Airlie Road. STAFF PHOTO BY Paul Stephen/Wilmington StarNews
Q. Who put up the “No trespassing” signs on Airlie Road at the bend next to Intracoastal Waterway? Isn’t that location a public easement? Do they have the right to prevent people from accessing the water way there?
A. Actually, the land is private property, which was confirmed by the Wilmington Zoning Board.
An address listed on the sign leads back to a company called Skylane Aviation which records show is a flight school formed in 2001. The reason for the “no-trespassing” signs is an interesting story.
According to Susan Block, a historian who has researched the Airlie area, the present landowner has familial ties to the property and became concerned when she noticed that people were parking on the side of the road and wading out into the marsh. Not only was this a road hazard but the individuals were significantly damaging the marsh and its ecosystem. In order to combat these two issues, the owner felt it prudent to put up the “no-trespassing” signs to prevent further damage to the marshland and to keep the flow of traffic moving safely on Airlie Road.
Block says that since the signs have been put up, there has already been a positive effect on the wildlife of the marsh and the area is starting to thrive once more.
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Date posted: July 13, 2012
User-contributed question by:
Aaron
I love it when folks talk about protecting the ecosystem and the wildlife. Give me a break. One only has to look a few yards down the waterway toward the bridge to see the massive assault on the ecosystem and wildlife: all the marinas and restaurants. Folks parking and wading into the water hardly constitutes a problem.