Concord businesses struggle with downtown construction

CONCORD, N.C. — A long-planned downtown streetscape construction project is underway in Concord. But as dirt moves, small businesses say they are struggling. Small Business Saturday will offer people a chance to show them support.

Business owners agree when this construction work is finished, it will be great. Plans call for 22-foot wide sidewalks, 11-foot travel lanes, street trees, landscaping, updated utilities and more.

But right now, many businesses are struggling because of this work. They are hoping they will make it to the finish line.

The 100-year-old Cabarrus Creamery survived the Great Depression, World War II and Covid but it is construction outside its downtown Concord location of the last two decades that is giving the ice cream shop its toughest battle. With sales down 50 percent from last November, Cabarrus Creamery is closing on Sunday. Owner Beth Huss doesn’t know when it will reopen.

“We’re not that busy in the winter time but this is crazy,” she said. “My husband said, look, you know to get out of a hole you got to stop digging.”

Cabarrus Creamery is one of several in Concord that have been struggling due to the streetscape project. David Kern of Goldberry Books thinks it will be great when it is done, but right now it is challenging

“We are optimistic it will be beneficial. I think everybody is a little bit just kind of done with it,” he said. “We are all trying to ban together support each other.”

Co-Owner of Press and Porter Coffee Shop Emily Cordero says businesses need more support from the city to survive. She says the city needs to be more transparent and vocal about construction timelines.

“We can run our businesses, we don’t need help to run their businesses. What we need them to do is to do their jobs. We need them to manage this construction project properly. We need them to not accidentally close roads,” she said. “Our biggest fear that at some point the small business presence will be so small that there will just be chains down here.”

A spokesperson for the city of Concord said small businesses are the “lifeblood” of downtown and that the city understands it has been a challenging time for them.

“The biggest impact we can have as a community is to continue to shop small and support local,” spokesperson Lindsay Manson said. “We encourage everyone to join us in Downtown Concord on Small Business Saturday and make a commitment to shop local not just on one day but all year long.”

Downtown Concord will be in the spotlight Saturday for a major Small Business Saturday event. There will a trolley that takes people downtown and also to Gibson Mill and Southern Strain brewery. Santa will be in downtown Concord near Table 11. There will be pop up vendors and markets. Local businesses will be offering discounts.

Ashley Howell of the Lenz Studio helped organize the event. The construction is currently directly in front of her business. She says she is taking it in stride. She’s focused on using social media to bring people downtown.

“It’s been all about social media and trying to find ways to bring people to Concord,” she said.

For more information on Concord’s Small Business Saturday event, click here.

City of Concord statement:

The heart of our city is our historic downtown and through the streetscape project we’re investing $13 million to support current businesses and create a vibrant, thriving downtown for generations to come. We understand that it is a challenging time for businesses during this construction phase. Our small businesses are the lifeblood of our downtown and we will continue to connect them with the resources they need to be successful and promote the many services, shopping, food, and entertainment they have to offer residents and visitors. The biggest impact we can have as a community is to continue to shop small and support local. We encourage everyone to join us in Downtown Concord on Small Business Saturday and make a commitment to shop local not just on one day but all year long.

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