a wide range of family activities provided by the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, the Nashville Zoo at Grassmere and other organizations will be on hand.
Entry to the event is free. Limited, free parking will be available at both the Public Square and Municipal Auditorium garages. For more information, visit www.celebrate.nashville.gov.
MOLLY REED, STAFF WRITER
![The new Town Square in Nashville.
Purcell prepares new civic square for public opening
By Bill Harless, bharless@nashvillecitypaper.com
September 28, 2006
After three years of work and a $35 million expenditure, the city has a shining public square offering greenery, water, an underground parking garage and sweeping views of the city.
The square doesnt open to the public until Sunday, but already it is glistening. [...]
And after the year-long 200th Nashville anniversary celebration Purcell will kick off Sunday, the mayor said, I think other great moments of public celebration will occur on the courthouse steps and the public square beyond, which is something we couldnt do before.
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