Road weary: Constant construction takes a permanent toll on small businesses

75th and Wornall Construction // Photo by Kaylynn Mullins

Orange cones and road closure signs have become a part of almost every Kansas Citian’s daily routine. For most, this may lead to running late because your usual morning commute was suddenly closed off or not knowing how you’re supposed to drive on Main Street due to the lanes changing every day. Though slightly annoying, the construction hasn’t completely uplifted most people’s daily lives.

“Most people” doesn’t include small business owners. With parking lots closing, sidewalks un-walkable, and the end date consistently extending, getting customers through the door hasn’t been easy. With Main Street and KC Streetcar construction nearing an end, it is now the Waldo neighborhood’s turn for upheaval. The Wornall and 75th Street construction began in January, and it completely uprooted the parking lot and street directly in front of a strip of beloved KC restaurants, shops, and bars. 

Stores like Soap Refill Station, remain remotely unscathed by the torn-up roads.  “We have seen a little decrease, but we have a pretty established customer base. What we’re losing is new people,” says Lexy, the store manager. The customers bring large tubs and bottles for various detergents, soaps, and other household items, and lugging them across the street has been difficult. “We have a little cart that we offer to help customers load things into their car, and that’s been super helpful,” Lexy says.

75th and Wornall Construction // Photo by Kaylynn Mullins

A lot of businesses depend on walk-ins or foot traffic, and the loss of the parking lot and roads has put a dent in sales. 75th and Wornall has become a prime destination for bar and restaurant hopping, but pedestrian capacity has ceased dangerously for these establishments. Waldo Social owner Shawn Larson says getting people in the door has become an even heavier task than usual for a local business.

“At the end of the day, I have to be busy enough,” Larson says. “I’m working my butt off to get people in that in the door to not break even, still.”

With the demolition of the parking lot situated directly outside the front doors, plus limited parking elsewhere, getting to these spots has become troublesome for many customers—in particular, elderly or handicapped customers. Waldo Social has a group of regulars that meet every Wednesday, two of them using wheelchairs.

“Well, now it’s like 90-something degrees out. That’s not good for an older handicapped person to try to get to your front door,” Larson says. 

“We had a lady who was trying to go to Waldo Pizza, which is our neighbor. And she had to come inside of our restaurant, just because she was about to faint or something. So we had to sit her down, give her water, let her calm, and cool down before she could even go to Waldo Pizza. It took so much out of her to go across the parking lot,” Larson says. 

Waldo Pizza—a longstanding staple of the area—has also had to tread to stay afloat during the roadwork. With foot traffic being down and the general public being unsure of how or if they can get in, owner Steve Kingery says, “The major inconvenience is sales. I mean, we’re probably down 30 to 40 percent.” 

Their curbside pick-up has been popular amidst the mess, however, it doesn’t bring in as much revenue. “We’ve had to downsize a bit,” says Kingery, who reduced staff volume per shift due to the lack of traffic.

75th and Wornall Construction // Photo by Kaylynn Mullins

“I’ve lost staff members because of this. Some of the people who have worked for me since we opened, I lost because they’re not making enough money,” Larson says. 

The aspect of cleaning up the pothole-ridden Wornall Road excites most drivers, and delays in construction on top of road closures are inevitable. The real question is whether there is a way that the city can prevent these projects from harming the businesses that make it special.

“My main issue with the whole thing is, I feel like the city probably didn’t do the best job of planning and letting people know what was actually going to happen,” Larson says. “It’s been pretty detrimental to all the businesses around there that are getting very affected by it.” 

Though the business owners report great communication between construction managers and themselves, awareness doesn’t solve the issue of fewer customers.

“I think one of the bigger setbacks right now is they’re doing the construction on Wornall and doing the construction on the parking lot and on our street in front of the store at the same time. So it’s just a complete cluster,” Kingery says. “​​I think a lot of people are just staying away from this intersection in general.” 

“People don’t want to go there,” Larson says. “People call and ask us if we’re open during construction. We’ve been open during construction the whole time.” Numerous attempts have been made to bring in people, such as giant “We’re Open” banners and discounts—an incentive for dining in and overcoming the parking obstacles. Though currently limited, there are parking lots near these businesses that can be used. 

“There’s plenty of parking over in the CVS lot,” Kingrey says.

“We’ve been trying to educate people to park their car along the street in the back,” says Larson.

“Supposedly, I’m going to be able to park cars in front of my restaurant in three weeks. And if that’s true, then I will survive,” Larson says. “If it’s longer than that—It’s tough, I lose money on a daily basis.”

The entire construction project is expected to be completed by Fall 2025, but the parking lot near the strip and the Wornall blocks from 75th to 73rd was finally completed on July 16. After speaking with business owners before and after the reopening of the parking lot, the easy access wasn’t the magic fix-all they were hoping for.

75th and Wornall Construction // Photo by Kaylynn Mullins

“I don’t think people are aware that it’s open yet because of the construction on Warnell still,” Larson says. “I mean, it’s still not done. They’re still working on it. People are actually able to park, but walking around, it’s still a little bit of a mess.”

The timeline’s inconsistency only added to the laundry list of frustrations. “They said it would be two months once it started. It was definitely not that. They’ve been dealing with those parking lots since the middle of January. We’re in mid-July,” Larson says. What the local businesses yearn for, is a return to normalcy after the six-month stretch.

“The city wasn’t as transparent as I would have liked them to be on everything, but this is where we’re at,” Larson says. “All you can do is try to move forward. So, I just want to get it done and get back to normal life.”

Many giant “We’re Open!” signs have been plastered all around the construction area, but the wind takes them or they’re simply not enough to compensate for the chaos. “In my opinion, that’s (the signs) probably about five months too late,” says Larson. Despite everything, the Waldo community has rallied behind these businesses and shown support.

Local business owners express their gratitude for customers’ patience and business during the mayhem. “We also have a couple of regulars that go out of their way like, ‘I came in to help you guys out.’ So I mean, we’ve definitely seen some positive responses, too,” Kingery says. 

“I do appreciate the people who have been sticking with us and supporting us through these few months. I know it sucks to try to get there and it’s a huge effort, but stick with us and things will be back to normal real soon,” Larson says. 

The end is in sight for these Waldo spots, and they’re looking forward to seeing more of the city come through their doors. “We’re very excited about sports season. It’s right around the corner. We got football starting in a couple of weeks,” Larson says. “We’re actually doing some preseason parties to try to get some buzz going.”

75th and Wornall Construction // Photo by Kaylynn Mullins

“We’re just excited about seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, and we just hope that people can make their way to come see us. We’ve got a brand-new menu we’re dropping, too… Let’s have some fun,” says Larson.