Several of the island's December traditions start on one short stretch of Mallery Street. The tree lighting is at the pier. The golf cart parade lines up in front of the Mallery Street ball parks and rolls back toward the water. The Christmas Tour of Lights trolley boards at 115 Mallery Street, in front of the St. Simons Fishing Pier. This year the ballpark end of that stretch is a construction site, and it will stay one through the whole season.
What's behind the fence on Mallery Street
Glynn County closed Mallery Ballfield Park to the public on Monday, October 19, and expects it to stay closed through the end of February 2027 while crews rebuild the ballfield and the park amenities around it. The tennis courts, pickleball courts and dog park in Kings Park are not part of the closure. The park office stays open for program registration, facility rentals and questions. The park restrooms are closed, and temporary restrooms are set up in Kings Park.
The work is paid for by a local fundraising campaign. The Brunswick News reported that the campaign has nearly reached its $5 million goal. The paper quoted organizer Adam Wainwright, the former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher who now owns 5 Oaks Farms outside Brunswick, on how long the project had been in the works. In the same article he described the site the crews are working around:
"We had to work around all the giant oak trees that have been there since George Washington. There are all these things you have to work around, and I think we found a good way to do that."
According to the paper, the main change is resizing the three ballfields to roughly the same regulation size, which would let St. Simons host baseball tournaments up to 12U and softball up to high school. New fences, rebuilt dugouts and seating, new stands and a covered batting cage are also part of the job. Wainwright said the first phase, the large parking lot outside the park and new ditching in place of the old retention pond, was already done when the ballpark closed.
The renovation has also moved activity a few blocks away. The Islander reported that county soccer for 3- and 4-year-olds was temporarily playing on the front lawn of Neptune Park because of the Mallery Park plans. The county was considering making that arrangement permanent if families liked it.
Saturday, December 5, starting in front of the ballpark
The Annual Christmas Golf Cart Parade is hosted by St. Simons Bait & Tackle, and its 2026 listing still gives the lineup spot as the front of the Mallery Street ball parks. Here's how the morning runs:
- 10:30 a.m. Decorated carts line up in front of the Mallery Street ball parks in the Pier Village area.
- 11:00 a.m. The parade starts.
- The route runs along Mallery Street and through St. Simons Island Pier Village.
- Santa rides along and greets the crowd.
The event page lists the whole thing from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Last year's parade ran on Saturday, December 6, and lined up at the same ball parks at 10:30. This year Saturday falls on the 5th. Families who usually stage carts along the ballpark frontage will find construction fencing behind the lineup this year. Because the park restrooms are closed, the nearest public facilities that morning are the temporary restrooms in Kings Park. Cart owners who want details on entering should check with St. Simons Bait & Tackle directly.
The rest of December along the same block
The parade is the busiest morning on Mallery Street, but it isn't the only event there. Here's the December calendar for this stretch, starting at the water and moving inland:
| Date | Event | Where | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday, Dec. 2 | Pier Village Christmas Tree Lighting | St. Simons Island Pier | 6 to 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, Dec. 5 | Christmas Golf Cart Parade | Lineup at the Mallery Street ball parks, then Mallery Street and Pier Village | Lineup 10:30 a.m., start 11 a.m. |
| Nightly, mid to late December | Fendig Family Christmas Tour of Lights | Boards at 115 Mallery Street, in front of the pier | 90-minute tour, by reservation |
Last year's local calendar put the Pier Village lighting at 6 p.m. on December 2, and the 2026 listing keeps the same date and hour. This year that makes it a Wednesday-evening event. It's free, with performances that include Frederica Baptist Church, and both the Grinch and Santa are listed to appear. So the tree goes up at the pier three days before the parade passes through Pier Village.
The trolley tour picks up where the parade leaves off. Lighthouse Trolleys runs the Fendig Family Christmas Tour of Lights nightly from mid to late December. Riders see decorated homes around the island's neighborhoods and vote for the best house in each one. The tour began as a community event, and the operator says thousands of families ride it each year. Reservations are required. The booking calendar lists tickets at $30 for anyone 13 and older and $15 for children 12 and under. It also gives the boarding point as 115 Mallery Street, in front of the St. Simons Fishing Pier. Specific nights and departure times are set on that calendar, so check it before planning around a particular evening.
Away from Mallery Street, the King and Prince sets up a Letters to Santa station in its lobby from November 21 through December 25. Children can write a letter there, and the resort makes sure it reaches Santa before Christmas.
The second Saturday moves to Gascoigne Bluff
A week after the parade, the season's big Saturday crowd shifts to the opposite side of the island. The Cassina Garden Club holds its Annual Christmas Bake Sale on Saturday, December 12, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The location is the Hamilton Plantation Historic Tabby Cabins and Gardens on Gascoigne Bluff, 1195 Arthur Moore Drive. The club calls it the "Best Bake Sale in the South." The tables carry homemade cakes, pies, breads and cookies, along with toasted pecans, jellies and jams that work as gifts. The sale is open to the public, and the Interpretive Cabin is open for tours from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The money stays close to where it's spent. The December bake sale is one of the club's two annual fundraisers, along with the spring garden walk, and both support the care of the historic Hamilton Plantation cabins and grounds. Mallery Park is being rebuilt with private donations, and the tabby cabins are kept up partly through pie sales.
Between the two Saturdays, there's holiday shopping on Island Drive. The Glynn Visual Arts Holiday Market opens Friday, November 27, and runs through December 23. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and this year the market expands into the Portman Gallery at 106 Island Drive. Glynn Visual Arts is a nonprofit visual arts center, so buying there supports the arts on the island.
How the ballpark fits the season
The county expects Mallery Ballfield Park to stay closed through the end of February 2027, well past the holiday season. The Islander reported a target of finishing before the Spring 2027 season. That means every December event on Mallery Street this year happens beside an active job site. Next year's parade would line up in front of three resized fields, new dugouts and a covered batting cage, if the work finishes on that schedule.
Projects like the Mallery Park rebuild are part of what makes a St. Simons address worth more over time, and following them is part of how we serve clients at GK Real Estate Advisors. If you live near Pier Village and want to know how this work and the island's other projects could affect your home's value, start with a complimentary home valuation.
