Brunswick | Golden Isles: Beauty and Brawn
Tourism, Ports, Workforce
Glynn County has long had a dual personality – part brawn, part beauty.
Enthusiastic About Development: Glynn County Manager William Fallon. Photo credit: Eliot Van Otteren
On the brawny side is the booming Port of Brunswick, which just became the nation’s leading gateway for auto and heavy equipment, along with industries producing everything from frozen seafood for the fast-food industry to the elevators that carry jets to aircraft carrier decks. When it comes to beauty, look to the Golden Isles, whose beaches, marshes, and historic and natural attractions drive the county’s energetic tourist industry.
That brawn/beauty divide is on full display now, as the community anticipates capitalizing on what’s being called a generational opportunity in the wake of a devastating industrial fire two years ago.
The Pinova plant, which extracted rosin and resins from tree stumps and other forest products, went up in flames April 15, 2023 and took 213 jobs with it. Two months later, Pinova announced it would not reopen the site. Instead, it would clean up the site – a process that is almost complete – and sell the more than 300-acre tract, a prime redevelopment opportunity that has local officials excited. The Environmental Protection Agency supervised cleanup efforts to eliminate exposure to remaining levels of residual toxaphene in the surrounding marsh and creeks.
The property belongs to France-based parent company DRT, which will decide to whom it will sell and for what stated purpose. But Ryan Moore, president and CEO of the Golden Isles Development Authority, describes the company as a good private sector partner; he is hopeful about the potential for a large tract of strategically located property within Brunswick’s city limits.
“It’s central to the islands, it’s central to Brunswick, and the sky’s the limit for the potential,” Moore says.
William Fallon, county manager for Glynn County, shares that enthusiasm, although he cautions it may take a year or so for ideas for redevelopment to take shape.
“It’s a huge property, and it’s really at the end of the causeway, so it’s kind of the gateway between the city and St. Simons Island. That’s probably a generational opportunity, if not a 100-year opportunity, for all of us to work together to come up with something that works, really, for everybody,” Fallon says.
He predicts the city of Brunswick, Glynn County, the GIDA, the Brunswick-Golden Isles Chamber of Commerce and possibly other groups will want input on the property’s ultimate fate. He anticipates some kind of mixed-use development, essentially driven by the large size of the tract, including housing, recreation and retail.
Creating Connection: Ralph Staffins III, president and CEO of the Brunswick-Golden Isles Chamber of Commerce. Photo credit: Eliot Van Otteren
Ralph Staffins III, president and CEO of the Brunswick-Golden Isles Chamber of Commerce, is a go on a “live/work/play” concept for the property.
“We’re hoping that … it creates more connection between our islands and our hospital and our college,” Staffins says. “I think it’s going to have the opportunity to positively impact live/work/play for everybody in the county.”
Fallon notes that the former industrial property presents some environmental challenges, but Moore says it has never been part of a Superfund site (a nationally designated hazardous waste site), although part of it borders on the Hercules Superfund property. Glynn County has four areas identified by the federal government as Superfund sites that are candidates for clean-up – the legacy of its heavily industrial past.
Port City for Vehicles
It’s a great feat for the Port of Brunswick’s Colonel’s Island terminal to achieve the status of the busiest vehicular port in the United States. It’ll be even more impressive if it can keep that status.
At the Helm: Griff Lynch, president and CEO of the Georgia Ports Authority. Photo credit: Georgia Ports Authority
The terminal still has acreage in which to grow, and construction of a fourth Ro-Ro (roll-on, roll-off as the specialized vehicle cargo ships are known) berth is poised to begin this year. But shortfalls caused when budgets were swamped by inflation caused some concerns about federal funding for essential maintenance dredging.
First, the good news. The Port of Brunswick had its sights set on that No. 1 ranking for years. It was previously held by the Port of Baltimore and the disruptive bridge collapse at that port in 2024 was probably a tipping point in Brunswick achieving the status when it did. But while the tragic circumstances may have dampened the bragging rights, the matter probably was always a question of when, not if, given the Georgia Ports Authority’s aggressive investment in infrastructure.
In 2024, Brunswick handled 901,912 car equivalent units or CEUs, the industry term that includes autos, trucks, heavy equipment and any other vehicle. Autos were up by 13.3% in 2024 and heavy equipment was up by a whopping 160%. Add all that up and you come up with two million tons of Ro-Ro cargo in 2024.
