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WHEREAS, in a "memorial" submitted to the North Carolina legislature, she emphasized the need to <br />remove the insane from jails and recommended modern approaches to the treatment of the mentally ill <br />along with specifics of needed buildings and equipment; and <br />WHEREAS, through the persistent effort of Dorothea Lynde Dix and the personal appeal of James C. <br />Dobbin, an influential legislator from Fayetteville, the legislature was persuaded to adopt in December of <br />1848 an act that provided for an appropriation and the appointment of six commissioners to select a site <br />and oversee the erection of a hospital that would eventually be named in Dix's honor; and <br />WHEREAS, on February 22, 1856, the first person was admitted, suffering from "suicidal mania" and in the <br />first nine months was joined by 51 males and 39 females; and <br />WHEREAS, over the intervening century and a half, thousands of North Carolinians and their families have <br />been served by Dorothea Dix Hospital; and <br />WHEREAS, today the Dorothea Dix Hospital is situated on a beautiful 425 acre tract of land, accentuated <br />by oak and pecan trees, on the south side of Raleigh with a commanding view of the city skyline, making it <br />the largest tract of undeveloped land near downtown Raleigh with an estimated worth in the millions; and <br />WHEREAS, the disposition of this historic property -perhaps the only tangible collective asset of persons <br />with mental health, substance abuse, and developmental disabilities in North Carolina - is the current <br />subject of much debate and discussion as the State moves to close the facility in 2007; and <br />WHEREAS, a special commission has been established to make recommendations to the legislature, <br />drawing upon views and opinions from individuals and organizations as diverse as mental health advocates <br />and professionals, neighborhood activists, government administrators, park designers, and state historians; <br />NOW THEREFORE THE ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS calls upon the Dix property <br />special commission to be as visionary as Dorothea Lynde Dix and consider supporting an approach that <br />honors the past and inspires the future by reserving an appreciable amount of acreage an the Dix campus <br />for public open space, with the remaining portion of the property to be leased or sold for complementary <br />urban development, with all monies received dedicated to and reinvested in innovative programs and <br />projects that benefit the mentally ill throughout North Carolina. <br />Adopted this the 16th day of March, 2004 <br />VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br />e. Resolution on Re-entering Informal Franchise Renewal Negotiations with Time Warner <br />Cable <br />The Board considered a resolution setting forth a strategy for the Cable Advisory Committee of <br />Orange County and the County staff re-entering into informal franchise renewal negotiations with Time <br />Warner Cable {TWC). <br />Michael Patrick, Chair of the Cable Advisory Committee, said that we are eight years in the <br />process of trying to negotiate a franchise agreement with Time Warner. He said that last fall he came <br />before the Board of County Commissioners when the committee felt that they were getting nowhere with the <br />negotiations and recommended that the County Commissioners approve an ordinance that set forth what <br />was important from the County's standpoint. Then Time Warner appeared before the Board and told them <br />not to approve it because there were a couple of areas that were still in disagreement. After the Board <br />approved it, Time Warner advised the County that they would not sign the franchise that the County <br />Commissioners had endorsed. His committee went back and recommended taking steps toward a formal <br />renewal process. The first part of this is that the County has to have a needs assessment to survey the <br />