Several business owners on Alameda Street say that recent utility construction in the area is driving away potential customers.
“People would come in and say … ‘I drive by it all the time I finally decided to stop in.’ But nobody is going to casually decide to walk in if it’s a nightmare to get in here,” business owner Carlos Cooper of Hybrid Records said.
Some customers even park across the street to get to the stores.
Business owners say lack of parking is also making others stay away if they don’t want to deal with the congestion or road work.
“This is supposed to be our busiest retail time of the year the Christmas season and it’s been extremely difficult,” says Cindy Neighbors, owner of Frame Factory & Gallery.
The City of Corpus Christi say this utility replacement in construction should be completed by the end of January – weather permitting.
But some business owners in the area fear with this construction, customers might not come back.
“We’re hoping that we didn’t lose so many customers who got out of their normal routine that now they don’t come back,” says Jessica Gignac, owner of Eleanor’s Coffee Bar + Market.
