Public Hearing Tuesday on Dix Property’s Future

In case you didn’t hear the news, there will be a public hearing Tuesday, April 19 to discuss the future of Raleigh’s Dorothea Dix Hospital property. Scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. at the Raleigh Civic Center, the meeting will be run by the Charlotte-based LandDesign firm, which the city and state hired to gather information before a decision is made about the property.

Developers are eager to get their hands on this prime piece of open space situated between downtown and the N.C. State campus. Mental health advocates would like to see the property continue its historic function by benefiting the mentally ill. Neighborhood and recreation groups that have banded together as Friends of Dix Park want to turn the land into a public park. And some gardeners are advocating for a botanical garden.

Personally, I’d love to see all those interests work out a compromise. Imagine a lush urban park that included a botanical garden (organic, of course) with a residential horticultural therapy program for the mentally ill. With such a plan, Raleigh residents would get a park, plant lovers would get a garden and people suffering from mental illness would get a place to live, work and heal. Developers would even get to build something.

I won’t hold my breath … but wouldn’t it be nice?