For restaurateur Robert Saunders, owner of The Cove Café and Fish & Chips, yesterday’s full closure of Lockhart Road at 25 Sideroad in Innisfil was the last straw.
Lockhart Road has been under reconstruction since 2019. Installation of new culverts, sewer and water lines has resulted in on-and-off road closures west of 25 Sideroad, with the work resuming in June 2020.
Saunders and other business owners in the Sandy Cove Plaza were already coping with COVID-19 closures and restrictions this year.
When COVID hit, “we shut down the dining room completely. We just did take-out and delivery,” said Saunders, noting that sales dropped and staff were laid off, but he and other businesses managed to hang on.
In September, when the province announced Stage 3 reopening, Saunders reopened the dining area at The Cove Café, only to close it again a month later.
Only this time, it wasn’t because of the virus. It was due to the ongoing roadwork, he said — the noise, the dust, the delays were keeping customers away.
“The customers weren’t coming because of the road,” he said.
The construction has impacted other businesses in the plaza.
“It’s basically decimated our sales,” Saunders said.
And then came Tuesday’s full closure of the intersection.
It created a detour that added up to nine kilometres to travel time. Customers coming from Alcona were directed to turn west on Line 10, travel north on 20 Sideroad past Lockhart Road to Mapleview Drive, and then go east to rejoin 25 Sideroad. With Lockhart closed, they then had to snake their way through Sandycove Acres retirement village’s narrow lanes to reach the plaza.
It not only discouraged customers, it also added long minutes to the restaurant’s delivery service.
“So why even be open? I’m literally at my wit’s end," Saunders said.
There has been a lack of communication throughout the processs, he claimed, adding that he is still waiting for answers to his questions.
“There was always supposed to be one lane open… and no road closures after Oct. 30,” he noted.
But with the wet weather this month, will that deadline be extended?
Why were he and other business owners only informed of Tuesday’s road closure in an email received at 5:55 p.m., Monday?
Why is the work being done now, during a pandemic, when it may be years before the water and sewer servicing is needed to support residential expansion on Lockhart?
And will there be any compensation for the residents and businesses impacted by roadwork and closures, on top of COVID?
Driveways have been dug up, families with children face challenges because school buses won’t run through a construction zone, and residents have been unable to enjoy their yards as the construction has dragged on.
“We’re getting the shaft. Why is this even being done at this time? We keep going and going, trying to keep it open for the people,” Saunders said.
But if the intersection stayed closed past Tuesday, “we’re probably going to stay closed for the rest of the week. It’s a forced closure that I don’t want to do.”
He’s not alone in that decision. Over at The Scissor Effect hair salon, customers on Tuesday were complaining of the lengthy detour. Calls for appointments have also fallen off — leading the owners to make the decision to close for the rest of the week.
“We’re actually closing (Wednesday). We’re not getting calls, we’re not getting appointments,” said one stylist. “We’re losing business.”
Clients are eager to come in for salon services, especially since there are fears of a second wave of the virus and new closures, but they are not eager to deal with road construction, closures and mud.
Information on the project has been posted on the Get Involved Innisfil webpage (click here), including the statement that construction is expected to be completed "by the end of the year," except for the final lift of asphalt which will take place in 2021.
The town has confirmed that, "due to weather, construction at Lockhart Road from the 25th Sideroad to Earl Street will continue (today). Depending on the weather, the intersection (of Lockhart and 25 Sideroad) may remain closed for the remainder of the week."
“We’re literally locked down,” Saunders said. “You see our frustration. I’m just mad that this is happening and that they’re letting this happen.”
“Hopefully, it will be over soon,” said a woman behind the cash at the Sandy Cove Drug Store.
