Twenty-eight acres of mature pine, hardwood forest, and streambanks along a tributary of Marks Creek…
On September 22, 2026, Triangle Land Conservancy (TLC) protected 69 acres adjacent to its 450-acre Sarah and Bailey Williamson Nature Preserve in eastern Wake County at the Johnston County line.
The tract, known as the Neuse River Connector, comprises two parcels and is protected under a conservation easement held by the state. It is one of the last pieces of undeveloped land near the Williamson Preserve in the heart of the Shotwell community.
The property connects to Clayton via the Neuse River Greenway. TLC plans to incorporate it into Williamson Preserve and eventually add walking trails, creating a new public access point for the preserve along the greenway, which is also part of the Mountains-to-Seal Trail.
Watershed Protection
The Neuse River Connector lies within the Marks Creek Priority Area, a conservation focus for TLC and Wake and Johnston counties for more than 30 years. The acreage expands the contiguous protected acreage at Williamson Preserve, creating more wildlife corridors and widening buffers around streams that feed the Neuse River, including protecting 10 acres of wetlands and floodplain.
“The Neuse River Watershed is one of the Triangle’s most important water resources and this expansion of Williamson Preserve provides critical water quantity and quality benefits,” said Leigh Ann Hammerbacher, Senior Director of Conservation East at Triangle Land Conservancy. “We are excited to partner with both the State and Novo Nordisk to protect this land."
The Neuse River runs 275 miles entirely within North Carolina, from the northern Piedmont to the Atlantic Ocean. Its 2,400-square-mile watershed includes Raleigh and parts of Durham, and it feeds Falls Lake, a drinking water source for about 2.5 million people.
Rapid growth is putting that water at risk. As forests give way to pavement, more stormwater runs off, carrying sediment and nutrients into the river and raising flood risk. The Neuse River Connector’s floodplain forests and woody wetlands filter water upstream of Clayton. The conservation easement protects the property in perpetuity, preventing future development and the associated water demands that accompany that growth. In addition to water quality benefits, the project helps reduce carbon and will provide passive recreation opportunities for the local community.
“For more than three decades, Novo has called the Triangle home,” said Shaylah Nunn Jones, Director, Public Affairs & Communication at Novo Nordisk. “Supporting the protection of this land reflects our commitment to investing not only in lasting health, but also in the environmental and community resources that will help our region thrive for generations to come.”
Historic Marks Creek
Marks Creek, just 10 miles from Raleigh and a few minutes from Clayton, includes over 7,500 acres of largely undeveloped land with historic homes, active farms, wetlands, forests, and scenic rural views. Designated a “Last Chance Landscape” by Scenic America, the area faces growing development pressure. TLC has been working with partners for decades to protect more than 3,000 acres of this landscape.
The site protects a portion of a Natural Heritage Area, defined by the state of North Carolina as being of special biodiversity significance due to presence of rare species, unique natural communities, important animal assemblages, or other ecological features. As part of a recent inventory, the rare Veined Skullcap (Scutellaria nervosa) was spotted on site.
TLC will own and manage the land as well as regularly monitor it to ensure its conservation values are maintained. The Neuse River Connector land can be seen from the Neuse River Greenway, but the property is not currently open to the public. It will eventually be accessible through Williamson Nature Preserve.
