Downtown is hurting but 'not dead,' business association says
By Brian Gawley, Peninsula Daily News
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"Downtown's not dead. It's alive," the association's executive director, Barb Frederick, said Thursday.
Councilman Don Perry, while inquiring if government aid was available, said at Tuesday's City Council meeting that the city's downtown was "unbelievably dead" because of the effects of city construction projects.
Construction has required closures of sidewalks and portions of roads, and isolated some businesses on Front and Laurel streets by deep ditches and shaky bridges at their entrances.
Perry said Tuesday that some businesses "have not had a sale in three weeks."
On Thursday, Perry said he had good reactions from merchants to his comments at the council meeting.
"I have had a lot of people commenting to me, basically saying, 'Someone finally said something.'
"A lot of people are saying it's really tough, what's going on downtown.
Meanwhile, downtown association leaders say it's not all that bad.
Stores are open
"I have heard sales in some stores are drastically down, but they are open to make the sale," association president Terry Roth said.
"None have closed because of the construction," said Roth, who operates Northwest Duty Free story in The Landing mall on Railroad Avenue.
Some store owners might have closed for a day or so while construction was being done outside, but nobody has thrown in the towel, he said.
Construction on the Port Angeles International Gateway Transportation Center at Lincoln and Front streets, which began last June and is expected to last through the summer, has required intermittent closure of Lincoln Street between Railroad Avenue and Front Street.
Laurel Street between First and Front streets has also been intermittently closed.
Meanwhile, traffic has been detoured to First Street downtown, beginning in August, while the two Eighth Street bridges are replaced, a project expected to be completed in November.
At the same time, a sidewalk and water main repair project closed traffic lanes on those detours, not to mention some sidewalks on First and Front streets by work that is expected to last until April.
"Yeah, it is a challenge to get through downtown, but I don't know that it's horribly difficult," Frederick said.
"Getting there and finding all the wonderful stuff is worth it.
"There are over 200 businesses that are open and plenty of parking."
Perry said he would "prefer not to say" the names of businesses he described as having had no sales.
But he mentioned that restaurant owners have said they lack customers.
"There's got to be some way to help. It's scary.
"Another five weeks and some are not going to make it."
Perry said his comments weren't motivated by problems with his own business, Port Angeles Heritage Tours, which provides tours of the town's "Underground."
"My business has picked up in the last two or three weeks," Perry said.
No one else on the City Council has said anything to him regarding his comments, he added.
"I think they know what is happening, and have compassion, but legally we're handcuffed about what we can do."
Roth: No surprise
Roth said merchants knew that downtown construction was going to happen, so they weren't surprised by it.
But they were frustrated by the Eighth Street bridges project going on at the same time, and the resulting detour of 12,000 vehicles a day, he said.
The majority of those vehicles have detoured to First and Front streets, so those have become overloaded, and that's been difficult, Roth said.
"It looks like a war zone — and we lost.
"But we're there, and we thank our customers.
"There's no doubt in my mind that a couple of businesses won't survive the summer.
"Some businesses are down. Some are definitely suffering.
"We will all be glad when it's done.
Frederick said she doesn't know of any businesses that are closing, but added that businesses close for different reasons all the time.
"I do know there's five new businesses coming into downtown," she said.
"One I know of is opening the first of March in the old Lee's Garden space on Front Street, but as for the others, I don't know when they are opening."
She also knows of businesses that have had no sales for one day, but none that have lacked sales for three weeks at a time.
"I hope that everybody can survive," she said.
"Businesses are getting creative with construction specials and having fun with it, which you pretty much have to do."
Looking forward to cleanup
Roth said that once the sidewalk and water main project and the stormwater line portion of the Gateway Center are done, the downtown association wants to see the city's street sweeper and water truck out cleaning up the downtown.
"We've already put the city on notice that we want the streets washed and cleaned.
"Once we have D-Day — when all construction downtown is gone except the Gateway Center — we are going to have a celebration to have people come back down and see us," Roth said.
"And that's the latest. We'd like to see it sooner.
"We have 300 Canadians arriving on April 18 [for the Lions Club district convention] and we want the streets cleaned up."
City spokeswoman Teresa Pierce said a joint cleanup project is being discussed.
"We don't know what form it take yet, but it will be one heck of a party.
"We know everybody's frustrated — owners and customers can't get anywhere — but we'd rather to do it all at once than drag it out.
"We share in the downtown's enthusiasm to get these projects done."
Perry said he was trying to get the message out that people still can go downtown and that merchants need people to go downtown.
"They need people's help, and it's for the betterment of downtown.
"We need to get the people to come downtown and do their shopping."
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Reporter Brian Gawley can be reached at 360-417-3532 or brian.gawley@peninsuladailynews.com.
Last modified: February 21. 2008 9:00PM