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Downtown merchants urge Gainesville to ease pain from 2nd Street 'streetery' construction
Summary
Downtown business owners told the General Policy Committee that street closures and unclear signage from a new 'streetery' project have driven away customers and cut sales; owners asked the city for free garage parking, employee passes, prominent wayfinding and temporary rent relief; staff said signage is being designed and limited rent abatements are under consideration.
Business owners from downtown Gainesville urged city leaders on April 23 to take immediate steps to shore up customer access and visibility during a phased 2nd Street construction project.
"We're only days into the 2nd Street closure...customer counts are down," said Sita Mali, who identified herself as co-owner of Alpen Bistro and Café Voltaire. Mali told the General Policy Committee she and other tenants are already seeing customers assume businesses are closed, and that a recent weekend’s receipts were far below normal. She asked the city for six short-term measures, including free public parking in the downtown garage for the duration of the closure, employee parking passes, prominent banners and wayfinding, a coordinated local-media campaign and temporary rent subsidies for city-owned properties.
Jesse Jones, speaking for other affected merchants, said many downtown tenants have signed a petition asking for the same assistance.
Interim Chief Operating Officer Brian Singleton said signage is in design and procurement and that city crews will place A-frame signs and larger panels on construction fencing that list business names and note that businesses are open. City staff have directed a 20% rent abatement for three tenants in the municipal garage and said they are exploring other options where the city controls the property; Singleton said contractual limits make offering free garage parking difficult.
City Manager (interim) told the commission construction partner Scorpio is issuing biweekly updates to businesses and that staff has communicated with media to emphasize that downtown businesses remain open. He said staff will pursue additional digital and physical wayfinding and noted that some private lots are not available for lease or are reserved for courthouse staging.
Multiple commissioners urged fast, visible measures. Commissioner Book suggested moving existing electronic and digital city signage and deploying portable kiosks with QR codes linked to a downtown business page. Commissioner Deckenwalker pressed staff to expand outward-facing communications — not just updates to businesses — and asked that the city use its website and Channel 12 to drive customers downtown.
The mayor and other commissioners acknowledged the economic strain of construction and encouraged staff to continue developing options, including targeted rent abatement for city-owned tenants and coordinated outreach.
What happens next: staff said it will continue design and procurement for signage, pursue limited rent abatements where the city has authority, and follow up on concrete parking options with more details for the commission.
