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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, The Lone Star State is renowned for the beauty and |
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diversity of its many public gardens and parks and for the |
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dedication its residents have demonstrated to preserving and |
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sustaining these oases of greenery; and |
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WHEREAS, While outstanding gardens can be found in many |
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communities throughout the state, the city of Nacogdoches has |
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distinguished itself for the number and variety of its green and |
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flowering public spaces; and |
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WHEREAS, Nacogdoches is located on a site once occupied by |
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members of the Nacogdoche tribe, a group of the Caddo people whose |
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culture was based on farming; a Spanish mission was established |
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there in 1716, and the town has been a civil settlement since 1779; |
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as early as 1853, the city's gardens were noted in the diary of a |
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famous visitor, Frederick Law Olmsted, the landscape architect who |
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later designed New York's Central Park and numerous other iconic |
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public spaces around the nation; and |
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WHEREAS, Today, Nacogdoches helps to preserve the state's |
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horticultural heritage through re-creations of traditional gardens |
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at the Durst-Taylor Historic House and Gardens, the Sterne-Hoya |
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House Museum and Library, Millard's Crossing Historic Village, and |
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the Old Nacogdoches University Building; and |
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WHEREAS, The city's splendid green spaces also include |
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Eugenia Sterne Park, Margil Park, Zion Hill Baptist Church |
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Cemetery, Oak Grove Cemetery, and the Pocket Park and the Plaza |
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Principal in the historic downtown; moreover, Liberty Memorial |
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Garden commemorates with dignity and grace the lives lost during |
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the tragic events of 9/11; and |
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WHEREAS, Nacogdoches is home to Stephen F. Austin State |
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University, which is landscaped with overstory and ornamental trees |
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to maintain the Pineywoods ecosystem and the natural beauty of the |
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campus; the university's 138 acres of gardens include the SFA Mast |
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Arboretum, the Pineywoods Native Plant Center, the Gayla Mize |
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Garden, the Jim and Beth Kingham Children's Garden, the Plantery, |
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and Jimmy Hinds Park; in addition, the Baldcypress Collection and |
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the Crape Myrtle Collection are renowned for their impressive |
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display of those species; each year, SFA Gardens hosts programs |
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that provide information on sustainable gardening and the |
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preservation of native plants, while the Nacogdoches Independent |
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School District supports initiatives that encourage students to |
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maintain and study gardens on the grounds of their schools; and |
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WHEREAS, Home of the annual Nacogdoches Azalea Trail each |
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March, the community was the first to be recognized as part of the |
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Azalea Society of America's Azalea City Program in 2004 and was |
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recertified in 2012; the Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden on the SFA |
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campus is the largest such garden in the state, with more than 7,000 |
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evergreen and native azaleas on display; another of the city's |
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notable sites is the Nacogdoches County Master Gardeners |
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Demonstration Garden on the former site of Aqua Vitae Park, which |
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was developed by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in |
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cooperation with the city and Nacogdoches County; and |
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WHEREAS, The thoughtful cultivation of the splendor of nature |
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is one of the most sublime expressions of the human spirit, and the |
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skill and devotion with which the city of Nacogdoches has showcased |
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its lovely trees and flowering plants is indeed deserving of |
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special recognition; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 89th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby designate Nacogdoches as the official Garden Capital of |
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Texas; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That, in accordance with the provisions of |
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Section 391.003(e), Government Code, this designation remain in |
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effect until the 10th anniversary of the date this resolution is |
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finally passed by the legislature. |