The port is also beefing up its rail capacity on the south side of Colonel’s Island to handle more exports of American-made cars, according to GPA President and CEO Griff Lynch. The previous rail capacity of 150,000 autos will be up to 340,000 sometime this summer, and a second phase of expansion will take it to 590,000 CEUs by 2030.
But a potential problem loomed in the shipping channel. That dredging chore falls under the supervision of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and it can only be done in about a four-month window that closes in late March due to environmental protections for turtles. This year, that window closed with no dredging done.
“The issue we have is that the cost rose dramatically and what was in the budget was not enough to cover it. It was two times higher the first time, and they rebid it and then it was almost three times higher,” Lynch says.
Car Port: Colonel’s Island Terminal at the Port of Brunswick is the busiest vehicular port in the U.S. Photo credit: Eliot Van Otteren
“We can continue to operate. What happens is the area is silting in, leading to more significant draft restrictions,” he says.
Fortunately, in May the Corps of Engineers released its annual fiscal year work plan, which sets aside $35.3 million to dredge sediment from the channel. Dredging will begin in September and is expected to finish by the end of March next year.
This is necessary, says Lynch, because “Brunswick is in a critical part of the supply chain.”
And right on cue, documentation of that has shown up in the form of an economic impact study undertaken by the University of Georgia’s Selig Center for Economic Growth. According to that study, 12% of the jobs in the state are impacted in some way by the combined ports in Savannah and Brunswick. In Glynn County alone, 6,278 jobs are sustained by the ports.
The U.S.-initiated trade war will affect all ports, some more than others, and the changeable details make it difficult to make long-range predictions. The highest tariffs the Trump Administration has imposed are on goods from China. That means the impact will land harder on the Port of Savannah, a container port, than on the vehicle side of the Port of Brunswick, a Ro-Ro port which does minimal business with China. But Brunswick’s breakbulk and “pourable” business, often agricultural exports, is exposed in the trade war.
An Anchor for Tourism
Water Taxi: The Emmeline Ferry takes passengers from St. Simons to Jekyll Island and back for a roundtrip fare of $55. Photo credit: contributed
Not all the ships that impact Glynn County’s economy are carrying cargo. Beginning on a trial basis last year and launching in earnest this spring is a passenger ferry service between Jekyll and St. Simons islands. It’s a project Stephen Williams, president of Anchor Shipping Group, had been trying to get off the ground for several years.
“We’ve worked pretty hard on it. We’ve always felt that there’s a need or demand for the service. The challenge is getting the appropriate embarking and disembarking points,” Williams says. “Long term, our hope and discussion with the Jekyll Island Authority is to develop our own dock on Jekyll Creek.”
Williams says the St. Simons-Jekyll Island Ferry trip takes from 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the weather, and the roundtrip ticket is $55.
The Emmeline is a passenger-only ferry, although you can bring along a bicycle, according to Williams, who says he’s setting up a hop-on-hop-off trolley on St. Simons that makes the rounds of attractions, with tickets at $15 all day.
Vacation Destination: Scott McQuade, president and CEO of the Golden Isles Convention and Visitors Bureau, at the Pine Lakes golf course. Photo credit: Elio Van Otteren
As for the tourism picture as a whole in Glynn County, Scott McQuade, president and CEO of the Golden Isles Convention and Visitors Bureau, says things have normalized a bit in the wake of the pandemic, which curiously enough led to an uptick in visitors.
Changing Landscape: Mark Williams, executive director of the Jekyll Island Authority. Photo credit: Jekyll Island Authority
“Last year, we saw our first decrease in lodging tax collections since the COVID-19 pandemic and down from our all-time record year of 2023 by 1%,” he says.
On the international scene, McQuade says he hopes Canadian concerns about the Trump Administration’s policies die down before winter, which is when most of the Golden Isles’ international tourism – most of it from Canada – takes place.
At state-owned Jekyll Island, annual visitation stayed steady at around 3.5 million visitors despite the impacts of three hurricane systems.
The golf landscape on Jekyll is changing. The Pine Lakes course renovations are complete and work is underway to restore the circa-1927 Walter Travis-designed Great Dunes course to its original 18 holes by combining it with a portion of the former Oleander course. The rest of the Oleander is being transformed into a wildlife corridor with a trail system linking to the island’s attractions.
