City Vows To Help Businesses Through Construction
Centerville Store Owners Say business Is Down Dramatically
CENTERVILLE - "Save our stores!" That's the message from business owners along Main Street as the effect of the CSAH 14 construction project really begins to bite.
Some store owners say business is down by as much as 70 percent since the detour, which by-passes many of Centerville's small businesses along Main Street, came into force last month.
The Centerville City Council has responded to the crisis by making it the subject of the first meeting of its newly formed Economic Development Authority (EDA), which took place on Wednesday, Nov. 14.
The EDA's first action was to set up a meeting with concerned business owners to find out what they wanted to help keep customers using their stores and services.
The city council wants to embark on a campaign to keep people coming into the city throughout the construction project, which will take up to two years to complete.
City Administrator Dallas Larson was due to meet with business owners yesterday (Tuesday, Nov. 27) to hear their views on the subject.
There is just over $6,000 left in the economic development account of the city's 2007 budget, and council members are looking for suggestions on how it could be best spent advertising to customers that Centerville is open for business.
Centerville Mayor Mary Capra, who is a commissioner on the newly formed EDA, told commissioners on Nov. 14: "These businesses are suffering. I have been to the florist and I was one of her first customers in two days. "I think they [the Centerville business owners] are at the point of breaking. They want to hear from us that we are doing something and we want their input."
The inaugural meeting of the EDA, led by council member and newly appointed EDA President Michelle Lakso, discussed several ways to help businesses weather the difficult construction period.
Ideas ranged from a business fair and Centerville gift card rewards for regular customers, to handing out Centerville shopping coupons with municipal animal licenses, and flyers and advertisements in the local press.
The meeting was addressed by Renee Sande, who works for the Anoka County Transportation Management Organization.
She said she had been involved with several projects in the past where businesses and city councils had worked together to keep customers shopping at local businesses during road construction, one example being the Highway 65/County Road 14 intersection work in Blaine.
"We came up with some low-cost or no-cost ideas for local businesses to work with local newspapers and TV stations and newsletters, and utilize information on the Anoka County and MnDOT Web sites and use notice boards in churches to remind people to use their local businesses.
"It's about reminding people that being part of a community is about supporting your community."
Michael Giovinazzo operates his business, American Family Insurance, from a mall on Main Street.
He says he is in favor of the road construction, but does not wish to see Centerville become a ghost town if companies are forced to close during the prolonged construction period.
Pointing to the city's future, Giovinazzo asked, "Are we a small city looking to get huge? Are we a city that's going to lose its identity?
Those are my questions - what are we trying to be?
"You only have to go across the highway and see what our neighbor Hugo is doing - they will be the envy of the area .
"What is our plan to support what we have and what is the future of Centerville? How do they [the city council] see us participating in the growth of all that's around us?"
Debra VanRuden runs the florist shop on Main Street. She says she has seen business plummet by 75 percent since the detour was introduced, taking motorists off Main Street at 20th Avenue.
She said, "What they need to do is to move the 'Road Closed' sign from 20th Avenue down to Centerville Road so they bring more people down here.
"If it's an issue with trucks, they can put a separate truck detour down 20th [Avenue]."
Eileen Smith owns Centerville Pet Foods on Main Street and has seen her business drop by 20-30 percent since the construction project began.
"I don't get the people driving through to Lino Lakes any more," she said.
"I have seen a lot of people not showing up because they don't know how to get here.
"I get people calling up and asking if we are still open."
Following the meeting with business owners on Nov. 27, council members will discuss at the city council meeting tonight (Nov. 28) what they can do to help, and what, if any, money will be spent to improve the current business climate for local companies.
In the meantime, the message remains clear: Centerville is open for business!