"Things are going to move here pretty soon, and it's going to take shape." Yank Moore, the Jekyll Island Authority's conservation director, told the JIA board that while updating it on the former golf land in the middle of the island. In the same update he gave two dates. The four wildlife viewing platforms would likely be finished by fall 2026. The whole corridor would not count as complete until early 2027, mostly so that new plantings have time to grow and the restored ground can get back to something close to its natural state.
That gap between the two dates is the most useful thing to understand about the project this fall. Carpenters can build a platform in a season. Native grass on an old fairway takes longer to fill in, and the island's conservation staff have built their timeline around that.
What the old fairways are becoming
The project dates back to the JIA's Golf Improvement Plan, which the board approved on September 20, 2022. The plan retired nine holes of the old Oleander course so they could become a wildlife corridor in the island's interior, mid-island. According to Moore, the corridor will also take in parts of the Great Dunes course from before its recent renovation, and it will run through the middle of the island from north to south.
The project's size depends on which document you read. The Jekyll Island Foundation and Birds Georgia both say 52 acres. The JIA's 2026 bridge solicitation says about 50 acres. A Georgia Department of Natural Resources marshlands permit notice describes a 114.5-acre project area on the former Oleander Golf Course and says it is being restored as a wildlife and recreational corridor under the Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program. The bigger number appears to cover a wider work area than the restored habitat alone.
Much of the funding comes from that state program. The 2023–2024 Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program cycle lists a project called "From Golf to Wildlife-Corridor-Recreational-Park" at $1,602,300. The grant description shows how much of the work is about planting:
- upland habitat restoration
- a protected area for growing and managing restoration grass plugs
- underbrush work on about 32 forested acres
- planting oak and longleaf pine
- two bird-rookery islands in a freshwater pond
The JIA had to set aside a separate area just to raise grass plugs. That alone shows where most of the effort goes.
Lumber this fall, grass into 2027
Moore and wildlife biologist Joseph Colbert describe the work in a February 2026 Foundation article. Staff are planting native grasses where golfers used to hit their shots, rebuilding a coastal grassland that is now rare. They have also adapted the old golf drainage system into a new freshwater wetland. Planting is the step a calendar can't speed up.
The building work runs on its own track. Here is where each piece stands as of early October 2026:
- Viewing platforms. The plan calls for four platforms, looking out over Amphitheater Pond and the tidally influenced Oleander Pond. The Foundation's August 28 update still called them "soon-to-be-installed." According to the state permit notice, the two at Oleander Pond will sit on the pond's western bank, one at the north end and one at the south end. Each will be a covered 12-by-16-foot deck, and having two lets staff close one for a scheduled program while the other stays open.
- Four pedestrian and bike bridges. The JIA's request for proposals, RFP 387, closed August 17, 2026, after a deadline extension. As of this writing, the state procurement registry still lists it as "Under Evaluation." Construction can start only after the board approves a winning proposal and a contract is signed. In the bid Q&A, the JIA said at least one existing bridge will be demolished and replaced, and the plans build on existing structures where possible.
- Smaller habitat features. In February, interpretive signs, bird nest boxes and underground hibernation chambers for reptiles were still being finalized.
- Grassland and forest. Planting, controlled burning and careful clearing of underbrush in the nearby woods are all part of reaching early 2027.
The Foundation is also raising money for one more feature. It wants to put four dual-head observation scopes on the elevated platforms. Each would have a standard eyepiece at standing height and a lower one for children and wheelchair users, plus EnChroma lens coatings to help visitors with color vision deficiency.
Walking it while it is still a work site
You don't have to wait for 2027 to see the site. In its bid Q&A, the JIA said the public already has access to these areas. Because the project is still an active restoration and construction site, it also said accessible trails will be blocked or disrupted from time to time while the work is finished. So far no official announcement has said the corridor's trail network is open, so treat a walk there this fall as a look at work in progress.
Once finished, the trails will follow the old golf cart paths. Amphitheater Pond is the easiest landmark for getting your bearings. A JIA birding guide places the old amphitheater behind the fire station near the Historic District, with the pond just past it.
Plan around one date this month. In the same Q&A, the JIA told bidders that mobility and site access will be limited during the Shrimp & Grits Festival on October 23 and 24.
Why the grass gets the extra months
The species list explains why the timeline bends around plants. The Foundation names savannah sparrows, loggerhead shrikes and southeastern kestrels as target grassland birds, all listed in the Jekyll Island Conservation Plan as priority or watch-list species. These birds need real prairie, and a newly seeded fairway won't hold them. In the woods along the edges, staff are working to grow more varied ground cover for Chuck-will's-widows, box turtles and pine woods tree frogs. The new wetland is aimed at breeding wood ducks, frogs and crawfish, and it will give deer and marsh rabbits a reliable source of fresh water.
The island already has a long record of how its birds are doing. The Jekyll Island Banding Station, a volunteer-run research station on the island's south end, opened in 1977, according to the Georgia Bird Observatory. A JIA article gives 1978 instead. In July 2026, the observatory reported a master's study by Ryan Davenport that looked at nearly 40 years of the station's fall banding data. Over that period, capture rates dropped by about:
- 92% for Prairie Warblers
- 74% for Western Palm Warblers
- 46% for Common Yellowthroats
- 35% for American Redstarts
Not every species declined. Painted Bunting capture rates went up, and Gray Catbirds held steady. The observatory says these trends closely match declines documented across North America. These are mostly migrating songbirds rather than the grassland species the corridor targets. Still, the data shows why Jekyll's conservation staff would rather wait for good habitat than open a finished-looking park early.
Where to watch migration this October while the corridor fills in
A Coastal Georgia Audubon guide recommends visiting the banding station in October to watch permitted banders handle birds. The trail to the station starts at the corner of Macy Lane and St. Andrews Way, and parking there is limited.
A current St. Johns Regional Audubon listing shows a station visit on Wednesday, October 14, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is limited to 12 members and asks for a $10 cash donation to the station.
For a guided walk on your own schedule, the 4-H Tidelands Nature Center runs nature walks from March through October, so this is the last month of the season. Walks usually start at 9 a.m., cost $11 per person, and require a reservation. The Wednesday South Tip and Beach Creek walk focuses on birds and meets at the St. Andrews Picnic Area parking lot.
The banding station's netting runs on borrowed time each fall, about four weeks at peak migration. The grassland on the old Oleander holes is on a slower clock, measured in growing seasons, and early 2027 is the earliest date anyone has put on it.
If you follow changes like this on Jekyll and want to know what they mean for owning property on the island, Ganten Kirby would be glad to talk it through, no pressure. For a starting point, ask for a complimentary home valuation.
