Main Street Resurfacing Bad for Business, Dexter Merchants Say

The Village of Dexter will begin resurfacing parts of Main Street from Baker Road to Jeffords Street beginning April 16. The construction is part of the village's capital improvement projects and is expected to last through May 12.

The project consists of a mill and overlay of the asphaìt on Main Street and the addition of stamped colored concrete crosswalks. According to information provided by the village, all of the crosswalks in the downtown area will be enhanced, with the exception of the crosswalk near , which will be removed.

Several downtown merchants said the scope of the project is detrimental to customer traffic in the area. Throughout the six-week construction, one-way traffic heading eastbound will be maintained on Main Street. Parking in the downtown will be limited, and in some instances parking will be completely unavailable in front of the storefronts due to the construction.

Karen Dudek, owner of , said she was unaware of the planned construction and is worried that sales will be negatively affected.

"I don't know how we're going to handle it, but it's going to hurt us significantly," she said. "No time is a good time to do it, but if the project has to be done, we will find a way to cope."

Catherine Swan, who owns and operates in Dexter, said she is remaining positive.

"We know it will be a good thing for the community," she said. "With everything that has gone on in the community during the past week, there's no sense in worrying about a construction project. You just have to see the positive side of it."

For Ben Hourani, owner of , the repaving project is forcing him to close his store, he said.

"I can’t afford to have business cut off for six weeks,” Hourani told the Dexter Leader.

Hourani said he did not receive any notice from the village or the Dexter Area Chamber of Commerce about the project. Hourani recently celebrated his one-year anniversary and was looking forward to expanding the business in Dexter.

Allison Bishop, community development director, said letters informing merchants about the project were mailed out last week.

Lucky Haskins will remain open until March 31. Beginning this weekend all items in the store are being offered at a reduced price. 

The village will hold an informational meeting about the project at 7 p.m. March 29 at the . Village staff and engineers will be in attendance to answer questions.