Land swap years in the making will create easier entrance to Umstead State Park
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Land swap between the state and Anderson Toyota will create new Umstead park entrance.
- New entrance at Glenwood Avenue and Triangle Drive will have a traffic light.
- National Park Service approval required because land came from 1943 federal transfer.
Visitors to William B. Umstead State Park from Glenwood Avenue will find it easier to get in and out, thanks to a complicated land swap that’s been in the works for years.
The entrance to the park will be moved several hundred yards to an intersection with a traffic light, at Glenwood and Triangle Drive. The state announced the change Friday, but it’s not clear yet when it will take place, said Kris Anne Bonifacio, spokeswoman for the state Division of Parks and Recreation.
“The first step would be the design process, and we will need to find funding to get that started,” Bonifacio wrote in an email.
The move is made possible by a deal the state initially struck in 2018 with the company that owns Fred Anderson Toyota.
Anderson will receive about 23 acres of state land on the north side of Glenwood Avenue that has been severed from the park for decades and was officially removed from the park system in 1985.
In exchange, Anderson is giving the state 13 acres on the south side of Glenwood next to Umstead that will allow the park to reconfigure its entrance from U.S. 70.
Last year, nearly 50,000 cars entered Umstead from Glenwood, also known as the Crabtree Creek entrance. Without the benefit of a traffic signal, those turning left in or out must cross heavy traffic that’s often moving at more than the 45 mph speed limit.
“This will be a huge improvement that will make it easier and more convenient to access the urban retreat that is William B. Umstead,” Brian Strong, director of state parks, said in a statement.
As part of the deal, the real estate arm of Anderson Toyota also provided $2 million to help the state acquire two other pieces property to add to Umstead: Six acres at the corner of Brownleigh Drive and Glenwood Avenue and seven acres off Reedy Creek Road near the Richland Creek Trail and N.C. State University’s Schenck Forest.
The additions will bring Umstead to a little more than 5,600 acres, mostly covered with forests and lakes.
Land dates back to park’s creation in World War II
The National Park Service needed to sign off on the land swap. That’s because the 23 acres that Anderson will receive was part of the property the federal government turned over to the state for a new park in 1943.
The land was separated from the rest of Umstead when U.S. 70 was built. When the General Assembly removed the property from the park system in 1985, lawmakers stipulated that it only be used for a sale or exchange that would allow for the expansion of Umstead.
Anderson will pay to extend Triangle Drive as part of a new loop road that will border the park and reach the Fred Anderson Toyota dealership. The company will also demolish a warehouse on the property it will give to the state.
State officials say the new entrance will especially benefit campers who bring trailers and RVs to the park’s campground, which is just inside the Glenwood Avenue entrance. The campground is expected to reopen this spring after a major reconstruction project.
This story was originally published February 20, 2026 at 2:48 PM with the headline "Land swap years in the making will create easier entrance to Umstead State Park."
