Neuse River - Poole Road to Anderson Point Park

The Neuse River Corridor is the central spine of the Capital Area Greenway, which was first adopted by the Raleigh City Council in 1976. In 1996, the City completed the Neuse River Regional Park Master Plan, which is a more detailed evaluation and proposal for the development of the Neuse River Corridor as a regional linear park.

The major recommendations of the Neuse River Plan include:

• The preservation of the full width of the floodplain along the Neuse River;
• The development of a trail system within the corridor with one asphalt trail extending the entire length;
• The development of adjoining upland park areas at a spacing of 2 to 3 miles to provide various recreation opportunities and access points to the river and trail.

Since the adoption of the Neuse River Regional Park Master Plan in 1996, the City has acquired an interest in over 2,000 acres of land for park or greenway use along the river. This includes nine parcels of land that have been acquired for future parks along the corridor.

In 2007, the residents of Raleigh overwhelmingly approved a Parks and Recreation Bond Referendum that included $13 million for the development of the Neuse River Trail. The entire trail is 28 miles long and extends from Falls Lake Dam on Falls of Neuse Road to the Wake/Johnston County Line.