LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) - Officials are considering a proposal to rename Cheapside Park, which has served as a public square in downtown Lexington since 1780, to Henry A. Tandy Centennial Park.
A parks advisory board unanimously approved the proposal Friday and it will go before the Urban County Council for consideration in August, Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton said. The proposal comes as the city continues to look at improving public spaces, she said.
Tandy was a freed slave who co-owned Tandy & Byrd, a masonry contractor in Lexington that constructed many buildings in the area, including the Historic 1899 Courthouse, the city said in a statement.
The area was named Cheapside by early Lexington residents who came from England, the statement said.
“The renaming of Cheapside Park helps bridge our past, present and future,” Gorton said. “We are looking ahead to a brighter future for Lexington over the next 100 years.”
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