Since 1959, there had been dreams of a beautiful green space in the heart of Main Campus. But work really began in the mid-1970s, when the University unveiled plans to replace a parking lot with a mall that included grass, walkways, trees and a fountain. Centennial Mall was officially dedicated in 1980. And in 1999, the American Society of Landscape Architects named it “one of the most beautifully landscaped spaces in America.”