BRATTLEBORO — With two major projects - repaving Main Street and construction of a new Brattleboro Food Co-op - set to begin soon, downtown merchants, organizations and residents are concerned about the disruption all this work will bring.
That's why Building a Better Brattleboro and the Co-op decided to put on a meeting at the River Garden. About two dozen people attended the June 10 event, which focused on setting up a free shuttle service for downtown employees, shoppers and visitors during the construction period.
“We're trying to figure out solutions,” said BaBB executive director Andrea Livermore. “What's going to happen with our customers when our world is dug up?”
The idea for the proposed shuttle service came from Co-op general manager Alex Gyori. He said that with work on the new Co-op starting up in July, he recognizes the disruption that the project will cause.
“With all the other stuff that's happening, we realize that it's not just [our] problem alone. This is a much larger downtown problem,” Gyori said.
Engineer Bob Stevens, of Stevens & Associates Engineering, said that the Co-op project “will not have a lot of effect on traffic.”
The bigger concern, he said, was the loss of about 25 of the 50 parking spaces at the Co-op site while construction takes place.
With the disruption of traffic patterns by the repaving of Main Street, and the upgrades to the traffic lights and sidewalks, Stevens said that “it's going to be slower and harder to get into downtown” over the next 12 months or so.
“The challenge is how to keep people coming downtown and make it convenient as possible,” he said.
There is deep concern by downtown merchants that months of construction and the disruption it brings will hurt their businesses.
Elissa Bhanti, co-owner of Adivasi, a store on Flat Street, stressed the importance of keeping the delays and frustrations of the coming year in perspective.
“The end result will be positive,” she said. “As merchants, we need to be calm and present a positive face to people.”
As envisioned by Gyori and other Co-op members, the shuttle would supplement existing bus lines of the BeeLine and the MooVer by adding additional shuttle vehicles provided by Brattleboro Taxi. Downtown visitors could park in outlying areas to the north, west and south of town and ride the shuttle into town.
“The BeeLine can only go to certain places,” said Gyori. “That's why we need the shuttle.”
Shirma Blanchard of Brattleboro Taxi said she could prove two, 18-passenger mini-buses and charge $35 per hour per vehicle, a lower rate than she usually charges.
“We can go where we're needed and work with the BeeLine and the Mover throughout the day,” said Blanchard. “We think this is worth doing to get your shoppers downtown."
Zephyr Designs co-owner Robert Clements said he thought the shuttle “would work better for employees working downtown” but wasn't sure how well it would be received by shoppers. Others were concerned about the potential cost of the service and where the money would come from.
“We are not convinced this is the best solution,” said Gyori. “Right now, we want to hear your ideas and thoughts.”
The state plans a pre-construction meeting on June 22 to talk about the Route 5 repaving. Another downtown meeting will likely be held in July to get more public imput.
Those with comments or questions about the shuttle proposal may contact Gyori at [email protected] or Livermore at [email protected], or stop by the BaBB office at the River Garden.