For over 50 years, Lakeview Estates Pond in Burlington, North Carolina has been the heart of this community. Generations of families have fished its banks, paddled its waters, and passed down that tradition to their children. The pond is named after this neighborhood — because it has always belonged to it.

That changed when the pond was acquired in 2017 by a private individual. Since then, a series of escalating actions have stripped our community — including property owners with deeded, grandfathered water rights dating back to the 1970's — of all access to this shared resource:

 
          The pond was deliberately drained, allowing vegetation to overtake it and ending its use for fishing and                       recreation for several years. 
 
          Bank access was denied to all neighboring landowners — including those with legal riparian rights —                              regardless of deed history.
 
          An 8-foot earthen buffer is now being constructed around the pond perimeter with no permits, no agency              authorization, no survey, and no staking — under the stated justification of "riparian repair."

          The NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has already ordered a halt to this construction pending a full environmental impact report. A separate complaint has been filed with the Alamance County permit office.
          Historical plat maps for this area show Lakeview Pond recorded as a separate parcel — legally distinct from any residential lot. North Carolina law recognizes 50 years of continuous community use as grounds for prescriptive easement. Adjacent landowners hold deeded riparian rights. This is not a private pond. It never was.

 
         WHAT WE ARE ASKING FOR

1. Restore riparian and easement access rights for all adjacent landowners per NC law
2. Allow fishing from the banks of Lakeview Pond, as the community has done for 50+ years
3. Allow non-motorized watercraft access on the pond
4. Require full permitting and environmental review before any further construction on the pond perimeter
5. Investigate the unpermitted earthen buffer currently under construction and enforce the DEQ halt order
    
   WHO IS AFFECTED

The entire community. 
This property owner has shown an ever-increasing desire to control the goings-on in our community. Right now it's our pond, but what's next?

This petition will be presented to legal counsel, the courts, and public officials as evidence of community standing. Your signature affirms that Lakeview Pond has historically served as a shared community resource and that its closure violates the established rights of the residents of this neighborhood.