Dixon’s new downtown plaza was officially dedicated May 4, bringing a performance stage, picnic tables, lawn area and overall community gathering spot to what was a gravel lot for several decades.
What this new plaza does not have is an official name, and the city will begin the process of choosing a name and selecting tile artwork at Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
While the plaza was referred to as Pardi Market Plaza during the planning stages, in honor of the grocery store that occupied the site at South First and East A streets for more than 40 years, the city appears to be pursuing other options for names. According to a staff report by City Attorney Doug White, the council will accept suggestions from the public, which will be submitted to city Public Information Officer Madeline Henry at mhenry@cityofdixon.us. The deadline for submission is July 31.
Following the deadline, the council will conduct a community meeting to receive public input and consider possible names for the plaza. After the meeting, the council will select an official name for the plaza at its own discretion.
The council will also consider artwork for the wall behind the stage, which will consist of artwork of famous Dixon landmarks chosen by the Dixon Historical Society and ultimately approved by the council.
“The artwork chosen by the Dixon Historical Society shall reflect the City and the City’s history throughout the years,” White wrote.
The resolution before the council would also rescind a resolution previously approved by the council to name the stage after Jon Pardi, descendent of the original Pardi Market owners and a 2003 Dixon High School graduate who has found success in Nashville as a country singer. In December, the council narrowly voted to name the stage after Pardi, with Mayor Steve Bird and Councilman Don Hendershot voting against. In particular, Bird felt naming the stage after a member of the Pardi family was redundant since the plaza was already slated to be named after the Pardis and wanted to emphasize other aspects of Dixon’s history.
In other business, the council will consider a resolution preliminarily approving the engineer’s report for the Dixon Lighting and Landscaping Maintenance District.
The council will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 600 E A St. The meeting can also be viewed online at Cityofdixon.us/MeetingAgendasMinutesVideos.
