LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – This summer construction along North 48th Street in Lincoln has drivers taking detours but some businesses in the area said they are losing customers due to the closed roads.
Some business owners on closed roads have been suffering in sales since the start of construction. Daniel Patrick, the owner of Danny’s Treasure Chest, an antique store, said business has been “absolutely terrible, unfortunately.”
The weekend before construction started Danny’s Treasure Chest made $1500 but since then, the antique store has only made around $24 in six weeks.
During those six weeks, construction teams put in new panels, redone the curb and milled the surface of the road from Cornhusker Highway to Fremont Street.
Despite the progress, other businesses are still struggling.
The highest cloud glass gallery went from making thousands of dollars a day to hundreds. “It’s just jarring when you have such a sharp decline in your daily sales. It’s tough,” Amalia Mcquinn, Highest Cloud Glass Gallery co-owner, said.
From Leighton to Gladstone Streets, construction teams are lining a 100-year-old water main and roads are being repaired from Leighton to Superior Streets.
The finish line for the work could be the end of this year.
“There’s a lot of businesses along the corridor that we have to keep in mind. And we’re trying to open up the segments as quickly as we can. Basically working from north to the south on the project,” Kris Humphrey, project delivery manager for the City of Lincoln said.
Patrick said, “Kinda sucks to be me through this period, but when it’s all done, we’ll have a nice street. The business will return.”
To learn more about the status of 48th Street, visit the project’s website.
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