Folly's Rebuilt Center Street Put Its New Parking on the Side Streets, and November Follows

Center Street officially reopened on October 1 with a ribbon cutting at the corner of Center Street and East Cooper Avenue, after construction that ran from May 2025 to July 2026, Live 5 News reported. Most of the change you can see happened a block away from Center Street. The project took four parking spaces off Center Street and added 39 on East Cooper, East Erie and East Huron.

November is the first quiet month on the finished street. The island's two community events this month also lean toward those side blocks, so where you park and walk is changing along with the street.

Four spaces out, thirty-nine in

The City of Folly Beach's June 2026 project presentation counts what went in above ground: six bioretention cells, 39 pervious parking spaces, new trees and permeable parking. The new spaces use turfstone pavers. That grass-and-concrete grid lets rain soak through the parking surface. The city also added permeable driveway aprons.

The presentation and the city's project page show where each piece was planned to go:

The plan keeps the familiar look of Center Street, with palmettos and bricks going back in. The bigger shift is a net gain of 35 spaces on the east side streets.

What sits under the bricks

Most of the work is underground. The presentation describes larger stormwater pipes, new inlets, and pipe extensions that tie the side streets into the system. Live 5 News reported in August that the old pipes had not been upgraded in roughly four decades.

Mayor Chris Bizzell explained to Live 5 how the parts work together. "We've got rain gardens that will collect the water, get it off the street," he said. "The other side of it is, most of this water is held in the pipes underneath the street. A storm that used to take 12 hours to drain will now take three."

On a normal day, that means less standing water after a hard afternoon thunderstorm and a main street that is usable again sooner. The mayor also said in that interview that Center Street had flooded from time to time even in heavy thunderstorms, which affected residents, visitors and traffic safety. The new side-street spaces are part of that drainage system. Parking on them is now part of how the street sheds water.

Why the city paid for a party before the ribbon cutting

The construction summer was hard on business along Center Street. The Folly Current reported in September that the drainage project had disrupted traffic, parking and commerce along the street. The city responded by funding free admission to the Folly Association of Business's Mermaids & Mateys festival on October 3, for up to 6,000 people with reserved tickets. The same funding gave free vendor spaces on Center Street or a side street to island retail, food and beverage businesses that have a physical storefront.

"We wanted the business community to know that we see them as a vital part of our community," Bizzell told the Folly Current.

The summer did not land the same way for every business. ABC News 4 reported in September that Pinky's general manager said sales across its two properties topped $1 million and set records for the season. In the same story, Follywood owner DJ Rich said the construction made it harder for local customers to get to the bar. He described Follywood as a place that relies on steady year-round local business.

That gives November some weight on Center Street. Summer visitors carried part of the island through the construction. The bars and shops that count on year-round regulars are seeing their first off-season with the street fully open.

Porchfest puts two of its stages on the rebuilt blocks

Folly Beach Porchfest is this Saturday, November 7, from noon to 5 p.m. The Folly Current's October 2026 issue lists five stages:

1. 120 East Huron
2. 120 West Erie
3. 111 East Cooper
4. 120 East Ashley
5. 206 West Cooper

Stages one and three are on East Huron and East Cooper, two of the three streets where the new parking went in. The two West stages sit on the other side of Center Street, near the stretch between West Cooper and West Erie that the city's plan marked for palmettos, rain gardens and bricks. A walk between porches crosses the rebuilt street at least once.

Admission is free. Bands play from porches and backyards, and once the porch sets end, the evening moves to after-parties at spots like Chico Feo, according to the Porchfest event listing on FollyBeach.com. The same listing suggests walking or biking because neighborhood streets fill up fast and parking rules are enforced. It also reminds visitors that every stage is someone's home, so stay off lawns and gardens unless invited, bring a chair or blanket, and take your trash with you. The band lineup will be posted on the Folly Beach Porchfest Facebook page.

East Cooper, East Erie and East Huron have more legal parking than they did last November. Two of the porches are on those blocks, so the spaces closest to the music will likely fill first. If you live within walking distance, walking is still the easiest plan.

The pier keeps shorter hours this month

If you'd like a quieter Saturday afternoon before or after the porches, the Edwin S. Taylor Folly Beach Fishing Pier is open from 7 a.m. to sunset in November, according to Charleston County Parks. Fishing is $7 for adults and $4 for children 12 and under and seniors 60 and over. November parking is $5, and walk-ins and bicyclists pay no parking fee. The pier also has rod rentals, a gift and tackle shop, and Koko's on the Pier.

The free parking for walkers and cyclists fits a month when the rebuild has already moved parking off Center Street.

The month ends back on Center Street

The Community Tree Lighting is Sunday, November 29, at 6:30 p.m. at Folly River Park on Center Street, according to the FollyBeach.com event listing. Porchfest starts the month on the east and west side streets, and the tree lighting brings it back to Center Street, now finished. That Sunday will also be the first holiday gathering on Center Street since the October 1 reopening.

If the new side-street parking has you thinking about how the Center Street changes affect a home on East Cooper, East Erie or East Huron, I'm glad to talk it through. Whether you're thinking about selling or just want to know how it might affect your property, Marie Pohlman can walk you through it. Schedule a Free Lowcountry Market Consultation, and we'll start with your block.