The currently undeveloped Sturgeon Creek Park is intended to serve as Leland’s second water access park. With more than 78 acres, this park has the potential to become a destination facility both locally and regionally for sportsmen and water lovers wishing to gain access to Sturgeon Creek and the Brunswick River. Sitting on Sturgeon Creek, the focus for this facility will be boating access from an NC Fish and Wildlife boat ramp as well as environmental education, preservation, and nature-based activities. Town Council adopted the Master Plan at its Feb. 2020 regular meeting. Next steps for the project will be to move forward with engineering when additional funding is available.
Boat Ramp Design & Construction
Engineering Firm-Environmental Consultant
Project Updates
The Town has continued working with NCDEQ to complete tasks associated with designating several parcels as Brownfields properties. These parcels were formerly home to a junkyard, and environmental testing and reporting have been completed to support the Brownfields designation and help define future use of the sites.
The Town continues to work with NCWRC on the design of the future boat ramp. Due to staffing changes within NCWRC, progress has been slower than originally anticipated; however, the Town remains optimistic that significant progress toward completing design and permitting will occur in 2026.
WRC has provided another round of proposed design for the future boat ramp. As the Town works through approval of the design, WRC will be starting the pre-construction permitting process.
With the boat ramp preliminary, concept design completed, next steps for the project will involve holding a scoping meeting with CAMA and other stakeholders to get approval to continue with design. This meeting is expected to happen within the next 2 months, however an official date has not yet been determined.
Through environmental testing, there were several areas of the site identified as possibly having underground storage tanks, which would need removal. The Town has completed investigation of these areas and confirmed that there were no underground tanks present.
The Town has received preliminary site plans for the construction of a NC Wildlife Resource Commission boat ramp, which will be Phase 1 of the overall park project. Next steps include holding a scoping meeting with WRC, CAMA, and other stakeholders to determine is the proposed plan will meet all requirements necessary to move forward with the design and future construction.
As part of the Brownfields Program, environmental testing was required for multiple parcels in the future Sturgeon Creek Park. Testing has been completed and NCDEQ is currently working on a final Brownfields report which establishes as future work plan that must be adhered to in regard to future development.
The Town has received reports relating to enviromental testing as part of the ongoing Brownfields program. We are expecting to receive the completed Brownfields report by July 2024 and will coincide with the design of the public boat ramp by NC Wildlife.
The Town has partnered with NCDENR and EPA to secure grant funding for the completion of the Brownfields Study. This funding includes environmental field testing and administrative work associated with completing the Brownfields agreement. Testing is currently in progress.
The Town has been assigned a project manager through NCDEQ to begin work on the Brownfields Study. This PM will work closely with the Town, as well as, the Town's contracted engineer to develop a workplan to address environmental concerns on the property. This process is expected to take at least a year to complete and gain full approval.