Downtown Seward businesses ‘make the best’ of inconvenient road construction

SEWARD, Neb. (KLKN) – A massive road construction project in downtown Seward has forced businesses and visitors to adjust to changes in parking and commuting.

Officials said the project on Highway 15 consists of removing existing pavement, rebuilding curb outlets, updating and replacing lighting and more.

Work began in April and is broken up into two phases.

Phase one is underway and stretches from the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad to Highway 34.

Phase two continues north and ends near Seward High School.

Jonathan Jank, president of the Seward County Chamber of Commerce, said the repairs were needed.

“It’s the most heavily trafficked area of our entire county outside of the interstate,” he said. “So about 9,000 vehicles a day. This is general maintenance reconstruction — the first time it’s happened in decades. So it really was overdue.”

Jank said construction should conclude ahead of Seward’s July Fourth celebration.

“By July 1, we should be done with downtown Seward and start to go north from there,” he said.

But the repairs have created problems for businesses and downtown visitors.

Gregg Nelson, owner of restaurants Squire Ward’s and Rue 6, said parking is restricted right now.

“So that’s a challenge for all the businesses,” said Nelson. “Traffic flows are, let’s say, disrupted.”

Nelson said Rue 6 has seen the most impacts due to its location on Sixth Street, which is also Highway 15.

“It’s a little confusing,” he said. “And people have to park a block or so away.”

Nelson said the construction has made some hesitant to visit the area.

“We’ve talked to a few people that are a little leery about coming downtown just because they don’t know what it looks like,” he said.

Because of this, he brought back an option from the COVID pandemic: order pickups in the alley behind the restaurant.

“We hear a lot of jokes about the back-alley deals, but it’s a lot of fun,” he said.

Nelson said the delays are frustrating and challenging but needed.

“The highway work is overdue, and we all know it,” he said. “There’s a lot of traffic through town, and this will help alleviate some of that when it’s all done. So we’re trying to kind of keep our eye on the prize a little bit, and we’ve got a phenomenal customer base.”

The transition for Jess Anderson, owner of J & Co. Salon, has not been easy.

“We’ve had people that will kind of circle around and they’ll be going around and around trying to find a parking spot, even two blocks off,” she said. “And we’ll have to call and just cancel because they’re running late.”

Anderson said thankfully, her clients have been understanding.

She said they should give themselves extra time because of the detours.

“And then when you get when you get here on our block, you may not be finding a parking spot anytime soon,” Anderson said.

She agrees the changes were needed to the area.

“You got to, like, just make the best of it because it needs to be done,” Anderson said. “And there’s no way around it.”