Overhaul of Halifax street comes at big cost to small businesses, says shop owner

The dust, debris and large jackhammering that person go the caller mean connected Dutch Village Road successful Halifax is costing tiny businesses successful the neighbourhood, according to 1 store owner who has seen a melodramatic driblet successful sales.

Mohammad Ashiq, co-owner of Hello Pets, said financial support is needed to assistance businesses similar his that are struggling due to the fact that of the road operation project, which started successful the outpouring and is expected to past until the extremity of the year.

"What we're seeing is since April, our regular income were starting to spell down, and since July, that benignant of was a spot much steep," Ashiq said successful an interview. "We're seeing astir fractional of what we would usually spot successful a day."

Ashiq said he's heard from respective customers who've been avoiding the area — and his favored supplies shop — due to the fact that it's excessively hard to find parking with the ongoing construction.

CBC News spoke with different businesses connected the street that said they are besides experiencing slumping sales.

To promote continued shopping, Ashiq is offering escaped transportation successful Halifax and expanding his e-commerce platform. While it has helped the store keep afloat, Ashiq said helium wishes much could beryllium done from a authorities perspective. 

"A situation similar this standard is truly hard for america to navigate with the constricted resources that we have," said Ashiq. "So immoderate benignant of enactment from the authorities would decidedly beryllium invited and precise helpful."

City enactment would necessitate legislative change

Duncan Robertson, manager of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business in Nova Scotia, said some jurisdictions, similar Montreal and Calgary, connection operation mitigation funds to businesses. 

But helium said implementing thing akin successful Nova Scotia would take extra steps. 

"Here successful Nova Scotia, municipalities don't person the authorization to supply nonstop fiscal enactment to tiny businesses. So we would request the state to get connected committee and marque amendments to the Municipal [Government] Act," Robertson said successful an interview.

CBC News has asked the provincial Department of Municipal Affairs for comment. 

The federation released a study past twelvemonth that recovered astir 7 successful 10 Canadian tiny businesses experienced "disruptions" owed to operation projects implicit a five-year period. Among those, 40 per cent reported a diminution successful sales. The astir communal disruptions included issues with parking, accrued traffic, dust, debris and noise.

Robertson said aside from fiscal support, municipalities successful Nova Scotia can assistance by communicating with businesses earlier operation projects begin.

"The HRM [Halifax Regional Municipality], particularly, they merit bully credit. They person seen large improvements successful connection and signage, et cetera. So they've done a bully occupation astatine the non-financial broadside of operation mitigation," helium said. 

The municipality told CBC News successful a connection that portion it does not supply compensation for construction-related impacts, "it remains committed to minimizing disruptions wherever imaginable and completing these indispensable projects safely and efficiently."

Ashiq said helium was fixed "ample notice" astir the construction, but helium did not expect it to beryllium this disruptive. Among different things, the task involves adding a sidewalk, creating raised motorcycle lanes and on-street parallel parking spaces, arsenic good arsenic streetscaping.

"We knew that we would suffer the parking spots connected Dutch Village Road, but we weren't alert oregon definite that we would besides suffer the parking spot connected the broadside streets," said Ashiq.

He said that aft sharing the challenges his concern is facing connected societal media, galore assemblage members person responded with words of enactment and person started buying astatine his store. 

Ashiq said it shows the assemblage is doing its champion to assistance tiny businesses — present he's hopeful governments travel suit.