NEW ALBANY, Ind. — New Albany councilman Al Knable is taking steps to prevent a full closure of the Sherman Minton bridge while its under construction.
Andrea Brady, spokesperson for the Sherman Minton Renewal Project, said there are six different traffic options ranging from minimal lane closures to a full closure of the bridge.
Although the bridge construction isn’t supposed to happen for another year and a half, local business owners and residents are worried about the possibility of the bridge closing to all traffic, like it did in 2011.
Beth Enoch owns Underground Classic Cuts in downtown New Albany. She said about 70 percent of the clients for head barber, Reecee, come across the bridge to the shop.
To Beth and Reecee, cutting hair is about more than making money. They said it's also about the relationships they've built.
"It's much more than a client at that point. We see them more than we see our families," Reecee said. "Some people I've been seeing over like 7 years."
The pair fear they'll lose clients if the bridge is fully closed.
"All it takes is one haircut to lose somebody because if they go somewhere else well what if they like that better?" Reecee said.
The two are among many downtown New Albany business owners who don't want to see the Sherman Minton bridge fully close for reconstruction.
"We need that one or two lanes, it's like a must," Enoch said.
Enoch said it would have a "dramatic" impact on their business if no lanes were open on the bridge. She is advocating that at least one, but hopefully two lanes, stays open she said.
"A full closure, it's going to be bad over here. A huge impact on the community," Reecee added.
That's why Knable is stepping up to be the voice for all downtown business owners concerned with the impact on business. Knable is introducing a resolution to the council Thursday night at its meeting. It would simply say the city supports bridge access during reconstruction, rather than full closure.
The resolution is non-binding so it doesn't carry any official weight with the Indiana Department of Transportation, but he's hoping it will still help the cause.
"We're trying to minimize the nightmare for those folks," he said. "We don't want the downtown businesses to just survive during that time, we want them to thrive."
Knable said business owners are already preparing for the worst, because they are in a state of uncertainty right now and just want to know what will happen so they can plan accordingly.
"When push comes to shove and those decisions are being made at the table, I would hope that they would take us into account," Knable said.
Enoch plans to attend any future public input meetings on the Sherman Minton Bridge Renewal Project, and is trying to stay positive about the outcome. She said all business owners have supported each other throughout the process.
"It's better to go about this as a community than as an individual," Enoch said.
The council voted unanimously to pass the resolution saying the city supports bridge access during the project, rather than a full closure.
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