North Carolina
City leaders eye improvements to Raleigh’s Dix Park as DHHS moves out of park buildings
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — As the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services prepares to vacate several buildings at Dorothea Dix Park, the City of Raleigh is taking full control of the 308-acre property. City leaders say the future of the park is just beginning
Dix Park welcomed over 600,000 visitors between June and August, with guests from 42 states. It was the second most visited destination in North Carolina this summer, trailing only Wrightsville Beach.
City officials and the Dix Park Conservancy are now focused on the next phase of park improvements.
“During COVID, we learned that our parks became our sanctuaries of sanity,” said Raleigh City Council Member Mitchell Silver. “It’s where people go to feel mentally and physically healthy. We want that for our city.”
One of the park’s most notable additions this year was the opening of Gipson Play Plaza, now the largest adventure playground in the Southeast.
More upgrades are planned, including new public art installations and renovations to existing structures.
Ruffin Hall, president and CEO of the Dix Park Conservancy, outlined some of the upcoming enhancements.
“There’s lots of fun things going on at the park: House of Many Porches where you can go and grab a snack, renovating the Flowers Cottage next to Flowers Field,” Hall said. “We’re also looking at renovating the dog park and the trolls.”
With DHHS preparing to vacate state-owned buildings on the property, some structures will be demolished, while others may be retrofitted for new uses.
“To me, that’s a great opportunity, having a nice enclave of some market rate residential buildings,” Silver said. “Long-term leases or sales could generate money to reinvest in the park.”
Silver has seen this model succeed in other cities, where revenue from residential developments fully funded park improvements without relying on taxpayer dollars.
Plans also include a new entrance on South Saunders Street, and the city is exploring expanded public transportation options to better connect the park with downtown Raleigh.
Many of the park’s improvements have been made possible by a $75 million fundraising campaign led by the Conservancy.
“The City of Raleigh has some tremendous donors, civic-minded folks who made generous contributions,” Hall said. “That partnership with the city is what really made this happen — and that’s what makes Raleigh so special.”
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RALEIGH, N.C. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture is ending its annual survey that tracks hunger in the country, despite the rise in food costs.
Here in North Carolina, where more than 600,000 people face food insecurity, local organizations like The Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina say the cuts could affect how they can serve families in the state.
At the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, dozens of volunteers spend hours packing boxes with bread, milk, meat and canned goods, some essentials for families who can’t afford to purchase them on their own.
Here in North Carolina, officials say over 600,000 people face food insecurity. That’s why staff and volunteers say the timing couldn’t be worse.
Volunteer Cathy Engel says it’s not just about packing the food, but building a connection with a family even if it’s brief.
“Meeting all the people that come in and talking to them, that’s what makes me want to continue to come,” Engel said.
She says that in her five years of service she’s seen the need for food increase, but supplies are decreasing.
“We’re much more limited in what we give out, and even what the food shelves are limited in, what they’re allowed to get from this distribution center,” she said.
Vice President Jason Kanawati Stephany agreed, saying that the USDA’s decision could cause more harm than good to communities in need.
“Our pantries are seeing near unprecedented need. So we don’t need that government data to validate that experience,” Kanawati Stephany said. “But here’s where the government data is vital. It’s vital for us to make decisions about where we invest our resources. And more importantly, it tells government leaders where resources and investments are needed.”
“Trends in the prevalence of food insecurity have remained virtually unchanged, regardless of an over 87% increase in SNAP spending between 2019-2023,” the USDA said in its announcement.
But volunteers aren’t giving up, and entire organizations like Blue Cross N.C. are sending employees to help meet the growing need.
Lori Taylor, health food director at Blue Cross N.C., said it’s important to step away from everyday tasks and give a helping hand.
“This is the way that we can all make an individual contribution together,” Taylor said.
Engel says they’ll continue to show up.
“It’s hard to be hopeful, but this place gives me hope,” she expressed.
In 2023, 47 million people lived in food-insecure households, according to the USDA. Of those, nearly 14 million were children.
The survey has been published annually for 30 years, throughout both Republican and Democratic administrations.
The last report is scheduled to be released on Oct. 22.
Tuesday, September 23, 2025 5:46PM
CONCORD, N.C. (WTVD) — Vice President JD Vance will visit North Carolina on Wednesday.
