With a $19 million infrastructure project taking place this summer in Buchanan, many downtown businesses are finding new ways to promote themselves and attract customers as people avoid the area.
Dion Bouzas, the owner of Hilltop’s Creekside Cafe on Front Street, tells us he’s seen business drop and he’s heard the same from nearby dispensaries, gas stations, and other restaurants. He says the city has taken steps to help people access those businesses by putting up placards with directions around detours, but that can only do so much.
Hilltop’s head waitress, Alicia Munson, tells us business is down between 30 and 50%. So, what do customers tell her?
“The majority of the people that come in complain that it was hard for them to get here,” Munson said. “We do Facebook Lives every morning with directions on how to get here, the quickest route, just to keep everyone fresh on how to get here, because it does change, sometimes daily.”
Munson said the cafe has been teaming up with other businesses for cross-promotions, like offering a discount to customers who have shopped at other downtown locations when they come in. The city has also tried to help by promoting A Taste of Buchanan this month and allowing construction on Saturdays to speed things up. Still, Munson says she’s not sure the business can make it to November, when things are set to wrap up.
“We’re just barely cutting by right now, so if it gets any slower, then no, he would have to go down to a skeleton crew and drastically cut our hours of operation just to stay afloat.”
Bouzas is hoping the city will reassess the construction timeline to help. He’s also written to the governor’s office seeking support.
Meanwhile, the Buchanan City Commission this week was told infrastructure work on Red Bud Trail should be finished by the end of August, making downtown navigation a bit easier. Commissioners said the work is actually going faster than it does in other communities, with several local streets already repaved.