Coming Soon: Golden Isles Development Authority President and CEO Ryan Moore at the 2024 groundbreaking of Buc-ee’s, which will open off Interstate 95 this summer. Photo credit: GIDA
“The introduction of the wildlife corridor also presented an opportunity for us to reevaluate the Historic District to ensure every asset is operating under its fullest potential, creating a space for people to linger after a long day of exploration on the island. This summer, we will open The District Shops at Historic Pier Road, a reimagined retail and dining area that celebrates the character and charm of the National Historic Landmark District,” Mark Williams, executive director of the Jekyll Island Authority said via email.
Meanwhile, the Golden Isles continue to shine in the annual Travel + Leisure competition, where they are No. 1 in its ranking of the 15 best islands in the continental U.S. and, on a worldwide island scale, came in at No. 15, alongside such destinations as Fiji, Corfu and the Galápagos.
When Buc-ee’s opens off of Interstate 95 sometime in this summer, McQuade says, it is expected to pull at least 5,000 cars a day for gas, food and potty breaks. That construction was the first development at that interchange and is expected to spur more. Already, he says, a 1,500-site RV campground is planned.
Workforce Programs Take Flight
Glynn County’s tourism industry employs 15,000 people and it’s a challenge to recruit that many workers in a county with a population under 90,000 and heavily stocked with retirees, McQuade notes.
The Sky’s the Limit: Ryan Moore, president and CEO of the Golden Isles Development Authority. Photo credit: Eliot Van Otteren
In fact, workforce development is on everyone’s mind. Staffins says a survey of Brunswick-Golden Isles Chamber of Commerce members identified workforce development as their primary concern.
The chamber believes in starting young, recognizing the role of reading well in future success in school and in the workforce, he says. Its Reading Buddies program has paired business volunteers with at-risk first graders, with great success, and the Glynn County school system’s Book Space program sends a specially equipped school bus into various neighborhoods with both meals and books during summer vacation.
Wings of Grace, a Christian nonprofit, offers a workforce development effort that focuses on basic aviation maintenance training through its Wings MX program. The program, which has several locations including Brunswick, offers people aged 12 to 18 an introduction to airplane mechanics – a hot job in Glynn County, home of both a Gulfstream facility and Stambaugh Aviation – and even an opportunity to learn to fly.
Teens in Training: Wings of Grace is a Christian organization that allows 12- to 18-year-olds to learn to fly and work on airplanes. Photo credit: contributed
“People think this is [just] about aviation, but it’s really about worth,” says Damon Whitlow, who heads the program as executive director of Christ Flight Ministries. “Our main goal is to show people they have the self-worth to work on an $80 million aircraft.”
Whitlow says there are no religious requirements for participating. Some young people aren’t interested in flying but love the mechanics involved, he says. Others put in required hours of community service to earn flight time with an instructor.
The Brunswick campus of Coastal Pines Technical College is responding to the needs of the aviation community as well.
“We have started a new technical certificate credit program in basic avionics. We’re hoping it will really take off in summer and fall. It’s a 27-hour program for entry level avionics technician,” says Lonnie Roberts, president of the college.
Strong Apprenticeship Program: Lonnie Roberts, president of Coastal Pines Technical College. Photo credit: contributed
The technical college has also embraced some time-honored means of teaching, Roberts says. “We have a very strong apprenticeship program in Glynn County. We hired a full-time apprenticeship coordinator. Right now, we have partnerships with 18 companies for 34 apprentices. The business hires them and pays them while they are working, and they come to us for the academic side,” he says.
When Johnny L. Evans Jr. was appointed president of Brunswick’s College of Coastal Georgia early this year, he inherited a thriving workforce development partnership between the college’s nursing program and Southeast Georgia Health System, where the hospital helps fund nurse educators to double the cohort of graduates in the nursing program. The partnership has been productive and he expects it to continue, he says.
His early presidency focused mainly on graduation rates. “We’re hyper-focused right now on really working on student success and retention and graduation numbers. We want students to come to school not just get in and go, but we want them to stay and progress and graduate,” Evans says.
The campus is a beehive of activity right now, what with road construction and plans to increase the size of the health sciences building. But a more innovative project is also expected to open next spring – a center for the arts that will serve the college, the Glynn County School system and the public at large.
