Hello Thursday.
April 25 2024
Tuesday night, the City of Raleigh unveiled its final design for the Plaza & Play project at Dorothea Dix Park. Matt Urbanski, a landscape architect and partner at Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, walked the public through a 3D model of the site plan.
3D model of Plaza & Play by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
A quick background: The City of Raleigh + Dix Park Conservancy are on a mission to create the best destination park in the world. Their goal is to create “a park for everyone, built by everyone.”
In February 2019, the city council adopted the Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan, which included the Plaza & Play. Since the project began, the team has received feedback from over 65,000 area residents on the future of the park.
Screenshot of Fountain Plaza | Image by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
Screenshot of Picnic Grove | Image by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
Screenshot of NC Playground | Image by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
Screenshot of The Yard | Image by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
The nitty-gritty: The Plaza & Play is ~18 acres on the southern edge of Dix Park (along Lake Wheeler Road). It will be a public space for all ages and abilities + feature a civic plaza, fountains, gardens, and areas to relax with family and friends.
- Fountain Plaza will feature a large amphitheater + waterfall that children are welcome to play in.
- NC Playground will feature an 18 ft tube slide, a net climber, and several wooden towers. There will also be a sand play area and sensory maze, filled with engaging objects (such as a walk-in kaleidoscope + dance chimes).
- Picnic Grove will feature wooden picnic tables, built-in grilles, plenty of shade + overhead string lights.
- The Yard will be anchored by The House of Many Porches + feature a terrace for bird watching, a cutting garden with herbs + apple trees, and wetlands.
What we’re most excited about: The temporary dog park at Dix Park will be permanent. However, it will be moved to make way for the Plaza & Play. The new location will be announced in September.
The timeline: Construction will begin July 2022 + take ~2 years to complete.
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Where will you be spending most of your time?
We predict many picnics are in your future. 🧺
- Fountain Plaza
- NC Playground
- Picnic Grove
- The Yard
Show
- The Best of North Hills | Thurs., July 15 | 5–9 p.m. | Coastal Credit Union Midtown Park, 4011 Cardinal at N. Hills St. | $10 | Enjoy a night filled with dancing, drinks + live music from Band of Oz. 🎶
- Acoustic Nights in The District | Thurs., July 15 | 6–9 p.m. | Park West Village, 3400 Market Center Dr., Morrisville | Spend a night under the stars with this summer outdoor concert series while enjoying dinner, shopping, or relaxing to acoustic sounds.
Talk
- RTP180: AI | Thurs., July 15 | 6–7 p.m. | Virtual | Free | RTI International has invited speakers from surrounding universities to speak on the topic of artificial intelligence + teach viewers what they know about the subject in 5 minutes or less. 🎤
TheBuy
- Raleigh Night Market | Thurs., July 15 | 5–9 p.m. | Moore Square, 225 E. Martin St. | Free | Spend the night outdoors with shopping, live music, food trucks + drinks. 🛍
Network
- NetworkNite | Thurs., July 15 | 7–9 p.m. | Halcyon, 517 W. Jones St. | $29 | Join business professionals at this face-to-face relaxed networking event.
- Young Professionals Network Program | Thurs., July 15 | 8:30–10 a.m. | 230 Fayetteville St. | $45 | Network with like-minded professionals, listen to speakers + discuss the reopening of Raleigh. 💼
Biz
- Business of Women | Thurs., July 15 | 12–1:15 p.m. | Prestonwood Country Club, 300 Prestonwood Pkwy, Cary | $25+ | Sloane Heffernan joins the Cary Chamber of Commerce to share her insights on storytelling in business.
Learn
- Digital Photography Essentials | Thurs., July 15 | 6:30–8:30 p.m. | Virtual | $89 | In this workshop for Canon photographers, learn how to manually use your camera using various settings + techniques. 📷
- Applying to College | Thurs., July 15 | 6–7 p.m. | Virtual | Free | This webinar may help ease some of the stress of applications + help students stay on track.
Whatever you think term life insurance costs — it’s probably less.
Haven Life Insurance Agency offers an easy way to buy affordable term life insurance coverage online. A 35-year old female in excellent health can purchase a $500,000, 20-year Haven Term policy for as low as $18/mo. That’s peace of mind for the price of a large cheese pizza.
Visit Haven Life and discover how simple getting life insurance actually is. Some disclosures and limitations apply — see site for full details. Ⓟ
Weather
- 91º | Mostly Sunny | 20% chance of rain
ComingSoon
- Restaurant Soul Taco (featured on TV show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives) is coming to Raleigh — along with a new concept called JewFro, which combines Jewish + African cuisine. The 2 restaurants will be located at 927 W. Morgan St., replacing the previous Remedy Diner. (Raleigh Magazine)
NowOpen
- The Raleigh Fire Dept. recently opened 2 new stations — 6 + 14. Station 6, located at 2601 Fairview Rd., was completed in March with 14,990 sqft of space. Construction at Station 14, located at 3601 Harden Rd., finished Wed., July 7 + is 18,162 sqft. 🚒
List
- INDY Week has unveiled its Best of the Triangle 2021 list. Winners were sorted in 6 categories, including eat & drink, shop, services, health & body, out & about, and local color. Thank you to everyone who voted for RALtoday + helped us be named as a finalist for 3 categories. 🏆
Arts
- Live It Up! Hillsborough Street is looking for an artist to create a signature mural in the 2300 block of Hillsborough Street (near Insomnia Cookies). The project’s budget is $20,000 + is slated for completion by this fall. Submit artwork here. 🎨
- Applications are now available for United Arts’ 2022 Artist Support Grants. Individual artists + small groups who have lived in Chatham, Harnett, Johnston, Lee, and Wake County for at least a year are eligible to apply. The deadline to apply is Wed., Sept. 1.
- Calling all creatives. Now through Aug. 3, anyone with a creative mind can enter your Raleigh-focused designs into our Rep Your City Design Contest. Designs will be chosen by our team to be compensated + featured on products sold in The RALtoday Shop. See details + enter. ✍️
Civic
Edu
- The Global Agricultural Development Corporation, Durham Tech, and NC State are developing a new program called BioAg PRO. The training will be held at Durham Tech this fall + will aid in students obtaining entry-level jobs in NC’s agricultural biotechnology industry. 💻(TechWire)
TryThis
- The Town of Cary is celebrating its 150th anniversary on Sat., July 24 + 31. The celebrations will take place from 4-10:30 p.m. on Academy Street (near the former library site). Click here for more information.
You won't regret spending your night with Bond Brothers Eastside — located at 602 E. Chatham St., Cary. Tomorrow, July 16, Of Good Nature is joining the stage to share its good vibes + alternative music blend.
The show starts at 8 p.m. and tickets can be purchased for $15 so grab some now for you and all of your friends. Check out Bond Brothers Eastside’s calendar of events here.
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#RALcurrent: What we’re currently loving — Carly is loving the lemon blueberry sweetbread from La Farm Bakery + Laura is loving the Mad Beets juice at Raleigh Raw.
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