Apex and CAMPO are studying up to five new road entrances to Pleasant Park, which has one way in. Neighbors' first comments focused on traffic and cut-throughs.
Pleasant Park has one road in and one road out. A study now underway is looking at up to five places where a second entrance could go.
The first round of public comment is summed up in an update prepared for the Apex Town Council’s Tuesday meeting. It is in the Nov. 10 council agenda packet, item PR5. The item was for information only, and the council was not asked to choose an option.
The park at 3400 Pleasant Plains Road has athletic fields, courts, playgrounds and shelters. Town staff wrote that growing use of the park makes its single access point a problem for traffic, accessibility and emergency response.
Who is doing the study
The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, or CAMPO, leads the study with the town. The council approved an agreement with CAMPO on March 10, 2026. The need for more access was first identified in the town’s Western Big Branch Area Plan, the staff report said.
The study will produce:
- concepts for new access points, including sidewalks, side paths or bike lanes
- planning-level construction cost estimates
- a ranking of which projects should come first
It is a feasibility study only. The town said no money has been identified to design or build a new entrance. That is also stated on the study’s project page.
What people said
The first public meeting was held Sept. 3 at Apex Town Hall. Comments came in several ways, according to the engagement summary in the packet:
| How comments arrived | Number |
|---|---|
| Comment forms at the Sept. 3 meeting | 24 |
| Online comment form, Sept. 2 to 16 | 29 |
| Letters | 2 |
| 1 | |
| Petition | 1, with 46 signatures |
Neighborhood impacts came up most, with 27 mentions. Most of those commenters described the nearby neighborhoods as rural, quiet and safe, and several said they were long-time residents. Twelve mentions raised fears that a new link would draw cut-through drivers who are not going to the park. Seven raised land being taken and damage to septic fields.
Traffic at the existing entrance drew 19 mentions. Several people pointed to the intersection of Pleasant Plains Road and Old U.S. 1 Highway, including turning right on red there.
Emergency access drew 12 mentions. Commenters said a CSX train could block the park’s only entrance. The summary said train blockages, track work, congestion at the gate and the distance from fire and police stations will all be weighed. The Apex Fire Department and Police Department are advising the study.
Six mentions were about process, from people along Pleasant Plains Road, Friendship Road and the Kirkwood neighborhood. They said they had raised the lack of a second entrance before and felt they had not been heard. The town wrote that it “appreciates the input that has been provided, now and in the past, by those who live near the park.”
What the study team said back
The summary answered the main concerns:
- Neighborhood character. The town’s 2045 Land Use Map keeps the Pleasant Plains and Friendship Road areas low-density and rural. That makes entrances there “less of a priority” than ones serving areas planned for more homes.
- Cut-through traffic. Each option will get a projection of new traffic, and that will count in its score.
- Septic fields. The team confirmed both gravity and pump septic systems near some options. That will be counted as a risk.
- Flooding. All the options under study are outside existing floodplains.
- Property. If a project ever goes ahead and needs private land, owners are paid fair market value, the summary said.
The summary also said the study will not recommend fixes for traffic on existing roads. Comments about the Old U.S. 1 intersection are being passed to town departments and NCDOT.
One of the options would cross N.C. 540. The team said its exact route is still being drawn, and that the maps shown in September showed general locations, not real alignments.
What it means for you
- No route has been picked. No preferences were counted in this round. The team will show concept designs at a second public meeting and ask which option people prefer. No date is set.
- There is no money to build it yet. A second entrance would need funding before design could start.
- More hearings are planned. The project timeline lists a draft report, then Planning Board and Town Council public hearings, then a final report.
- To follow it, sign up on the project page. The town contact is Senior Planner Jenna Shouse, and the CAMPO contact is Senior Transportation Planner Caleb Allred. Their numbers are on that page.
Park hours and facilities are on our parks and trails guide. Road work around town is on our road construction and closures page, and the area around the park is covered in our Pleasant Park neighborhood guide.
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