Raleigh City Council Work Session on Dix Park Update - September 9, 2025
Raleigh City Council Work Session on Dix Park Update - September 9, 2025
This work session featured a presentation from Stephen Bentley, Director of Raleigh Parks, and Ruffin Hall, President and CEO of the Dix Park Conservancy, on the status of Dorothea Dix Park, including its 10-year anniversary, visitation, upcoming projects, and financial needs. The council discussed the transition of DHHS, future capital costs, and funding options.
Discussion Items
- Visitation: Dix Park is the second most visited destination in North Carolina, with over 600,000 visitors in June, July, and August 2025. Data from Placer AI shows visitors from 42 states and 95 of 100 North Carolina counties. The park is the number one local destination in the Triangle. An end-of-summer block party attracted 15,000 attendees.
- DHHS Transition: DHHS notified the city in early 2025 that they would vacate the campus by November 2025, earlier than the previous two-year extension. The city will assume responsibility for roughly 1 million square feet of buildings and 300 acres of grounds. Decommissioning of centralized steam and chiller systems is underway, along with demolition of West Campus buildings (starting early 2026, except Flower Cottage) and planning for East Campus demolition. 25 structures (50,000 sq ft) have been demolished; 6 buildings (25,000 sq ft) renovated.
- Infrastructure Projects: The first phase of the Rocky Branch Creek and Grove project is in design, with construction anticipated to start in 2027 pending funding. A new utility corridor (approx. 6,000 linear feet) is being planned. The Pull-in-to-Bain water main project is underway with tree removal and construction. The Lake Wheeler Road project (including a roundabout known as "the peanut") will include a multi-use path and bike trail.
- Conservancy Projects: The $75 million fundraising campaign (10-year span) is complete. The House of Many Porches has exceeded revenue expectations. The Flowers Cottage renovation (food and beverage space) is in permitting, with construction expected in winter 2025-2026. The Brown Building adaptive reuse is being conceptualized with a third-party vendor. Real estate advisory services from City Collective (experience with Presidio and civic campus) are underway. Public art projects include a mural by Jackie Shelton Green (North Carolina poet laureate) and Thomas Dambo trolls (installation beginning October 6, 2025, using recycled materials). The Chapel Healing Garden is open to the public, awaiting a fountain. Artist-in-residence Preston Montague focuses on ecological restoration.
- Future Capital Needs: Estimated capital costs for the next 3-5 years are $90-120 million, with operating impacts of $7-10 million. Potential funding sources include public funding, contributed income, earned income (concessions, fees), and value capture (leases). Staff recommended bringing back proposals for a Municipal Service District (MSD) and a Tax Increment Grant (TIG) policy this fall. A governance update for the park (roles of city and conservancy) is also planned.
- Council Questions and Comments:
- Councilor Silver asked about leasing limitations (park-supportive uses), the Lake Wheeler Road edge design, and short-term tactical interventions at the South Saunders/Western entrance. Staff confirmed they will explore low-cost improvements.
- Councilor Jones inquired about tree replanting plans; staff noted a citywide leafout plan is being developed and will be presented to council on a future date.
- Councilor Harrison requested information on the percentage of native plants at Gibson Play Plaza; staff will follow up.
- Councilor Silver asked about the lease agreement with DHHS; staff stated the lease allowed notification and the state is vacating, making the property fully city-owned by year-end.
- Councilor Silver also asked about the possibility of a 99-year lease on a portion of the park (e.g., Spring Hill) for revenue generation; staff clarified the purchase agreement allows council discretion after state vacates.
- Councilor Harrison asked about the relationship between the $75 million raised and the $90-120 million capital needs; staff confirmed the $75 million is allocated to completed projects and operating costs, not future capital.
- Mayor asked about master plan updates and governance; staff indicated a process for updates will be proposed in the new governance structure. Real estate advisory work from City Collective will produce incremental options.
- Councilor Lambert Melton expressed strong support for the Creek and Grove project, calling it a priority.
