City meets with businesses on delayed construction
9:15 p.m. Thursday, July 17, 2008
No one at the meeting Thursday seemed completely satisfied with the way the roundabout project at 21st and Urish has gone. But city leaders and business owners did make a plan they hope can be beneficial to both sides.
Construction comes as a welcome sound to business owners at 21st and Urish these days. The roundabout project here has been delayed and postponed, but the faster city workers work, the sooner business at the Urish Center can get back to normal.
"Business is really slow because of the road being torn up," Sunsations Tan and Salon Owner Kelly Robbins said. "So we're scaling back on our hours. It's just a precaution to take to make sure we survive through the whole thing."
Robbins is just one business owners whose profits have been bulldozed by the work going on here.
"Our business is doing well, considering," she said, "but we'd love to have more people come."
And Thursday, city leaders met with Robbins and other businesses owners to come up with a plan to do just that.
In one month, they plan to open the west entrance to Urish Center and the East entrance to Silver Lake Bank to increase traffic through the area.
"I'm very happy with the results today," Robbins said. "They're going to consider some of our proposals which makes me happy that they're going to do their best to get us open as fast as possible."
City leaders also expressed frustration that the project seemed to be going in circles, including City Manager Norton Bonaparte.
"Thank you," Bonaparte said at the meeting. "We know that this has been extremely trying on you."
"Bonaparte was there and I know he really, you could tell he felt some kind of compassion with the business owners in the Urish Center," Robbins said.
Business owners who are just trying to stay open, while the road is closed.
"We're still here," Robbins said. "Still open."
It will be three months before 21st street is re-opened and the entire project isn't set to be completed until Thanksgiving.
But the longer the road is closed the more sales tax revenue the city loses so it is bad for the businesses and the city.
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