It’s been a long time coming for businesses around Main Street. The KC Streetcar’s Main Street Extension officially opened Friday after years of work. Construction along the route posed lasting challenges for businesses on and around the extension’s path. “During the construction, our clients, we had a lot of people complaining about how hard it was to get here,” said Orville, Vaugh, co-owner of Definitive Tattoo Gallery at 3921 Main St. “It was hard to navigate which roads were closed.” But now, they’re hoping for a smoother ride. “We’re just really hopeful that it was worth all the wait and the construction and difficulties.” Christina Decker, owner of Midwest Cyclery, a bike shop at 3951 Main St., said she hopes the extension brings customers coasting in after years of hurdles. “I really think it’s going to make a huge difference,” Decker said. But she still feels some frustration over the impacts of the construction. “There’s still a lot of frustration with a lot of business owners, definitely,” Decker said. “Because it’s hard to get back up out of that pit. When you’ve turned off the faucet, turning the faucet back on is easy, but to get the water to flow is not always the easiest.” Overall, though, Decker said she is “ecstatic” now that the new extension is up and running. “We always could see the light at the end of the tunnel, and we finally made it there,” Decker said.
It’s been a long time coming for businesses around Main Street.
The KC Streetcar’s Main Street Extension officially opened Friday after years of work.
Construction along the route posed lasting challenges for businesses on and around the extension’s path.
“During the construction, our clients, we had a lot of people complaining about how hard it was to get here,” said Orville, Vaugh, co-owner of Definitive Tattoo Gallery at 3921 Main St. “It was hard to navigate which roads were closed.”
But now, they’re hoping for a smoother ride.
“We’re just really hopeful that it was worth all the wait and the construction and difficulties.”
Christina Decker, owner of Midwest Cyclery, a bike shop at 3951 Main St., said she hopes the extension brings customers coasting in after years of hurdles.
“I really think it’s going to make a huge difference,” Decker said.
But she still feels some frustration over the impacts of the construction.
“There’s still a lot of frustration with a lot of business owners, definitely,” Decker said. “Because it’s hard to get back up out of that pit. When you’ve turned off the faucet, turning the faucet back on is easy, but to get the water to flow is not always the easiest.”
Overall, though, Decker said she is “ecstatic” now that the new extension is up and running.
“We always could see the light at the end of the tunnel, and we finally made it there,” Decker said.
