Construction causing trouble for local businesses

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Construction cones as far as the eye can see in South Bend. Crews are paving the streets and the work isn’t just causing headaches for drivers.

Business owners say Ironwood Drive needs to be fixed, but the construction is also hurting some businesses in the area.

Construction trucks humming and beeping, the sound of progress being made as crews with South Bend and INDOT repave roads like Ironwood Drive and State Road 23.

Video from Skydrone57 shows a stretch of Ironwood once filled with potholes, now smooth after crews repaved part of the street Monday afternoon.

But the smooth ride is causing some bumps in the road for local businesses.

"Definitely seen a difference in the last few weeks," said Jose Alejandre. 

Alejandre is the manager of Vape' N Smoke.

"A lot of slower mornings," said Alejandre. "Dying down a lot even quicker as the night goes by."

He says the construction is literally driving customers away.

"There’s vape shops on corners of this city, and if this part of the city is being under construction right now, and most of the clientele I have coming to me from that side will go to the vape shop that’s two minutes closer to them than coming to my store," said Alejandre. 

Patrick Ferraro, the owner of Rocco’s Style Shop agreed.

"It definitely has cut down on the amount of traffic going by here for sure," said Ferraro.

But he added the paved streets should bring in more customers down the road.

"It’s going to be in the long run good because now we won’t have to worry about this part for another 25 years hopefully, so try to get through the summer and make it work," said Ferraro.