Broadway Road Diet Blamed for Business Closure

Merry’s is going out of business – and what’s more – the proprietor is blaming Broadway’s road diet for the closure.

The fair trade store on Broadway near Temple Avenue has been a fixture in Bluff Heights for 14 years, selling handmade clothing and specialty items from Nepal, Morocco, India, Egypt and other faraway places.

But after the slimmed-down, reconfigured Broadway was unveiled last April, many Merry’s customers abandoned the corridor altogether saying it’s too crammed, dangerous to drive and parking is too difficult.

Taking away a traffic lane each way from Redondo to Alamitos Avenues; adding curbside bike lanes to both sides of the road and painting bubble-like parking compartments on the asphalt several feet from the curb out in the street, angered many, while at the same time pleasing a number of bicyclists and scooter riders.

Lots of red curbing added up and down Broadway resulted in reduced parking spaces.

“This has destroyed my business and taken away my livelihood,” Merry’s store owner Merry Colvin said of the road diet.

“Customers literally called me to say they are not coming because they’re afraid to drive on Broadway,” she said. “Because we’ve lost car traffic, we’ve lost foot traffic.”

Colvin said customers used to easily pull up against the curb; park, shop, have lunch next door at Gallagher’s Pub & Grill and spend time.

“That’s over,” she said. “How can businesses survive with no traffic?”

Colvin plans to close shop in the coming days. Customers learning of the closure through AAA’s Westways Magazine and a storefront banner visited her to give hugs and say goodbye. With merchandise 50 percent off and even the furniture and fixtures up for grabs, much of the stock is going quickly.

Gallagher’s owner Ciaran Gallagher said he will miss Colvin and that she’s been a staple on the block. Gallagher said revenue at his establishment is down too.

“We’re way down,” he said. “I have not heard any positive reaction to this road diet.”

Evan Whitener, owner of The Bicycle Stand across the street from Merry’s, a high-end store which sells and repairs bicycles, said the city did the right thing in adding the bike lanes, which he said should be called “alternative transportation lanes,” as they serve scooters, skateboards and rollerblades in addition to the bicycles.

He said the city officials were right in planning ahead for the expected increase in population and reduced parking. The bike lanes help residents transition to other modes of transportation in preparing for the future, he added.

Whitener said business is not down for him and from his point of view; locals are adjusting to the changes and enjoy hanging out.

“And in fact, the amount of walking traffic and the overall amount of time spent on the block seems to increase for people who do come to this area,” he said.

He added, “The bike lanes are starting to take hold. People are starting to recognize them as safe and efficient means of getting around.”

Visionary Artware owner Mina Barnes said business is down for her.

“I definitely felt the impact of the street,” she said. “The road diet is significantly hurting the business.”

Barnes said drivers passing by have trouble reading her signs at 2915 E. Broadway and thus don’t know when a promotion is going on.

“It’s very bad,” she said of the new road layout. “And it’s just dangerous. People won’t park on Broadway. The city really committed a malpractice.”

Hugo Du Bois, pastry chef and proprietor of The Firehouse Kitchen at 2742 E. Broadway, said, “The road diet has devastated us as a business. It has diminished business by up to 50 percent.”

Du Bois said when the eatery opened last March – a month prior to the road diet’s unveiling – “Business was excellent. Then right after the road diet, that’s when we started seeing a decrease in the business.”

And Park Pantry at Broadway and Junipero Avenue remains affected.

“Business is down,” said longtime employee Cindy Sandoval.

After the road diet’s debut last April, more than 1,000 petition signatures were collected against the project. The topic has become a centerpiece in the upcoming city council election for the Second District.

Mayor Robert Garcia, told of Colvin’s situation through email, did not respond to the Beachcomber’s request for comment. Second District Councilwoman Jeannine Pearce also did not respond to requests for comment.

A longtime Merry’s customer said Merry’s and other mom and pop stores should be cherished.

“There doesn’t seem to be any sense of value for long-term residents like Merry and the owners of Belmont Kidz across the way,” said Long Beach resident of 13 years, Linda James. “It’s almost like they’re dispensable. But they’re part of the heart of Long Beach. These are people I’ve had relationships with for over 10 years.”

Myrna Rae, a “Dance Alive” facilitator who has lived in Long Beach since age four, was unhappy with the changes to Broadway. She used to drive to Merry’s but said last year that she will not drive a car on Broadway anymore. She’d rather walk the four blocks.

“You could park previously,” said Rae, 83. “But now you can’t park anywhere.”

“If you want to ruin a city, do what they did to Broadway,” she added.

Angela Bachmann, a Long Beach resident and bicyclist, said she uses the bike lanes to get to and from work and appreciates the city’s progressiveness.

“I do feel safe coming home at night,” she said. “I think that’s important.”

She added, “The nice thing about a bike lane is it’s for every economic level. If you don’t drive, it’s another option.”

Meanwhile, Colvin said she is touched at the large turnout of well-wishers coming in.

“I didn’t know people loved the store so much, I really didn’t,” she said. “I’m so honored. People are coming in crying. I’m just shocked at the response to the closing.

“And how many people are saying then how awful the road is and how they don’t want to drive on it and how they can’t find parking. And they go on and on about it. It’s just amazing. This has been a real eye-opener.

“And the one consistent question that I am asked is, ‘Why isn’t the city doing anything about it? You mean they’re just going to let businesses close?’ That’s what they say. Every day I get those questions, four or five times a day.”

Meanwhile, Colvin sold her store to Erika Jurkovic from across the street, who owns Halo, a tattoo and permanent makeup studio for women. Jurkovic said she outgrew her small shop and looks forward to expanding to Merry’s location.

She said she understands the problems Colvin has gone through but retail is affected more than her service shop, which requires appointments.

“Yes, we are affected because traffic is gone off of Broadway,” Jurkovic said. “And from them pulling those cars into the middle of the road, you also don’t see the businesses as much because you have to be so hyper-focused to not hit or collide.

“And taking away the parking spots has hurt our business a little bit but since it’s appointment only, it’s something that people can plan for. That’s why we’re okay.”

Jurkovic said she is against the road project and the loss of parking. She said her main concern is safety.

For example, she said her 72-year old mother tripped over one of the road’s black bumpers.

“My mom won’t even drive on Broadway because it’s so tight and she’s so nervous,” Jurkovic said. “People are literally going off of it.”

Also, Jurkovic’s 6-year old daughter almost got hit by a bicycle while exiting the car.

“It was very scary,” Jurkovic said. “It’s just dangerous.”

She will take over Merry’s lease on Feb. 1 and will work with the city to convert the location from retail to a service business. After refurbishments, she plans for Halo to be open in a couple months.

Joseph and Amber Marchi discovered Merry’s for the first time Sunday and became instant fans.

Joseph said, “I like the bike lanes, but it has to work for retailers too.”

kirt@beachcomber.news