The impact of construction on businesses along Penetanguishene’s Main Street has been softened thanks to the tremendous effort the community has made in shopping locally, according to owners of several shops and restaurants that line the downtown.
“My customers have been very loyal to the business,” said Phil Karpathios, owner of Phil’s Family Restaurant at 48 Main Street. “If your customers aren’t loyal and still coming here to support your business, then (the construction) could impact you even more.”
While the massive reconstruction project has caused some headaches in regards to parking, building accessibility, noise, and resulted in numerous detours, residents are still coming out to support local businesses.
“There were slow days … and some of the clientele that have mobility issues obviously didn’t come out, but a lot of people made an effort to come here,” said Karpathios.
While Karpathios has noticed a drop in sales over the summer months, impact from the complete overhaul of Main Street hasn’t been as painful as he thought.
“I think it went better than expected,” he said. “During this whole time, the (construction) company has done a great job. I have nothing negative to say. There have been a few hiccups, but they have dealt with them and accommodated businesses as much as they can.”
These sentiments were reiterated by several other business owners along Penetanguishene’s main corridor, with many uttering nothing but praise for the work the crews have done.
“The crews have been amazing. They will stop everything they are doing and will direct people and make sure they know where they need to go,” said JoAnn Menard, owner of OMG Men and Women’s Fashions.
Construction crews were paving part of the street directly in front of Menard’s store at 77 Main Street late last week. While the front entrance to her store was difficult to access, she still had a positive outlook on the situation.
“I just keep reminding people that we should be so lucky to get a brand-new street,” said Menard, believing the town is going to be better off in the long run.
The overall Impact from construction is about what she expected, as walk-in traffic has dwindled while crews tear up and rebuild the main street.
“The only difference that I’ve noticed is (the lack of) tourists that would normally be walking the street,” said Menard, estimating she has done 15 to 20 per cent less business than usual.
Like Karpathios, she credits the locals for going over and above to help ensure her business survives the challenges create by the construction.
“Local people are coming in on the regular and they are trying to support local even more because they don’t want us to go out of business. That’s what I have found,” said Menard.
Dianne Bald of Arbour’s Flower Shoppe has had a similar experience throughout the construction with walk-in traffic down and her sales suffering because of it.
“The (lack of) traffic on the Main Street has impacted all businesses. My sales are down from last year,” said Bald. “Flowers are a perishable product and that makes a difference.”
While she has definitely noticed a decline in sales, she credits locals for helping her business stick around through the tough times.
“We do a lot of local business. It is down a bit, but many locals have really gone the extra mile to send flowers or stop in at the shop. They have been supportive, that’s for sure,” said Bald.
The construction workers have also gone the extra mile, according to Bald. Often helping people cross the street and even stopping by to see how they are doing.
Nick Boudouris, owner of World Famous Dock Lunch, completely agrees with the praise.
“I congratulate the Town. I think the contractor is doing a fantastic job,” Boudouris said.
The Dock Lunch dealt with the impacts of construction early in the summer, as the restaurant is situated down at the Town Dock, where construction began.
Although construction shut down Main Street access to the restaurant from April through to the end of June, Boudouris ensured signs were in place and up-to-date routes were known so patrons could make their way to his restaurant and the waterfront.
“When I found out that this was going to happen, I personally reached out and did some different promotions to say that we were still going to be open,” said Boudouris. “We also talked to our staff, explained what was happening and told them how to direct people to come down to the business.”
He understands the realities of the project and believes the end result will be worth it.
“It is something that needs to be done, no matter what, and it is only going to be good for us in the long run,” said Boudouris.
