Prolonged road closure worries downtown Stratford businesses

Road construction delays in downtown Stratford have local businesses concerned about their bottom lines.

Road construction delays in downtown Stratford have local businesses concerned about their bottom lines.

Albert Street has been closed since mid-October. It was supposed to reopen before Halloween, but delays with contractors mean the street will remain inaccessible to vehicles until the end of next week.

Vendors say pedestrian traffic is down too – and it comes at a crucial time of year.

“For me visuals are everything,” says Ariana Poch, owner of the custom upholstery shop Pistolnik Designs. “That’s why the windows are so important because you need to see my products.”

Poch says because road closed signage is positioned directly in front of her store, many people assume it’s closed.

Down the street, the owner of Apt. Six Skin Care agrees the impact of the construction has been significant.

“I would say retail sales dropped to about one-fifth of what they normally are,” says Brett Gillespie.