Financial relief may be on the way for businesses hurt by ongoing construction in the city’s busy Broadway Corridor.
Crews have been hammering away, blocking off portions of the street’s sidewalks and parking stalls for months as they work on the Broadway Subway Project.
In a Thursday meeting, councillors unanimously approved a motion directing staff to explore financial relief options for those impacted by “cut and cover” tunnelling — a particularly disruptive technique that restricts pedestrian, vehicle and bus access to the merchants, as well as their street visibility.
The motion introduced by Coun. Colleen Hardwick notes that not all businesses have been impacted equally by the construction, and mitigation measures “have not been effective” at offsetting their losses.
Because the Broadway Subway Project is a “design and build” initiative, businesses receive information and are consulted less than three weeks before changes are made.
Other Canadian cities, such as Montreal, have launched financial assistance programs for businesses affected by major construction, reads the motion. That initiative offers a maximum of $40,000 per financial year, calculated on the decrease in gross profits recorded by a vendor.
In a Friday tweet, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business described the motion’s approval as “welcome news and a big step toward construction mitigation policies.” It also called on the B.C. government to take further steps to legislate a mitigation policy for provincially-funded policies.
The Broadway Subway Project is a $2.38-billion, 5.7-kilometre extension of the Millennium Line, whose construction began last spring. The new line is not expected to open until 2025.
B.C. Transportation Minister Rob Fleming previously said “very extensive consultations” were conducted with businesses along Broadway in advance of the project, and the street will remain open throughout construction.
According to signs posted the street, however, stopping along portions of it will be forbidden until July 28, 2023.
Since shovels went into the ground, some businesses have complained about the impact on their bottom line, concerned they won’t survive long enough to see the project’s completion, particularly after many months of reduced income due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mei Goor, owner of Your Dollar Store With More at West Broadway and Yukon Street, told councillors Thursday her sales have dropped more than 40 per cent since last summer.
“The construction has left our business with only one access point, that is from the east side of Yukon street. The sidewalk from my store to No Frills has been blocked and I was told it will stay blocked for another two years and six months,” she said.
“I need to pay extra for my deliveries because our store has only one entrance — my front door on Broadway. There is no street parking. All delivery drivers struggle to find a parking spot.”
Catherine Ellsmere, co-owner of Odin Books, a mental health bookstore on Broadway, has also previously told Global News that foot traffic to her shop has essentially stalled.
In January, the Storm Crow Alehouse on Broadway shut its doors for good, citing supply and labour shortages, and construction from the Broadway Subway Project as contributing factors.
When finished, the project will include 700 elevated metres from VCC-Clark Station to a tunnel portal near Great Northern Way, and five kilometres tunneled below the Broadway Corridor from Great Northern Way to Arbutus Street.
Six underground stations will connect communities to the region, including a connection to the Canada Line at Cambie Street.
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