The Dorothea Dix Park development is the largest park masterplan in the US, dubbed “The most exciting and important urban park project in America today”. in 2016, the City of Raleigh in partnership with the Dorothea Dix Park Conservancy began a process to develop the masterplan for the park. Alongside consultant team led by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, the city held a community engagement process where 65,000 locals participated in the development of the masterplan by sharing their ideas for the future of the park.

The former mental health hospital will be transformed into a boutique hotel, which will counterbalance the park’s costs. The park will offer an arts space, community incubator, sports courts and botanic gardens. The old rail line on the land will be repurposed to link the different sections of the park.

Dorothea Dix Park currently acts as a community space, hosting moonlight movie screenings, community yoga and music festivals. In July, the park hosts Destination FunFest, where the fives acres of sunflower blooms are celebrated.

The masterplan is just the beginning of a larger, more detailed process that will plan and design the park in phases. The current masterplan outlines the vision and framework for the park while remaining flexible to the evolving needs of the community. The City maintains that it is imperative for the community to participate in the development of the park.

In 2019, the redevelopment of the mental hospital will begin in addition to improvements to the existing park in order to enhance visitor experiences.

Images courtesy of Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates