A handful of Fredericton businesses impacted by summer construction are joining forces to drive business to one another, and help customers access their establishments.
Restaurants and small businesses off of Westmorland Street in New Brunswick’s capital city are already seeing impacts from road closures, as the street is currently under construction for sewer upgrades.
The project mean it’s cutting off thorough traffic for the next few months.
“First few days, we definitely did (see an impact). Sales were down at first,” said Dee Silkie, co-owner of Scout’s Original Sandwich Shop.
Not only are patrons unable to easily access their businesses, the environment hasn’t been particularly inviting.
“It was three or four days that they were actually doing the paving. We had no one on the patio because of the smell and the sound and the dust,” said Kelly Grant, general manager of Rustico.
But instead of complaining about the necessary repairs, affected businesses in the area have come together to form the “construction district.”
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They’re posting signage for customers to navigate detours, sharing where parking spaces are available, and even running raffles for prizes from other local businesses.
“Cities have art districts, wine districts and music districts, so we were like, ‘Why don’t we be the construction district?’ said Grant.
“And really go with it, have fun with it, have logos, prizes and really bring the five of us together.”
Silkie adds they have great prizes up for grabs.
“We got some sick prizes: two nights stays at The Hollows, these beautiful cabins in the woods. We have a gold package with golf lessons with a pro, two ultimate passes to Harvest (Music Festival),” she said.
Adam Peabody, executive director of Downtown Fredericton Inc., says he’s impressed by how the businesses have rallied around each other.
“I applaud the efforts that these businesses have taken with the district. They are trying to turn lemons into lemonade with these various initiatives, and they’re taking an added step in supporting each other and drive business their way,” he said.
Silkie says their strategies will be shared with future businesses who are impacted by construction — because there inevitably will be those affected.
“We are the first ones to do it so we are figuring things out, so the businesses impacted in the future will definitely have a leg up,” she added.
Construction on Westmorland Street is expected to last through October.
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