A Cameron Rd cafe owner says roadworks that blocked parking outside his business for three days without warning made him feel like he was “in jail” and his revenue dropped 90 per cent.
Owners and staff of nearby businesses happy to see the end of roadworks outside their businesses say they are relieved to have parking back after what one described as a “nightmare” few months but concerns linger about wider disruptions continuing over Christmas.
The Tauranga City Council says it is on track to finish the first stage of the project (Harington St to 17th Ave) in December and is staying in touch with businesses as it does its best to minimise disruptions.
The project is upgrading old underground services and redesigning the road with better bus, cycling and walking options. Construction has been making its way south from the CBD since April 2021, bringing with it disruption for many businesses and property owners, with some closing, moving, or threatening legal action as others stick it out hoping the end result will be worth it.
Sand Bakery and Cafe owner Jack Lao said roadworks blocked customers from parking outside his business between Seventh and Eighth Aves last Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.
“I had no business at all. I was 90 per cent down [in revenue],” he said.
Lao said he was not warned his cafe would be blocked off and he felt “caged in”.
“I felt like I was in jail. No one was walking around, no one stopped by.”
The barriers came down on Saturday and, while roadworks continued on either side of the cafe, his car parks were open and business was back to “normal”.
“It is okay for now but if it were to go on for months and months I would probably have a mental breakdown. I was fine for a couple of days but if they block it again for months … that is going to be a huge impact on me.”
Maree Sanders has worked at Cash-Inn on Cameron Rd, near Eighth Ave, for 12 years. She said she was glad to see the roadworks that started outside the pawnshop about five months ago “finally” finish.
“It does look good. It is good to finally see some car parks back.”
The impact on the business, however, had been “significant”.
“It has been a real nightmare,” Sanders said. “At one stage, I didn’t know if I was going to have a job. It was a bit of a dice roll there at some point.”
Business had been “dead quiet” ever since, she said. “There is no foot traffic. We have had to cut down our hours.”
Sanders said there was limited parking for her customers and believed because there was no signage with time limits people parked for as long as they liked outside the shop, she said.
“I have had to bring my scooter in so there is parking available for my customers.”
Owner of Follow The White Rabbit gift shop on Ninth Ave, Vicky Lang, said foot traffic was down 70 per cent, especially on Saturdays, her busiest day.
“I can’t employ as many staff. We used to have a full-timer and now we are down to the odd casual staff.”
Lang said the roadworks had particularly impacted stores like hers that counted on customers popping in for a browse as they walked by.
She understood the upgrade had to happen but said the planning and time it had taken were frustrating.
“It is unfair on businesses to rip up everything, fence things off, block car parks and then just leave it for a while.”
She was worried about the lead-up to Christmas, her busiest time. While she was brainstorming new ways to bring in customers, she said, even a pause in the roadworks for that period would help.
Kiwi Barber owner of 22 years Loramay Storey was also hoping the roadworks would be done by Christmas.
She said communication from the project managers working outside the Cameron Rd barbershop had been “positive” and the finished result looked good.
She said she had to ask the council, however, to stop issuing parking tickets to her clients coming in for a 20-minute haircut.
“It was turning a $15 haircut into a $50 one.”
She said she did not think the business would have made it if it had just opened. She said some clients who used walkers or wheelchairs had particularly struggled.
Secret Optics owner Devon Palairet said it was short-term pain for long-term gain, and he hoped the project would achieve its goals.
“But it is going to require a culture change if this is going to work. You can understand the longer-term thinking behind it. It is trying not to be short-sighted and reactionary to what is going on now,” he said.
A business owner who would not be named said he lost a lot of customers during the roadworks.
Another said while all affected Cameron Rd businesses were hurting, they just had to deal with it: “It has to be done”.
He said the roadworkers deserved credit because they dealt with a lot of abuse and it was not their fault.
Tauranga City Council director of transport Brendan Bisley said underground stormwater and street upgrades between Eight and Ninth Aves were complete, with work now under way at Ninth Ave West, including a new signalised intersection at Ninth Ave.
Underground stormwater upgrades between Eight Ave and Seventh Ave West were also done, with streetscape work that started last week expected to take eight weeks.
“We have been in touch with business owners throughout the project, including this area, with regular face-to-face visits, a weekly email notification as well as letter drops where required,” Bisley said. It was doing its best to minimise disruptions, including by removing cones and barriers whenever possible without risking workers’ safety.
He said it tried to give businesses at least a week’s notice of works outside their property but this was not always possible as sometimes dates had to change.
Bisley said to avoid unnecessary cones and barriers being out if work was expected to be delayed for more than a week, temporary surfaces were put in place and barriers removed. Signs were put out for shorter delays advising when work crews would return.
Bisley said the council was acutely aware of the issues facing many Cameron Rd businesses and the first phase of the Building Our Future Cameron Road Te Papa project was on track to be completed in December 2023.
“We are not anticipating disruptive traffic management over the Christmas period.”
Zoe Hunter is an assistant news director covering business and property news for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. She also writes for NZME’s regional business publication Money and has worked for NZME since 2017.