Westminster's New Main Street Is Built to Slow You Down. Here's How It Works.

Until this year, parking on Westminster's Main Street and walking into a shop on that block could mean a 4-inch step at one door, a 6-inch step at the next and an 8-inch step after that. City Administrator Kevin Bronson described that "real grab bag of topographic grades" to The Journal. Fixing it was much of the early work on the downtown streetscape. Now the block sits on one grade, with a single 6-inch curb or a raised mid-block section you can walk onto without stepping up at all.

Phase one rebuilds downtown Westminster around the person who arrives slowly: on foot, from a parked car, or in a golf cart coming up through the Grey Street underpass. The design treats cars passing through as something to slow down. The city's October 9 administrator's report called the work nearly complete. Main and Retreat streets were to open for the Bigfoot Festival, close again for punch-list items, and get a ribbon cutting by the end of this week.

What phase one covers

Phase one runs along Retreat Street from Windsor Street to Main Street, and along Main Street from Retreat Street to Lucky Street. The Journal reported that construction on this phase began in February. A WSPA report described the overall project as more than two years of construction, so the timeline depends on where you start counting.

Here's what's different on those blocks, according to Bronson's account in The Journal:

• Pavement: Much of Main and Retreat was repaved and the parking spaces restriped.
• Surface: Some of the concrete is stamped to look like brick or cobblestone.
• Speed: Raised concrete "travel humps" sit at intervals along Main Street.
• Lanes: Main stays two-way, but the travel lanes are narrower than before.
• Retreat Street: It stays one-way, running from Windsor toward Main.
• Sidewalks: The block sits on one consistent grade, with a raised, step-free section mid-block.

The narrower lanes and the one-way street are related. Bronson said Retreat stayed one-way so the city wouldn't lose any parking spaces. The parking was protected and the driving lanes were squeezed. Bronson explained the reasoning in plain terms:

"That whole design is meant to slow the traffic down, rather than just have a giant parkway where you can drive right through and go fast. If you go fast, it'll be at your own peril."

Mayor Brian Ramey told WSPA the same thing: "You can't drive fast through here. It's a lot narrower than it used to be, but that's designed intentionally to slow traffic down. We want people to walk and access it comfortably." He also said the block "has kind of sat stagnant for 35 years."

The business that watched the whole thing

Moon's Drug Store has been on Main Street since 1901, and owner Jerry Smith has run it for 55 years, WSPA reported. He was frank about the construction period and hopeful about what comes after: "It looks good, and I think people are going to enjoy it, I really do." His other hope speaks to the slower street: "Maybe this will compel people to come and take a second look at these buildings because the street is beautiful."

The Grey Street underpass is downtown's new side door

Bronson called this "perhaps the biggest change." The Grey Street underpass is closed to cars and now serves as a passage between the north and south sides of town. The Journal lists pedestrians, bicycles and golf carts as allowed users. WSPA's report names pedestrians and golf carts.

"Some golf cart people have already started planning their point of entry coming in that way," Bronson told The Journal. "They'll be able to come up a nice, big sidewalk, come up through the underpass." He also expects signs on Main Street near the underpass pointing to Anderson Park, just under the railroad tracks.

That turns a trip downtown into a loop on foot. W.P. Anderson Park is on East North Avenue near the Westminster Library. It has a children's playground, a fenced off-leash dog area, two covered picnic shelters and restrooms, according to Discover South Carolina. Visit Oconee lists Park Place Drive-in next to the park, serving ice cream, coffee drinks, baked goods, sandwiches and hot dogs. Its listing shows hours of 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, but call ahead before counting on them. A dog walk, a cone and an errand on Main Street can now link up without moving a car.

What the golf cart rules look like

Golf carts get more attention now that the underpass is built for them, so it helps to know how South Carolina handles them. Under state law, driving a golf cart on public streets requires an SCDMV permit and registration plus liability insurance. The driver must be at least 16 and carry a valid driver's license, the registration certificate and proof of insurance, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Safety.

The state's default rules apply wherever a local government hasn't passed its own ordinance. Carts can run in daylight only, on secondary roads posted at 35 mph or less, within four miles of the address on the registration, and they cross faster highways only at an intersection. Westminster's October 3, 2025 administrator's report summarized those defaults. It also noted that a law signed May 22, 2025 lets municipalities set their own hours, methods and locations for golf carts on roads posted at 35 mph or less. If you plan to drive your cart downtown, check the City of Westminster's current ordinance before relying on the state defaults. This is general information, not legal advice, and the city or SCDMV can confirm what applies to your cart.

The calendar that puts the new street to work

The streetscape is wrapping up just ahead of a busy downtown calendar. These dates come from the city's October 9 report:

Music on Main uses the green space and a stage at Retreat Street Park, right next to Main Street, according to The Journal's coverage of the series. The city's Our City page says the December festivities pair the Christmas Parade with a tree lighting at that same park. Every event on this list takes place on the blocks phase one rebuilt.

Retreat Street Park's next addition

Retreat Street Park is also the planned home of the William Bartram Statue Project. According to the project's website, the city received an Undiscovered SC grant from the state in October 2025 to commission and install the sculpture. The design shows Bartram in conversation with a Cherokee guide, with sculpted natural elements, interpretive signage and digital links. According to the city's October 9 report, the website will be used to inform the public about the project and to seek donations. No fundraising total has been published. The statue would give people another reason to stop and stay a while on the block next to the new streetscape.

What happens before the next block

Phase one was paid for with a Community Development Block Grant, an Appalachian Regional Commission grant and Oconee County C-Funds. Bronson told The Journal it will take another six to nine months to close out those grants. After that, the city can start designing another phase and apply for new grant funding.

There's a second possible source. A one-cent sales tax referendum is on the November 3 ballot, and Westminster City Council set aside part of that money for streetscape improvements, The Journal reported. Phase one is in its final punch-list stage. How far the slower, walkable design spreads past Lucky Street and Windsor Street depends on grant timing and the vote.

If you own a home within walking or golf-cart distance of downtown Westminster, the new Main Street is worth factoring into what your place is worth. Thomas & Crain Real Estate can walk you through how buyers are weighing downtown access right now. Request a Free Home Valuation and we'll show you how your home compares.