“I am passionate about bringing people together to share life’s most important moments” -CJ Dickson, owner
Located in the heart of historic downtown Franklin, Tennessee, CJ’s Off the Square is an outdoor event venue specializing in garden weddings and rehearsal dinners. The property is made up of a historic home, event pavilion and garden which can accommodate up to 135 guests. We offer several event packages for any type of celebration and our full-service planning staff is ready to help you with every detail.
The home was built around 1911 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. It was popularly known in Franklin as the home and studio of photographer Sam Causey for nearly forty years. The iron gates made popular in his portraits are still in use today. Owner CJ Dickson purchased the property in 2004 and after renovation, opened CJ’s Off the Square in the spring of 2005 as greater Nashville’s first full-service event venue.
Today the house and grounds continue to delight guests. In 2010, a grand garden pavilion was added to accommodate guests outdoors and an interior renovation was completed in the fall of 2011, introducing an all new bridal suite and style studio.
“No other venue in town will give you such personalized attention,” says owner CJ Dickson. “We work with you from day one to help craft your style, select a delicious menu, choose flowers…even find the perfect invitation to share the big news. I am passionate about bringing people together to share life’s most important moments. With our talented, experience staff and convenient in-house services, we make the planning process simple and fun so you can relax and enjoy this special time with your friends and family.”
CJ’s Off the Square continues to offer elegance, convenience and gracious southern hospitality to all of its guests.
Meet The Team
CJ Dickson, Owner
CJ’s Off the Square is the creation of Caren Joy Dickson, known to friends simply as CJ. A California transplant, CJ has lived in the Nashville area for over 14 years and currently resides in Franklin with her husband Andrew and adorable cat, Kitty. She fell in love with the charm of downtown Franklin on her first visit in 1999 and can frequently be found enjoying sweet potato fries at Puckett’s or a pint at McCreary’s. When she is not working away on site at CJ’s Off the Square, she is singing along at the top of her lungs to her favorite bands, cooking up a storm, or enjoying a glass of wine and a good book.
Amy Parman, Senior Event Planner
Amy has been a part of CJ’s Off the Square from nearly the first day. Originally from Southern California, she attended Belmont University and began her career in the music industry. She found that she enjoyed orchestrating artist and label events, and as such, the transition to social and wedding event planning was an easy one. Her many years planning events for CJ’s Off the Square has been a great pleasure and a constant adventure. Amy especially enjoys getting to know her clients and seeing their happiness as the vision comes to life on the big day. When not at work, she enjoys to reading, gardening, and great Indian food!
Lindsey Dudgeon, Associate Event Planner
Starting her career in the insurance field, Lindsey’s transition into the world of events was one of chance. She met Amy through mutual friends and was instantly drawn to event planning. She first joined the CJ’s team as an assistant while continuing to work full time for State Farm. We were thrilled to have her join our team full-time in 2012. For Lindsey, event planning is the perfect combination of relationship building, creative guidance, and problem solving. Outside of work, you can find her scouting out new restaurants to visit, movies to see, and cocktails to taste. She enjoys baking, being outdoors, running, and spending time with her family and cocker spaniel, Hank.
