Tagged: Dorothea Dix Hospital

Preservation groups in Raleigh say the city should protect the historic buildings on the Dorothea Dix Hospital campus. The city council plans to convert the property into a public park. The state leased the land to Raleigh last month for $68 million over 75 years. But the Raleigh City Council has yet to create a master plan for the future park. Myrick Howard is the president of Preservation North Carolina:

Raleigh is on its way to having a destination park like New York's Central Park and Chicago's Millenium Park. The Council of State voted earlier today six-to-2 to approve leasing the state-owned Dorothea Dix property to the City of Raleigh for 75 years. The City will pay 5 hundred thousand dollars a year, with a 1-point-5 percent annual increase.

Some Republican legislative leaders have criticized the deal, most notably Senate President Phil Berger. He says he's considering legal action to terminate the lease. But Governor Bev Perdue says Berger and other opponents are misguided.

Civic groups in Raleigh advocating the creation of a public park on what is now the Dorothea Dix hospital campus have pledged three million dollars toward the effort. The Council of State is scheduled to vote today whether to allow the City of Raleigh to lease the land from the state.

On Tuesday, North Carolina’s Council of State is expected to decide whether to lease a huge tract of land to the City of Raleigh to create a park. The more than 300 acre site is home to what used to be the state’s Dorothea Dix psychiatric hospital, which is now closed. Many civic and business leaders support the idea of creating a downtown park in Raleigh. But lawmakers have spoken out against it, saying Governor Perdue is moving too quickly with the project.