He will be in Concord to talk about public safety following the murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska. This comes after the state Senate passed a reform bill called ‘Iryna’s Law,’ which would eliminate cashless bail and lays out new condition for pretrial release for certain violence offenses.
This will be Vance’s first trip to the Tar Heel state since becoming vice president.
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It’s a question asked by lots of foodies. Just how spendy are some of the best restaurants in the area? The Lovefood.com website recently addressed the issue with their “most expensive restaurant in every state” list.
They looked for the priciest main course or tasting menu at restaurants and avoided those that offered just one very expensive dish. Many of them were steakhouses, or Michelin-starred restaurants like The French Laundry in California or Alinea in Chicago. Or Masa in New York, where the 26-course omakase menu is about $750 per person.
For North Carolina, the most expensive restaurant was Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse, a chain with 15 locations – including one in Charlotte.
Wilmington doesn’t have a Michelin-starred restaurant right now, but we do have some luxury dining experiences and some high-end steakhouses. Here’s a look at what we found.
Decadent dinners
Offering dishes at a certain price point can be a difficult reputation to carry.
“I believe there can be a stigma,” said Taylor Trumbetti, chef at G Prime Steak & Cellar near Wrightsville Beach. When he started as executive chef there more than a year ago, he said one of his tasks was to balance the experience and the prices at the restaurant.
“I don’t want it to be pretentious,” he said, adding that he tries to have dishes at a variety of price points. “I want this place to be welcoming. I want everyone to be able to come in and enjoy it.”
David Gerin, of the Alfalla Hospitality Group, which owns the Sugo Italian Steakhouse at the Hotel Ballast in downtown Wilmington said their focus is on providing a luxury dining experience that emulates the best Italian-style New York steakhouses.
For those restaurants that offer great food and an upscale experience in the Wilmington area, there’s a similar range of entree prices, usually from $30 or so to $70, or a little more. Some of those are for pastas, or fresh-caught seafood. You might pay more for a shareable seafood tower, or specialty caviar. But often the most expensive items on a menu are the steaks, especially with beef prices up more than 12% this year. Because of that, prices often fluctuate at local restaurants, too.
It’s the wagyu
Steaks at restaurants like Sugo, G Prime, Ruth’s Chris Steak House and True Blue Butcher & Table in Wilmington typically start at more than $40. Ruth’s Chris signature bone-in filet is listed at $86. Sugo also dry ages steaks in house for 35 days for the ultimate beefy and nutty flavors. A 16-ounce ribeye prepared and babied in such a way was recently priced at $89. True Blue’s Steak Flight, with samples of several selections, can be around $125 but varies with market pricing. Showy tomahawk steaks can also cost more than $100, but are usually served in portions meant to serve two (or more).
But wagyu is usually the priciest choice. Some local restaurants import A5 Japanese wagyu that has a distinctive white marbling that melts into a buttery texture when it’s prepared. Australia and America are other sources for the elite beef.
At True Blue Butcher & Table, diners can get wagyu tenderloin or strip by the ounce, recently priced at $30 and $26 per ounce. Sugo offers it as four- or eight-ounce steaks, recently priced at around $30 an ounce. They also offer an American Wagyu, with a 12-ounce ribeye listed at $125.
At G Prime, the Georgia flatiron wagyu is the introductory selection at $55 for 14 ounces, Trumbetti said. The Australian wagyu filet is $76 and six ounces of the A5 is $149.
“We see a few people come in for wagyu each night,” said Shannon Smith, sommelier for Sugo. She’s the one who comes to the table when meals are ordered to help pair them with a great glass of wine. One of her favorites with wagyu is merlot, she said.
“It has a softness that pairs well,” she said.
At G Prime, Trumbetti said he sells five to 10 A5 wagyu steaks a week.
“But our big seller are the Australian filets. We move 50 or 60 Australian filets a week,” he said. “It’s so tender and has the most beautiful marbling. … People come here for that steak now.”
STAY CONNECTED: Keep up with the area’s latest food news by signing up for the Port City Foodies newsletter and following us on Facebook and Instagram.
Allison Ballard is the food and dining reporter at the StarNews. You can reach her at aballard@gannett.com.
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