Built in the late 19th century, Park Avenue was originally the route of the Wilmington Sea-Coast Railroad passenger and freight line, that ran between Wilmington and Wrightsville Beach, a distance of ten miles. At the intersection of Park Avenue and Audubon is the Audubon trolley station, listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in New Hanover County, North Carolina.
I grew up in Wilmington and lived there for over thirty years. When I went home to visit family last year, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the city was building the Cross-City Trail Alignment. In 2008, the Wilmington City Council adopted the Cross-City Trail alignment. Tentative plans for the Cross-City Trail arose from the passage of the Parks and Greenspace Bond, of which $1 million was allocated for a bike-hike greenway system, and expanded through private and public partnerships and through connections to existing or funded off-road trails. In early 2009, the Cross-City Trail project was awarded $2.0 million in funds through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

I lived in Wilmington, Nc for over a year. This is not a "trail" this is called the loop. It loops around the island and consitst of streets and sidewalks with a small portion being paved. Wrightsville Beach has no smooth surfaces, some is paved, but needs to be redone & most of the path is a sidewalk, & lots of houses and businesses are crammed on this island so the path is made up more of the resident's driveway, litterly a driveway every 5ft. (and is not a consistent level) with many side streets. Impossible for anyone in a wheelchair. I went here 5x a week for the time I was here because this is one of the only areas they really have that is safe for a single runner. I usually would have prefered to inline skate or ride a bike, but due to trail conditions, high traffic to and from the beach with all the necessities needed for a day at the beach that was not an option. Also no bikes are allowed on the sidewalk, or loop. The need to look into developing practical trails that are convenient, long, smooth, and worth it. Your better off running on the side of the road, especially in off season because the street parking spaces are empty. They did extend the path off of the island, it's wider and newly paved but you always have to stop due to developments, driveways, streets, etc. Your better off finding a development and just running or walking within it. It's very sad. I look forward to moving back south at some point but would not move to Wilmington due to the lack of trails. I'm looking for a paved smooth asphalt wide trail that has many miles. I rollerblade or bike 10-20 miles a day, but here I could only run, (about 5 miles per day). I have not been able to find any trails like this by the coast. Any suggestions?

I don't think there is an inch of rail-trail on this route.