Brunswick Boom: Shallotte revitalization underway

SHALLOTTE, NC (WWAY) — For several years the Town of Shallotte has been working on revitalizing the area by bringing in new businesses, community facilities, and upgrades.

“It’s a very well-known established brewery out of Atlanta,” developer, Barrett McMullan said. “And for them to choose our small town is a big deal for this area.”

Major projects are underway in Shallotte as the town continues to see growth. For starters, there is a new brewery called Red Hare Brewing opening in the spring.

“What we hope is that it serves sort of the focal point,” McMullan said. “You know the energy source for downtown that allows us to, you know, build from there. You know, more business will come to town providing more jobs and more things to do for folks who are coming to Shallotte or really give people a reason to come to Shallotte.”

Last year, the town opened Mulberry Park.

“It’s been a tremendous success within town,” Shallotte Mayor, Walter Eccard said. It’s brought a lot of people into the park. We do our farmer’s market there, we do our concert and movie series there, we do festivals throughout the year. It’s been used from everything from family reunions to weddings and of course all the town events.”

And this year, the Riverfront Development Project is finally underway. It will create a riverwalk that people have wanted for years. Work on the Riverfront should begin soon.

“We have hired an architect planner for the riverwalk and expect the work to begin on it immediately,” Eccard said.

Right now there is a lot of buzz in the Town of Shallotte. The main goal of it all is to create a desired destination.

“Between the waterfront, the park, the brewery and other businesses on Main Street a venue that will attract tourists and visitors into our town and to stay,” Eccard said.

Mayor Eccard said once the Riverfront Development Project breaks ground, he hopes to bring in a hotel, restaurants and multi-purpose buildings into the area.

Eccard said it will take at least five years to complete the project.