RALEIGH, (AP) - North Carolina officials have received an appraisal for the old Dorothea Dix hospital campus in Raleigh, a key step in plans to redevelop the site into a city park.

Gov. Beverly Perdue said Wednesday that the 300-acrea property has been appraised at $60 million, given the current market. But the appraisal says the property would be valued at $86 million if the real estate market fully rebounds.

Former Mayor Charles Meeker met with Perdue shortly before he left office last year to discuss an agreement that would allow the city to obtain the land for a park.

The property houses about 1,300 employees and remaining patients now. The estimates are based on the assumption that there are no hazardous materials that would require a major cleanup.