Public Beach Boardwalk — St. Simons Island, Georgia
The Driftwood Drive public beach access on St. Simons Island is one of the most-used coastal access points in Glynn County — a direct route from the public parking area at the end of Driftwood Drive across the dune field and wetland habitat to the Atlantic Ocean. The existing boardwalk had reached the end of its service life. Glynn County awarded Shropshire Built the contract to demolish and replace it entirely.
This is Shropshire Built operating in the environment that most residential and commercial contractors never enter: a public-sector contract on a coastal construction site within U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Georgia Shore Protection Act jurisdiction, on a 100-day completion clock from Notice to Proceed.
The new boardwalk runs approximately 1,000 linear feet at 6 feet wide — from the upland public parking lot at Driftwood Drive to the shoreline at the ordinary high-water mark. It traverses open sand beach, active dune field, and wetland vegetation within the Shore Protection Area, which means every equipment access route, pile location, and material staging area required coordination with both federal and state permitting agencies before work began.
All required permits were secured from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Coastal Resources Division and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers prior to commencement. Shropshire Built began pile installation on May 4, 2026. The structural system — pressure-treated timber piles driven to bearing depth in coastal sand using a vibratory hammer — is designed for the saltwater, storm-surge, and load conditions specific to East Beach on St. Simons Island. Framing and decking installation are currently progressing toward completion.
When complete, the Driftwood Beach boardwalk will restore safe, reliable public access to one of St. Simons Island's primary beach access points — a piece of public infrastructure used by thousands of residents and visitors each year.
Nine photographs across three weeks of active construction — from survey stakes on Day 1 to framing and decking in progress. This is what a well-managed coastal boardwalk project looks like from the inside.
Survey lath with CL/RW markers set the centerline and right-of-way. Original piling stubs remain in the sand — the old boardwalk footprint establishing the new one. One thousand feet of alignment, staked to plan.
A vibratory pile driver — the correct tool for coastal sand installation — sets pressure-treated timber piles to bearing depth. The equipment is local: Elite Marine Team out of Brunswick, GA. Working on a beach within Army Corps jurisdiction requires this level of specialized contractor and method.
Two parallel rows of driven piles extending the full length of the alignment — the structural foundation for a 6-foot-wide boardwalk. Twenty-plus pile pairs visible in a single frame. The structure already reads as built, though no decking has touched it yet.
The pile line runs from the upland parking area through coastal scrub vegetation and out to the ordinary high-water mark at the Atlantic. A crew member stands at the far end at the ocean's edge. One week of work. The full structural run is in the ground.
Pressure-treated timber stringers and sill plates delivered and staged for installation. The pile foundation is complete. Rain has filled the wheel tracks — coastal construction sites don't pause for weather. The beam work starts from the parking-lot end, working toward the ocean.
Cross-member stringers — the horizontal framing that will carry the deck boards — are being fastened to the pile caps along both rails. The structural system is visible: two-pile bents, continuous stringers, all pressure-treated for saltwater exposure. Looking toward the ocean from mid-run.
Three crew members spread across the boardwalk run — one at the far end near the ocean, two working in the foreground — fastening decking boards in late-afternoon light. The Atlantic visible at the end of the alignment. This is the photograph that tells the whole story of this project: people, place, purpose, and the work being done correctly, on schedule, on the Georgia coast.
The full joist and stringer framing system runs the complete length of the boardwalk alignment. Fresh-cut pressure-treated lumber in the foreground. A crew member in hi-viz walks the structure. Decking installation is underway from both ends toward the middle. The 100-day clock is running. The project is on schedule.
Not every general contractor can work within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Shoreline Protection Area and Georgia Shore Protection Act jurisdiction simultaneously. This project required both — and Shropshire Built was awarded the contract.
Coastal construction in the SPA requires demonstrating to state and federal reviewing agencies that the proposed work can be executed without adverse impact to the dune system, wetland vegetation, and coastal habitat that the Shore Protection Act was written to protect. The permits — secured by Glynn County prior to the contract award — established the specific conditions, access routes, equipment restrictions, and construction methods that governed every day of this project.
Operating competently in this regulatory environment is not a marketing claim. It is a demonstrated capability — the kind that positions Shropshire Built for additional public-sector coastal work across Glynn, McIntosh, and the broader Georgia coast.
All work within the Corps' Shoreline Protection Area requires compliance with specific construction methods, equipment access restrictions, and environmental protection measures. This boardwalk runs its full length within SPA jurisdiction.
Georgia's Shore Protection Act governs development and construction within the state's coastal zone. SPA Permit #457, originally issued 2018 and extended 2023, authorized this work at Driftwood Beach as part of Glynn County's management of 22 public beach crossovers on St. Simons Island.
This was a publicly bid Glynn County contract. Shropshire Built was the awarded contractor. Public-sector contracting requires bonding, insurance, certified payroll compliance where applicable, and the schedule discipline that a county-owned piece of public infrastructure demands.
Shropshire Built holds a Georgia General Contractor license, commercial liability insurance, and bonding capacity for public-sector projects. We work with municipalities, county governments, and public authorities across coastal Georgia — on schedule, on spec, with the documentation public contracts require.