NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — At Friday night's concert, singers Dan and Shay weren't the only stars of the show.
“So it’s really everybody’s park and it is really Nashville's signature urban park," said Tim Netsch. While all eyes were on the band, he focused elsewhere. “I’m going to be looking overall, just how it works, how people circulate through the park, and how it functions.”
That’s because the park hosted its biggest concert to date just after completing a major renovation. “Phase Two was about an $11 million project- $5 million of that was provided by the Centennial Park Conservancy and the remainder was provided by Metro Nashville- the taxpayers of Nashville,” said Netsch, the Assistant Director for Planning and Facilities Development at Metro Parks.
The 19-acre zone of renovations sits in the heart of Centennial Park. It includes new walkways, lighting and more than 150 trees.
“It took a long time. Just the construction phase alone took about eighteen months," said Netsch.
In the past, large crowds and heavy rain spelled trouble. “So on the great lawn as part of the Phase Two project it now has an underground drainage system, we've added soil amendments and we've got Bermudagrass here," said Netsch. "So it's almost like a professional sports field.”
He said the updates will allow the park to host more large-scale events like this one in the future. “What we’ve tried to do is to preserve and enhance all of the things that people have always loved about Centennial Park while adding new features like these walkways with Crab Orchard stone, plazas and benches.”
Phase Three designs are expected to start soon which will include a new events pavilion on the north end of the park.
