At the east end of Bay Street, between South Davis Street and South Atlantic Avenue, trucks have been delivering stone, and crews are setting it along the riverbank as revetment. On Oct. 29, crews from the contractor and the project consultant held a training day on filling marine mattresses. These are rock-filled units planned for the western end of the waterfront. The Southport Shorefront Improvements Project started on Oct. 1. It covers West and East Bay Streets from South Caswell Avenue to South Atlantic Avenue, and the City expects to finish it by March 31, 2027.
That puts the whole holiday season on a waterfront under construction. The schedule has a useful detail, though. Work on the central stretch of the shoreline isn't set to begin until Dec. 16, four days after the Winterfest Flotilla lights up the river.
Why the Riverbank Needs Rock
For several years, the river has been eating away at Southport's beach along Bay Street. In January 2024, WECT reported that erosion had made the W. Bay Street sidewalk unusable, and that passing cargo ships and storms had made it worse.
The State Port Pilot laid out the causes in more detail: storm waves, boat and ship traffic, and rising water levels. The paper also reported that the problem is expected to worsen as bigger commercial ships use the deepened Wilmington Harbor Navigation Channel more often. The same article quoted City Engineer Bob Jarvis's report to aldermen:
"The shoreline within the project area will continue to erode and impact adjacent properties and city infrastructure."
According to the State Port Pilot, the $5 million that pays for the work came from the state's State Emergency Response and Disaster Relief Fund. State Rep. Charlie Miller and State Sen. Bill Rabon secured the grant in December 2021. The Board of Aldermen awarded the construction contract on June 11, 2026. Four bids came in, from about $3.3 million to $4.3 million. Civil Works Contracting, LLC had the lowest responsive bid at $3,294,674.47, close to the engineer's estimate of $3.3 million. According to the meeting minutes, the state grant covers the whole project, and the City pays no local match. Jarvis told the board the work includes offshore breakwaters, beach nourishment, dune restoration, native plantings and rock revetments.
The Calendar Runs From Both Ends
On the City's project page, the shoreline is split into three segments. The posted plan has construction moving west to east:
| Segment | Area | Anticipated dates |
|---|---|---|
| Segment 1 | Western area | Oct. 1, 2026 to Feb. 8, 2027 |
| Segment 2 | Central area | Dec. 16, 2026 to March 1, 2027 |
| Segment 3 | Eastern area | Feb. 12, 2027 to March 23, 2027 |
The City notes that segments may overlap and that weather and field conditions can change the schedule. The actual work has already moved off the table's order. The City's Oct. 26 update said revetment work was underway in Segment 3, the eastern end. Once that's done, the contractor plans to move west to Segment 1 and start the breakwaters and the beach and dune work.
So the work is starting at both ends of the waterfront, and on either version of the schedule, crews don't reach the central segment before Dec. 16. The same update said E. Bay Street would stay closed between S. Davis Street and S. Atlantic Avenue through mid-November. Crews were to open it briefly for Halloween weekend and the car show. The City's project page posts each update, along with a three-week lookahead of upcoming work. It's the place to check the current status of that eastern block.
What Fits Inside the Window
Southport's holiday calendar runs from Dec. 4 to Dec. 12, and the City lists 20 Winterfest events. Every date on the waterfront and downtown comes before the posted Dec. 16 start in the central segment:
- Friday, Dec. 4, 6 p.m. Tree lighting at Whittler's Bench.
- Saturday, Dec. 5, 1 p.m. Winterfest Tea at the Southport Community Building, 223 E. Bay Street. Tickets are required.
- Friday, Dec. 11, 6:30 p.m. The Light Up the Night Christmas Parade runs along Moore and Howe streets and back to the Southport Fire Station.
- Saturday, Dec. 12, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Winter Craft Festival on E. Bay Street.
- Saturday, Dec. 12, 6 p.m. The Southport Winterfest Flotilla on the waterfront.
This is the flotilla's 32nd year. Cape Fear Yacht Club, Downtown Southport, Inc. and the City of Southport sponsor it. Downtown Southport, Inc. says this year's route runs from Old American Fish to a lighted buoy near Kingsley Street Park and back. The buoy is new this year, and the turnaround there depends on the weather. The organizers suggest bringing chairs and blankets for the waterfront. Cape Fear Radio will broadcast live, and students in the Southport Elementary School Art Program will judge the sail and power boats. Their artwork will hang at the NC Maritime Museum at Southport through December.
The craft festival on E. Bay Street and the boats on the river both come before the date the City has posted for crews to reach the central shoreline. The Winter Craft Festival is set for E. Bay Street, the same street with the closed eastern block. That makes the City's update page worth checking before Dec. 12.
Staging Beside Oliver's and the Harbor Walk
In June, when aldermen discussed the contract, they asked where the equipment and materials would go. Jeremy Packard, a representative of the engineering firm Foth, said most materials would be stored off-site. Crews would use a small staging area in the parking lot beside Oliver's restaurant and along the harbor walk next to the park. The contractor may bring in only a day's worth of material at a time.
The minutes include several other protections for the waterfront:
- The contractor has to repair or replace any City infrastructure damaged during the work.
- Vibration is monitored continuously during construction.
- Inspections before and after construction document existing conditions and check for damage, and the contractor provides a one-year warranty.
The City says to expect more construction traffic, heavy equipment, temporary work zones and some noise. Parking or traffic restrictions may be added, and parts of the project area may close to the public for safety.
What the Shore Is Being Built to Hold
The construction contract puts all of this on a deadline, but earlier planning describes what the work is for. In design-phase coverage, the State Port Pilot reported that the first phase would place rock revetment from Atlantic Avenue to near the Riverside Motel. Its main job is to protect Bay Street and the bulkhead at Waterfront Park. The second phase covers the shoreline from the Riverside Motel to the point at the Yacht Basin by the American Fish Co. Plans called for three rip-rap breakwaters there. One sits in front of the pilot tower on Bay Street, with a short stem reaching into the river, and the other two are short breakwaters that run parallel to the shore. The article quoted Alderman Frank Lai: "If we don't so this, with the wave action, the shoreline is going to be out here on Bay Street."
The City's current description is shorter: shoreline protection, beach restoration and dune enhancement, meant to make the waterfront more resilient and reduce erosion and storm damage. Together with the list Jarvis gave aldermen in June, the City describes the finished waterfront as one with stone along its edge, breakwaters offshore, restored sand and dunes, and native plantings, where the river now meets a worn beach. The City's target for all three segments is March 31, 2027, which means the Winterfest Flotilla will turn at its new buoy beside a shoreline that is still being rebuilt.
At The Waller Team, we follow Bay Street projects like this one because the waterfront affects how homes across Southport feel and how they're valued. If you own near the river and want to know what this work could mean for your home's value, request a free home valuation, and we'll walk you through it.
