After many blessings and speeches about a new piazza opening in the Hill neighborhood on Sunday, the large iron gate finally opened and Sophia Gordon, 8, had her chance. Out of a few hundred people in attendance for the unveiling, she was one of the first to toss a coin into the 23-foot diameter pool of a marble fountain imported from Italy. She wouldn’t share her wish, though. “I really want it to come true,” said Sophia, of Chesterfield.

Dignitaries, visitors and residents described the 11,000-square-foot, $1.5 million piazza as a wish come true, another feature to help keep a neighborhood founded by Italian immigrants vibrant. Located near Marconi and Wilson avenues, it’s sandwiched between a gelateria and a Roman Catholic church.