CLINTON, Utah — The city of Clinton is no stranger to road construction. Businesses in the area of 1800 North said over the past two years, construction on the road has impacted them.
“The investment is good in the city, but the flip side is that it’s been a tough two years for local businesses," said Jordan Olsen, owner of the Clinton franchise FiiZ and Wedgies.
He said they've dealt with a handful of obstacles.
“The biggest thing we had is having our driveways blocked off during construction, having the roadways down 1800 and 2000, people have just avoided the area," Olsen said. "We had flooding outside of our parking lot.”
Businesses like Olsen’s started to see a decrease in customers and, in turn, a decrease in revenue.
Clinton Mayor Marie Dougherty says their finance director forecasted a $200,000 shortfall in their sales tax revenue.
“I had many businesses say they had suffered losses in their revenue — 30, 40, 46 percent. I would lie in bed at night thinking, 'What can we do?'" Dougherty said.
She decided to take action by creating the Clinton Comeback Week. The challenge gives people the chance to earn points and win prizes — just for shopping local.
“If we love these businesses, if we want them to remain in our community, we need to support them. If we can get that awareness in the public, I think we have hope that we can build on that momentum,” Dougherty said
Businesses across the corridor are hopeful, too.
“I feel like Utah has construction everywhere, so people still find their way here. But they’re always so nice about it and they keep coming back in and I’m thankful — but also shocked,” said Abbygrace Eames, the owner of Two Peaks Barbershop.
While Two Peaks Barbershop is still surrounded by orange, they've been advertising more and offering discounts for customers.
Many businesses said they're able to stay afloat because of their loyal customers in the area.
Although construction isn’t over yet, their hope is that these community connections will last for years to come.
