It started in April and with two months to go before its scheduled completion at the end of October, Lac La Biche business owners say the current phase of the downtown construction project has been an ongoing learning curve.
On April 23, orange steel fences went up around a one-block section of 101 Ave. in Lac La Biche between 102 Street at Value Drugs to 101 Street at the Alberta Treasury Branch as construction of the current phase of the $32.5 million Main Street Revitalization Project got It underway. The project was initiated in 2020 to replace all of the aging underground utility infrastructure along Main Street.
Sidewalks going in
Last year’s work took place in the area of Main Street from 103 Street to 102 Street and took more than six months to complete, wrapping up in November. According to Lac La Biche County, this year’s construction is expected to be finished by the end of October. In recent days, crews have been starting on the concrete work for the new sidewalks within the construction area.
Marwan Smaiel of Smiley’s department store, which is located on the corner of 101 Street and 101 Ave., said being in the Main Street construction zone has meant an adjustment for the long-running local family business.
In a bid to bring in traffic, Smiley’s has implemented some new marketing styles and also installed a back entrance to provide the public with easier access. Smaiel continued by saying that while owners would prefer to see customers being able to come through the front entrance, the back door has helped considerably. Despite some issues, he said business has been very good during the construction period.
“Our back door has been a good feature for customers for coming in,” Smaiel told Lakeland This Week.
A few doors down the street at Modern Wears, owner Leo Palamaruk said while business has been a bit slow at times over the summer months, things are still going quite well.
“It’s definitely slowed down, but overall, I have to say, it wasn’t that bad,” he said.
Like Smiley’s, Modern Wears also put in a back door last spring in preparation for the resumption of the Main Street construction. According to Palamaruk, customers became accustomed to using the back entrance. Furthermore, there is a generous amount of parking behind the downtown clothing business, which he says made the situation a little more convenience.
Since the start of the Main Street Revitalization Project a few years ago, there have been mixed reactions from downtown business owners. While some have been opposed to the makeover of 101 Ave., others have welcomed the construction, saying that it will serve to improve the downtown core.
End results
While the construction is somewhat of an inconvenience, Palamaruk says the area will look good once the work has been completed.
“Pain for gain I say, because it’s going to be nice once it’s done,” he said.
At Warehouse One, manager Helen Abougoush says that business was particularly slow in May and June. Regarding if the construction or consistently wet conditions during the spring were contributing factors to a shortfall in sales, Abougoush can’t say for certain.
“The weather was really bad,” she said. “We had unusual weather for May and June…you know, people don’t want to come in and buy summer products.”
Although business was slow for the first few months of construction, once the summer arrived, it picked up considerably.
Over the past few months, Abougoush said, sales have been okay. She explained that Warehouse One has a backdoor that is frequently used by customers.
However, the downtown merchant believes that business would have been a lot more eventful had the construction not been going on, adding that the project has affected commerce by at least 50 percent. Abougoush went on to say while locals are aware of the work taking place, many tourists are not, and so they detour around businesses in the Main Street construction zone instead of stopping in.
“Our clients know about construction, but tourists, they don’t know,” she stated.
Deb Veillette of Equilibrium Cannabis described the experience since the orange fences went up in April as “interesting”. She says that while there has been a bit of a slowdown in walk-in traffic, business has nonetheless been good.
“It’s been good…a little bit slower than other years, but otherwise, it hasn’t been all that bad,” she said.
Municipal officials have provided weekly updates on the project, hosting coffee-and-chat sessions for residents and contractors. Senior administration staff have also made in-person stops at local businesses to field questions and concerns.
Overall, says Ali Memon, Lac La Biche County’s manager of Engineering Services, the work is being completed on schedule and on budget.
Final section
The final phase of the overall construction project, that will replace all existing underground utility infrastructure along the five-block length of the Lac La Biche Main Street, will begin in 2025. That phase will close sections of the main downtown roadway from 101 Street to 100 Street. When the project was initially approved in 2019, the budget was for $16 million. As the project moved forward, costs increased to the current $32.5 million budget.
