The Mary Black Rail Trail Is Filling In at Its Henry Street End

On a walk down the Mary Black Foundation Rail Trail, where do you stop for a drink or a meal? For most of the trail's life, nearly every answer was at the South Pine Street end. The trail is a paved 1.9-mile route between Union Street and South Pine Street, with access points at 295 E. Henry St. and 105 Country Club Road, according to Partners for Active Living. Most of the well-known stops along it sit near Pine.

That is changing at the other end this fall. A brewery reopened on Union Street in August. A block of small storefronts built from shipping containers is under construction on East Henry Street. The trail is becoming a route with something to stop for at both ends, and the north end is filling in faster than at any point in recent memory.

The Pine Street End Set the Pattern

The Pine Street end shows what a good trailside stop looks like, so it's the place to start. These businesses are close enough to the trail to walk in, and a couple of them are tied to the trail directly.

Little River Cafe serves coffee, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, beer, wine and cider. The Fretwell lists its hours as Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., with beer and wine served until 9 p.m. on live-music days. The Spartan changes its menu and hours with the season.

PAL also lists the Rail Tail Dog Park and the Subaru of Spartanburg Bike Park as rail trail amenities. The bike park can be reached from behind Flock Shop and from 353 Forest Avenue. That Forest Avenue address is also home to the Rail Yard Community Park. It has a restored trolley used as a gathering space, an amphitheater, misting arches, a picnic shelter, fitness equipment and the Panthers Play 60 playground.

That mix of a cafe, a beer stop, barbecue and a bike park all within a short walk is the template. The Union and Henry Street end is now starting to build its own version.

Ciclops Came Back on Union Street, a Year Later Than Planned

The first new piece is Ciclops Cyderi & Brewery, which reopened at 1097 Union St., Suite 102, at the BoxCar Apartments. Spartan Weekly reported the grand opening on Aug. 8, 2026.

The move took a while. In October 2024, the Herald-Journal reported the BoxCar move with a target of the first quarter of 2025. Ciclops closed its downtown location in July 2025, expecting to move into the Union Street space about a month later, according to The Post and Courier. The opening was later planned for April, at least in some form. A grand opening date was then announced in July and pushed back twice. From the July 2025 closing to the August 2026 reopening, Ciclops was closed for about 13 months.

The business itself is familiar. Ciclops makes its own beer and cider and serves food. Its event page lists catering from its own kitchen, along with craft beer, cider, wine and nonalcoholic drinks. What's new is where it sits. A brewery with a kitchen is now on the Union Street end of the trail, about 1.9 miles from the Pine Street stops. Before, someone walking the north end had to leave the trail to find anything like it.

What's Going Up at 351 E. Henry St.

The second new piece is bigger and not finished yet. Power Up Spartanburg is building a small-business incubator at 351 E. Henry St., near the Thomas E. Hannah Family YMCA. Power Up is a joint effort of OneSpartanburg, Inc. and Spartanburg County. PAL lists 295 E. Henry St. as one of the trail's access points, so the new center will be close to a trailhead.

Upstate Commercial Real Estate News described the plan as nine units built from repurposed shipping containers:

• Four retail spaces
• Two full restaurants with kitchens and walk-up and drive-up windows
• Two concession-style food stalls
• One bodega, built from two joined containers, selling fresh produce and groceries

The wider site plan also includes more restaurants and services, indoor and outdoor event space, outdoor seating and a children's play area. That one site would cover groceries, sit-down meals, quick food and a play area. The Pine Street end offers a similar range, but spread across several separate businesses.

The tenants will be new businesses rather than established names. Selected businesses get below-market rent for up to two years. The developer handles marketing, maintenance and security, and Power Up Spartanburg provides accounting, HR and coaching support. "Access to commercial space is one of the greatest barriers facing many small business owners," said Jay Jenkins, OneSpartanburg's vice president of small and minority business development.

Plenty of businesses wanted in. The Post and Courier reported that 60 entrepreneurs applied in just over two weeks, and only nine will be chosen. That works out to roughly one spot for every six or seven applicants.

Where things stand in early October

Here is what has been confirmed so far:

1. Applications closed July 10, and applicants were to be evaluated and interviewed before a committee picked the tenants.
2. Spartan Weekly reported on July 28 that construction was underway after a groundbreaking at the site.
3. OneSpartanburg's June announcement said the center was expected to open in "late fall." The Post and Courier described the target as November.
4. As of early October 2026, no public announcement has named the nine businesses or set a firm opening day.

For now, the November date is a target. The names of the businesses are the next thing to watch for.

Henry Street Is Also Where the Trail Connects to Downtown

The location of these new stops matters because the Henry Street end is where the trail links to downtown. The Hub City Hopper opened in December 2022. It starts at the end of the Mary Black trail and follows Union, Kennedy and South Converse streets toward Barnet Park, with a cycle track on Converse Street protected by a raised concrete barrier. PAL's current trail listing describes the Hopper as 0.75 miles, running from the East Henry Street trailhead to Daniel Morgan Avenue. The Mary Black Rail Trail is also part of both the Daniel Morgan Trail System and the Palmetto Trail.

Spartanburg County lists another trail access point at 339 Union St. Its listing names the Hot Spot Skate Park and the Rail Trail Dog Park among nearby facilities.

In June 2024, WSPA reported plans to extend the Hopper about a mile east toward the Beaumont Mill Village Pathway and about half a mile west toward the Butterfly Branch Greenway, with completion expected that fall. PAL's current listing still shows those as separate trails and doesn't say whether the links were finished. Check before planning a route that depends on them.

Taken together, the trail's north end now has a brewery with a kitchen, a nine-unit center under construction about a block from the Henry Street trailhead, and the protected path into downtown. The Pine Street end built its group of stops over years. The north end is adding most of its own in a single season.

Before Heading Out This Fall

A few practical points, since several of these details change often:

1. Check hours first. The Fretwell's posted hours are Monday through Saturday, so plan Sunday stops elsewhere. The Spartan's hours change with the season.
2. Look up Ciclops before you go. Its website and The Post and Courier confirm the Union Street address and the reopening. The research didn't turn up confirmed hours for the new location.
3. Watch for the incubator tenant announcement. The nine business names and an opening date will tell you what the Henry Street end will offer by the end of the year.
4. Use the bike station at Flock Shop. PAL lists 970 S. Pine St. as the address for the trail's repair and cleaning station, which is useful if you're riding the full 1.9 miles.

Michael Dassel follows changes like these along the rail trail because new stops change how a nearby street is used day to day. If you own a home within walking distance of the Henry Street end and want to know how this fall's openings might affect your home's value, request a free home valuation and we'll send you a clear, data-backed number.