PAINFUL PROGRESS
Downtown retailers, restaurants suffer as construction blocks access
The new Oklahoma City streetcars are arriving in town on time, the project is on budget, and test runs are underway with service set to start later this year.
So how could there be any bad news associated with the $131 million project that has been pursued by rail advocates for the past 30 years?
Change comes with pain, and in this case, merchants and restaurants are feeling the pain of finding themselves surrounded by trenches and streets torn up to install rails and infrastructure for the 4.6-mile system.
Once the streetcar is up and running, restaurants and shops should see a boost in business, especially from the downtown workforce and residents who will be able to hop on from the 22 stops set up from Midtown to Automobile Alley to Bricktown and the Central Business District.
But will all the retailers make it? Kaiser’s in Midtown has reduced its hours in a last-ditch effort to survive. Dekora in Lower Bricktown cited the streetcar construction as contributing to its closing last year.
But of all the districts to struggle with streetcar construction, from my observation the worst hit has been along Automobile Alley, where retail and restaurants have popped up over the past decade but alternative access is far more complicated than in Bricktown and Midtown.
As a result, restaurant and shops are seeing revenue drops between 30 percent and 40 percent. Last week, I started meeting with readers at restaurantssuch as Cultivar Mexican Kitchen to bring in some much-needed business. I really appreciate Jason Ferbrache, administrator at EMBARK, who gave readers an update about the streetcar project and provided hints at what is next.
First, the good news: the worst of the construction and roadblocks along Broadway should be over next month. Contractors, meanwhile, are prepared to do whatever is necessary to ensure the April 29 Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon can proceed along Broadway, which has been the finish line since the race’s start.
The questionabout Sunday service for the streetcar, however, remains with the city sticking with plans to only run streetcars during special events (concerts, conventions, festivals).
“It gets into a discussion of what do you want to have,” Ferbrache said. “Do you want to have Sunday streetcar service with nothing to connect it to, or do we want to have an entire transit system where we look at Sunday transit service?”
This comment takes on far more importance with news breaking later Friday as The Oklahoman'sWilliam Crum revealed Ferbrache is seeking funding for Sunday bus routes. Could this be the first step toward adding full Sunday service for streetcars as well? Funding remains an issue, with Ferbrache estimating cost for duplicating Saturday schedules for Sundays will cost an additional $1 million to $1.5 million. Other questions remain to be addressed. A shorter Bricktown loop will run Fridays and Saturdays.
But anyone who has visited Bricktown after 10 p.m. on either night can testify Sheridan Avenue — part of the streetcar loop — can get congested.
Test runs will provide a first glimpse of how much that traffic will slow down streetcars and create havoc on schedules when the vehicles are trying to travel down the two-lane street.
Ferbrache has no answer for what steps might be taken. I suspect solutions might include either restricting traffic after 9 p.m. or converting Sheridan Avenue to a one-way street during late night traffic jams. Or maybe moving lane strips could create a dedicated lane for the streetcars. Time will tell.
The streetcar will be a big change for downtown with exciting opportunities to follow. But have no doubt, the growing pains are far from over once the contractors finish their jobs.