EDMONTON- As construction season ramps up in our city, one project in the Glenora neighbourhood has started to cause concerns for area business owners.
Construction on the Stony Plain Road bridge over Groat Road started on April 28, resulting in the full closure of roadway. Traffic in the area has been rerouted and business owners say it’s already impacting business.
“The city did notify us well in advance so we knew it was coming, we were prepared for it. I guess we weren’t really prepared for the traffic just to stop suddenly. It really did. We get a lot of walk-ins and that has really stopped,” said Maureen Wright, co-owner of MoJo Design, located at 103rd Avenue and 134th Street.
The home design shop has been in its current location for about a year. Wright says business had really started to pick up over the past few months, but that all changed last Sunday.
“We’ve noticed in the last week that (business) has really slowed down.”
The Stony Plain Road bridge was originally built in the mid 1950s. The last major rehabilitation to the bridge happened in 1991. The city says the bridge has now reached a state in which major repairs are needed to extend its life.
Byron Nicholson, director of special projects, roads design and construction with the City of Edmonton says a total closure of the road is needed for safety purposes.
“We always look at if we can do half and half. This particular bridge is just too narrow to do that because the contractor needs a safe work zone. As well, you need enough room for two lanes. This bridge is just too narrow to do that.”
Wright understands the need to get the job done, and says her business will survive, but she’d like to see more signage in the area, so clients know how to find their way through the construction.
“I don’t think there’s a lot of signage on how to get here. There’s the roadblocks to say you can’t come, but not anything directing people our way,” Wright said. “We’ve sent out a newsletter to all of our clients, notifying them of how to get here. But it would be nice if the city could put up some signage to the shops of Glenora, because it really has cut down on our business.”
“We are wanting to let people know that those businesses are open. They do have access on Stony Plain Road, they just have to know what side of Groat Road you have to come from,” added Nicholson.
He says bonus incentives are included the contract, to encourage the contractor to finish the job in a timely manner.
“Last year we had a couple of projects that were done early. So we’re hoping that we can work with the contractor to get this one back in service as soon as possible.”
The work is scheduled to be completed by September 1.
For more information on this project, and others in the city, visit the City of Edmonton’s website.
With files from Vinesh Pratap.
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