Photos: Contributed
The college has partnered with the public schools to tap into $20 million in E-SPLOST funds for the 1,001-seat structure, which features telescoping seating so it can go from an auditorium to exhibit space – filling a niche that the community currently lacks for a large performance venue, he says.
Look for developments in Brunswick’s housing market soon, including more affordable housing and neighborhood revitalization, thanks to the new Brunswick Housing and Rehabilitation Program.
“We’ve hired a housing manager and what we would like to do is start rehabilitating, reconstructing and constructing homes in the community,” says Brunswick City Manager Regina McDuffie. “We have met with Habitat for Humanity, the Brunswick Housing Authority, the Land Bank and other groups and we’re looking at vacant lots in the community and properties the city already owns.”
Previously, the city was using tools like Georgia Department of Community Affairs grants to help keep people in their homes by carrying out essential repairs. The new efforts will go a step beyond.
Chelsea Hill is the city’s first housing program manager, a position the city has been planning to add for about two years as part of an effort to increase Brunswick’s housing stock, McDuffie says. The city is putting $2.5 million into the program, which is not necessarily income-restricted and aims to increase affordable homes targeting households earning 60% to 120% of the area median income. In addition to the city’s seed money, the department will look to partnerships with developers, government and private grants, and support from major industries. If successful, the program will grow housing stock and help secure workforce numbers.
From housing to workforce to tourism, this beautiful coastal region – supported by the brawn of the port of Brunswick – continues to thrive.
Local Flavor
A Retail Fixture
Family Business: Baxter Shaw, owner, and his sister, Anne Strother, bookkeeper, of Central Hardware, which their grandfather opened in 1948. Photo credit: Eliot Van Otteren
Part of the charm of Brunswick’s Central Hardware is that it makes no effort to be charming. The modest store on Norwich Street is much narrower than it is deep, and every square inch is packed with merchandise, piled as high as can be reached – and higher. The linoleum floor has been worn through in places by 77 years of customers pacing up and down the aisles. Everything about the place is unadorned and unabashedly utilitarian. The merchandise is updated, not antique. But if you were filming a movie set in the 1950s, Central Hardware wouldn’t need much set dressing.
“I’ve worked here since I was 14,” says Baxter Shaw. His grandfather opened the store in 1948, his father was the next owner, and Baxter played in the store as a boy.
“You can come in here and buy an individual spring or nails by the pound,” adds his sister, Anne Strother, who does the company books.
The store is a fixture of Norwich Street, a stretch of mid-century commercial buildings next to the classic downtown. And now that the original downtown target area of Newcastle and Gloucester streets has been brought back to life by redevelopment, the Brunswick Downtown Development Authority has turned its attention to Norwich Street. Mathew Hill, executive director of the DDA for 20 years, hopes that his agency’s formula of façade and start-up grants and other assistance will do for this grittier chunk of downtown what it has already done for its original target area.
Hill thinks the street will hold appeal for artists and craftsmen. “The rents here are less than they are downtown. The spaces are bigger with more open space. Some buildings have parking. There’s a mixture of cultures here that [appeal to] different kinds of artists,” he says.
At Central Hardware, the stock is a mix of modern tools and small appliances, classic hardware items and a sprinkling off offbeat goods: lanterns, tarps, pocketknives, bug spray, garden implements, canning equipment, even a line of toys during the Christmas season. It keeps the specialized plumbing fixtures for Brunswick’s historic district’s old homes and can provide the paint that the town’s restored Victorian mansions drink by the gallon. Like the sign over the door says, it’s “the store of 10,000 items” – only they may have quit counting early.
The marina in downtown Brunswick drives some of the stock, too. Shaw says he carries stainless steel fittings for boats and has had sailors from as far away as New Zealand walk in to buy them.
The store’s sole concession to décor is displayed on a platform mounted on a column, safely out of reach – a handmade model of a shrimp boat that Shaw figures has been in the store since 1954. And thereby hangs a tale.
“The story goes that a Portuguese shrimper owed my grandfather some money and couldn’t pay it, so he made that model and gave it to him,” Shaw says, making it clear that that bit of family history might require a grain of salt. The “Suzy Q II,” named after a boat the store’s founder once had, is built entirely of wooden yardsticks – the kind old-fashioned hardware stores used to give away to customers, and which Central Hardware Store still carries. 