- Councilor Silver asked for a refresher on the master plan; staff will coordinate with the manager's office.
- Councilor Harrison noted the connection to the farmers market and NC State, with ongoing bike/pedestrian planning.
- Mayor highlighted the need for downtown-Dix Park connection; staff noted the strollway and other funded projects are separate from the master plan, and council direction is needed for larger ideas.
- Councilor Lambert Melton raised the R line (downtown circulator) as a potential visitor connector; Councilor Potton suggested if repurposed as an economic development tool, it should be funded separately from transit. Staff will include the topic in the downtown Raleigh Alliance discussion.
- Councilor Silver requested an economic impact study; staff reported a study has just begun, with results expected in about six months.
Key Outcomes
- Staff will bring back proposals for MSD boundary, rates, and services, as well as a TIG policy, in fall 2025.
- An updated memorandum of agreement with the Dix Park Conservancy outlining governance, roles, and funding will be presented.
- The leafout plan (tree replacement policy) will be shared with the council via the manager's update.
- The economic impact study will be completed in approximately six months.
- The downtown connection and R line discussion will be incorporated into the downtown Raleigh Alliance presentation to the council.
Meeting Transcript
Dix Park, and I'm going to turn it over to Stephen Bentley to present. Good afternoon, Mayor, members of the council. I'm Stephen Bentley, the director of Raleigh Parks. With me today, uh co-presenting is Ruffin Hall, president and CEO of the Dix Park Conservancy. So I'll kick us off. He'll share some of the work that they're doing, and then I'll finish the presentation. We have a lot to cover. Um a lot of great work to show you today. So this is a big year for Dix Park. It is the 10-year anniversary of acquiring the property. We open opened Gibson Play Plaza. Uh DHS informed us that they are moving off the campus, and the Conservancy completed a $75 million fundraising campaign. So our agenda today, we're going to talk a little bit about the visitation. We've had an incredible summer. We are going to talk about the transition of DHHS, share some of the great work and the project updates, and then look forward and share some next steps with you. So congratulations, you have the number two most visited destination in North Carolina. So June, July, and August saw over 600,000 visitors to Dix Park. You can see the data points, 42 states and uh four uh 95 of the hundred uh counties in North Carolina, and it is the number one local destination uh in the triangle. Uh this is a map, a little bit harder to see on the big screen, but you can see geographically that we I was trying to look for states, looks like Idaho and Alaska. So we need to recruit some uh folks from Boise and some folks from Anchorage to come visit. Uh but you can see that we go both coasts. So it's pretty exciting to have such a destination here in Raleigh. Uh in addition to that, if you go more local, you can see that each one of these dots represents a hundred visitors in Raleigh. So each of your districts are very well represented, uh represented and visiting the park and enjoying the park. Stephen. Absolutely. Sorry to interrupt. Yeah. Can you ask how you have this data? Is it cell phone? Is it self-provided? Yep, uh, the data source is Placer AI. Uh-huh. A commonly used tool in uh public spaces as well as retail. Phone data. Yes. And just to capture, uh, we had an end of the summer block party a couple weeks ago in conjunction with Oak City Collaborative, and we had 15,000 visitors to that one event. So now we'll shift gears a little bit and move towards the DHHS transition. Just to remind council that we I said we acquired the property 10 years ago. Uh the original lease was set to expire July of this summer. However, last summer DHHS approached approached city staff and asked for a two-year extension. Um, this uh earlier this calendar year, they notified us that they would be leaving in November of 2025. That has put us in a uh operational position to uh deal with a lot. So uh from a square footage standpoint, we have about one million square feet of buildings on campus, uh including 300 acres of our grounds and all of our infrastructure. All of that becomes our responsibility. And from a context standpoint, every building in the park system is about one million square feet of buildings. There is so there is one million just on this campus. So what does that mean? That means that we are in a citywide organizational mode to respond to this. This is not just parks and recreation.
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