Call it the big dig in Northeast Minneapolis.  

“There are bar rails everywhere,” declares Joyce Truong, owner of Vellee Restaurant. “There’s holes dug on each corner.”  

“There’s definitely holes and cones and lack of proper access to your business at points,” adds Ally Desbiens, who runs Arlo, a clothing boutique.   

Since early spring, Hennepin County has been doing a seven-block rebuild along Hennepin and First Avenues.  

“There’s always things that need to be done,” notes Scott Parkin, the Director of Old Town Minneapolis, a neighborhood association. “General, regular repairs and road improvements, and sometimes redesign of the streets.”

The $20 million project is to include a left-side parking lane on each roadway, plus two traffic lanes, a daytime bus lane, protected bike lanes, and storm weather improvements.  

But some businesses say they’re suffering because of the construction.

“This is devastating for all of our small businesses,” Truong says. “I think the construction itself has been a nightmare for all of our neighbors and ourselves.”   

Truong says her business on First Avenue dropped 30% the first week in April when construction began.

Foot traffic was impacted, along with clients who had a hard time parking nearby.  

Her customer count slowed to 50 a day, half pre-construction levels.

Truong decided to close the Northeast Minneapolis location and says she’s hoping to keep the business going with her deli store in the 7^th Street skyway.

“Unfortunately, it’s really impacted our business, and we can’t keep our doors open,” she says.

Parkin estimates the neighborhood has lost up to ninety parking spots during the warm weather months.

“You can’t park anywhere,” he declares. “That’s an entire year of business for most people, and are they going to come back next year, that’s a question.”

Asked about merchants’ concerns, a Hennepin County spokesperson issued a statement, which says in part, “We know it can be challenging dealing with construction projects and appreciate your patience. Our work to make safety and multimodal improvements on Hennepin and First Avenues in Northeast Minneapolis is right on track to wrap up the end of next month.”

Desbiens says she hopes the construction won’t discourage people from visiting.

“We’re just trying to get people to come over here and stay over here,” she notes. “Give us the full neighborhood back; it’s a gem.”

Truong says she and her staff are still trying to figure out a game plan for the future.

“What’s our first step if we can’t reopen that location?” she asks. “We’re hoping to still be able to operate our downtown location. Every day is a challenge.”

“There’ll be some real good things that come out of this project,” Parkin adds. “But we wish it could have been phased in a bit differently or thought about more with the implications and repercussions.”