Wildwood Park and River Park North share a stretch of the Tar River's north bank. Wildwood has the singletrack and the paddle launch. River Park North has the ponds and the aquarium. For now they work as two separate trips, and you drive between them.
That changes with a short piece of construction. On August 10, Greenville City Council unanimously approved a 685-foot boardwalk running from Wildwood Park's west side to River Park North. The city says it will unite about 16 miles of trails across the two parks. Sixteen miles is about 84,000 feet, so the new walkway adds less than 1 percent to the trail length while joining two networks that have never touched. Because the boardwalk starts on Wildwood's west side, that side of the park becomes the middle of the combined system. The same night, council approved a second project that gives the west side its own driveway and parking.
A Short Boardwalk That Shifts the Map
The boardwalk is a $1.5 million project. A $500,000 Great Trails State Grant, awarded to the city in February 2026, covers a third of it. The City of Greenville's announcement says work is expected to begin this fall and take 12 months. WITN's report from the meeting gives the same cost, grant amount, and timeline. If construction starts on that schedule, a 12-month build would finish around fall 2027. Treat that date as the city's forecast, not a promise.
The second approval explains why the endpoint matters. The Wildwood Park Westside Parking and Pier Project costs $498,808 and is backed by community partners. It adds a driveway, a parking lot, picnic shelters, a fishing pier, and a kayak launch on the park's west side. The city describes it as a way to improve access for people who want to visit that side, and expects completion in early 2027.
Put the two projects together and the order of events looks like this.
- February 2026. Greenville receives the $500,000 Great Trails State Grant.
- August 10, 2026. Council unanimously approves the boardwalk and the westside parking and pier project.
- Fall 2026. The city expects boardwalk construction to begin.
- Early 2027. The city expects the westside driveway, parking, shelters, pier, and kayak launch to be finished.
- Roughly fall 2027. The 12-month boardwalk build would wrap up if it starts on schedule.
If both projects stay on track, the parking lot and pier on Wildwood's west side open months before the boardwalk does. The west side gets its own front door first. Then it becomes the crossing point between the two parks.
What Each Side Brings to the Connection
The parks are worth joining because they offer different things. Wildwood covers 364 acres, and much of what's there involves wheels or a boat. River Park North sits across from the Town Common and is built around still water and family programs.
| Wildwood Park | River Park North | |
|---|---|---|
| Trails | Natural surface trail around the lake, an accessible boardwalk trail, mountain bike loops, and the Wildwood West Outer Loop | TRACK/Maintenance Trail, Willow Branch Trail, Old Eason Run Trail, Parker's Creek Trail |
| On wheels | Chris Smith MTB Trails, a pump track and bicycle skills course, and a strider bike course for the youngest riders | Not the park's focus |
| On the water | Kayak launch, a floating dock with three boat slips, a sandy beach, and Riverside Recreation rentals with access to the Tar River | Five ponds, two fishing piers, and jon-boat, kayak, and seasonal pedal-boat rentals |
| Indoors | Visitors center | Walter L. Stasavich Science and Nature Center |
| Overnight | Camping platforms | Campsites |
Wildwood's trail names
Visit Greenville's Wildwood page lists the mountain bike loops as High Ground Loop, Boardwalk Loop, Wetlands Loop, Cypress Loop, and Wildwood Trail. The walking routes are the Natural Surface Trail and the Wildwood West Outer Loop. Distances for some of these differ between that page and the city's park map. The Boardwalk Loop, for example, is 1.6 miles on one and 1.4 on the other. Check the map at the trailhead before planning a run around a specific distance.
The singletrack has its own story. East Carolina Velo describes the Chris Smith MTB Trails as Greenville's first city-maintained singletrack, friendly to beginners. The club asks riders to report trail concerns to the city's Recreation & Parks department. Trailforks also lists the city as the trail manager.
River Park North's draw
The Walter L. Stasavich Science and Nature Center has a 10,000-gallon freshwater aquarium, live turtles and snakes, and interactive exhibits. Outside, the five ponds and two fishing piers keep anglers busy close to the parking lot. River Park North's listed hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in fall and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in winter.
Its named trails are short. Willow Branch Trail runs about a quarter mile, Old Eason Run Trail is a little longer, and Parker's Creek Trail is about four-tenths of a mile. The TRACK/Maintenance Trail is the longest at 1.2 miles. Today a River Park North visit usually stays near the ponds and the nature center. The boardwalk would put Wildwood's loops one walk away.
How a Saturday Could Change
Right now, a family day split between the two parks means two parking lots and a short drive between them. Once the boardwalk opens, you could pair a morning on Wildwood's pump track or a paddle from its launch with an afternoon at the Stasavich Center aquarium without moving the car. A trail runner who now repeats Wildwood's loops could add River Park North's trails to the same route.
Early 2027 brings the first piece of that. A fishing pier, kayak launch, and picnic shelters on Wildwood's west side, with a new driveway and parking lot, give anglers and paddlers a second way into the park before the boardwalk is finished. Today Wildwood visitors come in through the main side, with its 131 parking spaces and visitors center. The new west-side lot will be the closest parking to where the boardwalk lands.
Until then, both parks are fully usable as they are. Nothing in the city's August announcement mentions closing current trails during construction. If you see fencing or equipment near the west side this winter, that is likely boardwalk work. The city's Recreation & Parks department is the place to check for current conditions.
A Date to Put on the Calendar Now
River Park North's next family event comes before the boardwalk work gets far. Leaf Pile Learn and Play runs Saturday, November 21, 2026, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. It's free, and bringing a bag of leaves gets your family free admission to the Nature Center. In practice, that means raking your yard the week before and bringing a bag along. The event details are on Visit Greenville's event listing.
The Longer Line Toward the Town Common
The boardwalk is the first link in a longer plan. The city's announcement names a future North-South Connector that would extend the trails from River Park North to the Greenville Town Common and the city's greenway system. WITN's coverage describes the same plan. The city has not published a design, budget, or timeline for the connector, so for now it is a stated goal and not a project with a date.
The direction is clear, though. Wildwood's west side will connect to River Park North. River Park North sits across from the Town Common. And the connector is meant to tie those parks into the greenway network. If that happens, a trail system that starts at a new kayak launch on Wildwood's west side could one day reach downtown on foot.
At Avalon Realty Group, we're following the boardwalk and the westside pier project as they move from approval to construction. If you live near the Tar River parks and are curious what your home is worth while this part of Greenville changes, Request Your Free Home Valuation and we'll walk you through it, along with the latest on the boardwalk.
