Wake County officials on Feb. 10 discussed a pending lease renewal with the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority (RDU) that could affect public access to parts of Lake Crabtree County Park and adjacent mountain-bike trails.

Chris Snow, director of Parks, Recreation and Open Space for Wake County, briefed the Wake County Board of Commissioners on the park’s history, current lease terms and negotiations with the airport. Snow said the county is working to finalize a draft lease to return to the board for approval.

Background and scope

Lake Crabtree is one of 10 county flood-control sites and is identified in county records as Site 23. The county began acquiring land in the 1970s and 1980s; Snow said about 869 acres were purchased for the site overall. A 1979 memorandum of agreement between the county and the airport recognizes recreation on flood-control lands provided it does not impact airport operations.

In 1985 the county entered a lease with the airport for 33.19 acres to construct Lake Crabtree County Park; a 1994 amendment added Track 6 and enabled the county to develop mountain-bike trails. Lake Crabtree County Park opened in 1988 and is the county’s oldest and most visited park, Snow said; the park had about 330,000 visitors in the most recent fiscal year.

Current negotiations and parcels

Snow told commissioners the county has notified the airport of its intent to renew leases pursuant to the original lease terms, and that discussions cover tracts referenced as 1, 2, 3 and 4 (together roughly 73–74 acres, per staff). The airport put out a request for information (RFI) in 2024 seeking redevelopment proposals for approximately 36 acres of Track 6; the airport has also run a separate RFP/RFI process in recent years for property north of Interstate 40, commonly called the “286” parcels.

Commissioners’ concerns

Commissioners raised three recurring concerns: whether the county can or should buy airport-owned parcels, when public access to existing trails might end, and whether the county can shift trails and investments to the 286 parcels.

- Purchase question: Commissioner Adamson asked whether the county ever discussed purchase. Snow said Lake Crabtree has been leased since 1985 and, to his knowledge, the airport has not been willing to sell. Snow and other staff said the airport has been vocal in meetings that it does not wish to sell land.

- Trail access timing: Snow said the county’s reading of the prime lease and amendment is that public access to those trails would cease on June 30 (the transcript did not specify a year). He also said staff are preparing talking points and outreach, and that they want to preserve access where possible while negotiations proceed.

- Relocation/286 connection: County staff said there is an existing connection from Lake Crabtree across the Interstate 40 corridor to the 286 parcels and that the county and airport have discussed preserving or building connections between Crabtree and the 286 trail system and the Black Creek greenway. Commissioners asked about funding to develop 286; staff said a concept plan is being finalized but no funding has been identified to fully build out the trails.

Costs, appraisals and FAA requirements

Snow told commissioners the 1985 lease—historically for $1 per year—is unlikely to continue at that rate. He said the airport has signaled that FAA mandates require leases to reflect fair market value; county staff warned that a new lease could cost in the “couple hundred thousand dollars” range but that negotiations were ongoing. David (county staff) asked commissioners to allow negotiation with the airport to continue in public session with discretion on details.

Snow said the airport had an appraisal for Track 6 dated 02/2021 showing an appraised value of $24,000,000 for that tract, and commissioners noted the airport’s stated unwillingness to sell.

Community investments and accessibility

Commissioners and staff discussed that some Crabtree trail infrastructure is the result of private investments and grants—North Carolina Adaptive Sports, Triangle Off-Road Cyclists and other groups have invested time and money to build adaptive-access trails and facilities. Commissioners expressed concern about preserving accessible trails and community-built features.

Next steps

- County staff said they will finalize a draft lease for board consideration; that draft will return for approval if terms are agreed.
- Staff are preparing talking points for public outreach and said they would continue discussions with the airport and with state parks about potential trail expansions into Umstead State Park.

No formal lease approval or purchase motion was taken at the Feb. 10 work session. Commissioners asked staff to continue negotiations and analysis and to return with draft lease documents and additional information about maintenance obligations for flood-control structures.