Businesses, community must band together to weather LRT construction, chamber says

In two years, much of King Street will be in shambles as construction for Hamilton's LRT project begins — and businesses need to get together and start planning now with a positive message to make sure they can endure it.

That's a critical message being delivered tonight at the first of four Light Rail Transit planning sessions, hosted by the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce in conjunction with Metrolinx and the International Village and Downtown Hamilton BIAs.

"If you communicate to your customers that the sky will fall and it's a mess out front and tell them not to come, they won't. It becomes a self fulfilling prophecy," said Hamilton Chamber of Commerce CEO Keanin Loomis.

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"The whole point is we talk about this now, two years before construction."

The $1-billion project will run alternately down Main and King Streets from McMaster University from Eastgate Square.

Plenty of businesses occupy that route, and so the chamber is trying to help mitigate the impact a massive construction project will have, by talking about coordination with the city, marketing, and support local campaigns.

Speakers tonight include Rollin Stanley, Calgary's general manager of urban strategy, Eglinton Way BIA administrator Sheliza Esmail, and Uptown Waterloo BIA chair Jeff Zavitz, all of whom have experience with the disruption that comes from big transit projects.

Zavitz told CBC News that there's no denying that LRT construction has been disruptive at times in Kitchener-Waterloo, but that on the whole, the region is seeing a net gain in businesses opening rather than closing.

"We can probably count on one hand the businesses who have closed because of construction," Zavitz said. "Really, it depends on the viability of the business community at the outset."

"If you're week to week, [construction] could push you over the edge. But so could interest rate hikes and the economy."

At the same time, some business owners who say they have been impacted by the LRT construction are preparing to take legal action against the Region of Waterloo.

The construction has brought changes in traffic patterns and public transit routes, which some businesses say have negatively impacted them.

A Kitchener market also said in 2015 it had seen its business cut by about 30 per cent after just a few days of closures.

Zavitz says it will be integral for businesses to work on "positive messaging" through social media and advertising, and help make sure businesses are still top of mind while construction is ongoing.

"Perception, I think, is two thirds of the issue," he said. "If people think it's hard to get to you, they won't even attempt."

The first LRT Ready business preparedness session runs tonight at Homewood Suites at 40 Bay Street South. For more information, visit the Chamber of Commerce's website.