N. Park construction worries business owners

Road construction on North Park Avenue to replace an aging water main has faced delays and is disrupting local businesses, according to merchants.

The construction started in May as part of the Village of Rockville Centre’s plans to upgrade the community’s water mains. The project was supposed to be complete by the start of the school year, but is now expected to wind down in November.

“It wasn’t horrible in the beginning,” said Turn of the Corkscrew co-owner Carol Hoenig. “But we didn’t know if the road would be open and sometimes didn’t know if we could even get to the store.”

Coming up on its first year of business, the small community bookstore is struggling to attract new customers, and the roadwork has only made things worse. “We don’t need people being discouraged from coming on this side of park,” said Hoenig.

Other businesses owners said the work is likely necessary, and they look forward to its completion. “Yes, it’s affecting business,” said Colour Bar Hair’s founder Izabela Saboski. “We just have to deal with it. What’s the point of complaining? We just hope that they finish effectively and quickly.”

Centre Lock Shop clerk Mike DeVito said, “Yeah, for the residential customers, it’s harder for them to get here. But the contractors have to come, so they do the work. Still, they’re pretty quick. I give them credit.”

“The village has been on top of the contractors to get it done efficiently,” village spokeswoman Julie Grilli said. “We encourage anyone with complaints to reach out to the village.”

But Hoenig said she worries that her business might not survive the disruption. “We have different people saying it’s going to look beautiful, and I say, ‘I hope we’ll still be here,’” she said.