‘Going to be a hassle’: Lincoln businesses worried as 48th Street project resumes

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – For more than six months last year, North 48th Street was under construction.

The road was entirely closed for part of the time as the city replaced a water main and fixed arterial roads.

Over the winter, the Lincoln Transportation and Utilities Department paused its work so local businesses could remain open.

But the project is starting up again on April 8. LTU officials said it will take about 12 weeks to complete.

SEE ALSO: ‘We’re all trying to stay alive’: Market helps Lincoln businesses amid 48th Street closure

Nidia Suleimen, the owner of Jerusalen Bakery owner, said she isn’t looking forward to more construction.

“We sell cakes in spring, summer, you know, when people have parties,” she said. “And that’s going to be a hassle for me.”

Suleimen lost about 60% of her business while the street was either closed or restricted to one lane because it was difficult for customers to take a detour to the store.

She said there was one day when she made only $50.

“I make some advertisements, try to get people to come here, but they always complain about the same thing: ‘We don’t know how to get there; everything is closed,'” she said. “It was really hard.”

SEE ALSO: Lincoln business owners band together to stay afloat amid 48th Street closure

LTU officials said this time around, the work will be less intensive since the focus is just on fixing up roads.

Assistant Director of Transportation Thomas Shafer said one lane will remain open in each direction for the entire project.

“They’ll be mostly taking off the rough surface, doing any base repairs we need to do and putting a brand-new asphalt surface on top of it,” he said.

SEE ALSO: ‘That’s a killer’: Lincoln man says 48th Street construction will doom his business

But Suleimen said she doesn’t know if she can trust the city to stick to its plan.

Like other businesses in the area, she even considered closing down.

“Eventually they say this thing is going to help us,” she said. “I don’t know how, really. They didn’t explain that.”

Shafer said updates to roads are important to the whole city.

“We just want to remind folks that the end product’s going to be one that we can all be proud of,” he said. “It’s going to be a smoother street. It’s going to help the community out. Not only the drivers on the street, but those businesses surrounding the street.”

The city is holding a virtual public meeting on the project on April 1.

Shafer said residents and businesses also have other opportunities to share feedback, including one-on-one meetings.