While current construction aims to provide Port Townsend with another roundabout, businesses near the intersection wish they could be kept in the loop more about its progress and impacts.

Andrea Stafford, marketing director for the Food Co-Op at 414 Kearney St., noticed the impact to her store “right away,” after construction started in mid-September.

Stafford estimated sales have “softened,” and are down about 5 percent, while the Co-Op’s customer count has likewise dropped.

“But our customers still seem to be able to find us, and so far, none of them are complaining,” said Stafford, who nonetheless deemed the signage “a bit misleading,” since certain motorists believed the roads were completely closed within the construction zone, rather than treating it as a detour.

“To our customers, we say, come on in, your groceries are waiting,” Stafford said.

Similarly, Stafford expressed frustration that businesses within the zone didn’t receive notifications through established channels, “so we could be prepared and notify our truckers of the change in routing.”

Evan Palmer, who owns the Cherry Blossom Home Store at 2203 E. Sims Way, reported both a severe decline in his business and a lack of clear communication, since initial intimations of such local road construction projects, months and years prior, had open-ended dates.

“No one was sure when anything would happen, so nothing could be planned,” said Palmer, adding that, aside from the Washington State Department of Transportation site, “All the information we received was through word-of-mouth; not the city, not the state, no letters, nothing.”

Palmer noted that some fellow businesses were unaware of what would be happening “until the signs went up,” and the confusion extended to customers who told him they’d avoided the area during the spring, when they had previously believed construction would be completed.

According to Palmer, the Cherry Blossom’s two biggest drops in sales came a week in advance of construction, when signs were posted, and again when detours of traffic commenced.

“Trying to cross the street, or back out of parking spaces is like playing ‘Frogger,’” said Palmer, who’s used sandwich-board signs and social media to inform prospective customers the Cherry Blossom is not only still open, but even has parking spaces.

Despite the difficulties, Palmer credited construction crews with working fast enough to get ahead of schedule, and with doing what they can to make the zone “quite manageable to get around.”

In the meantime, Palmer advised prospective customers to shop without fear of construction, not just at the Cherry Blossom, but at all the local businesses within the construction zone, since “for this town to survive, we all have to work together.”

For the Cherry Blossom’s neighbors, Celtic Crossroads at 2205 E. Sims Way, road construction came during an already complicated business move.

While Celtic Crossroads Northwest relocated to Bainbridge Island, Celtic Crossroads in Port Townsend retained its familiar street address under owner Joe Gallegos, whose sister-in-law runs the new branch.

Like Palmer, Gallegos described local businesses relying on the shifting sands of word-of-mouth accounts, which initially suggested the roundabout construction could coincide with an extended closure of the Hood Canal Bridge.

Although Gallegos’ attempts to contact WSDOT eventually yielded a response from Olympia, he expressed a greater measure of gratitude to the efforts of a pro bono group devoted to helping small businesses, with whom he and other local merchants conducted online discussions.

Gallegos noted that a number of his neighboring merchants, from hairstylists to custom curio makers, have weathered the disruptions to their streets and sidewalks because they rely less on walk-in traffic than on by-appointment services, but the majority of Celtic Crossroads’ trade comes from tourists wandering in.

“They don’t see our storefront as easily, even with all our flags,” said Gallegos, who estimated Celtic Crossroads’ business in Port Townsend was down by roughly two-thirds from this time last year. “But credit where it’s due, these construction crews have been flying through their work, and they always try to let us know whatever they learn. A few of them have even done some shopping at our stores.”

Indeed, not only has the crews’ work been quieter than Gallegos expected, but during the weekends, he’s appreciated the almost total absence of outdoor noise.

Piper Corbett, who co-owns Propolis Brewing at 2457 Jefferson St., hastened to offer the same disclaimer as the other merchants interviewed by the Leader, all of whom emphasized that they’re more concerned for their fellow local businesses than for their own customer traffic.

Aside from identifying what she sees as a recurring lack of responsiveness from city or state officials regarding such projects, Corbett would like to see those officials supplying additional and more explicit signage for businesses whose storefronts lie behind the detour signs, to clue customers in that those merchants are still open and accessible.

Corbett was also less sanguine about the construction noise than Gallegos, which she conceded can “take a toll” on her mental health over time. But one of her most pressing concerns, even beyond the hit to her business, has been what she believes to be unsafe motorist traffic through the detour routes.

“These drivers are used to cruising downtown at speeds of up to 30 miles an hour, but they’re going through side-streets where they need to be much less aggressive,” Corbett said.

While Corbett has been gratified by faithful customers who continue to swing by, and would love to see more of them, she echoed her fellow merchants in emphasizing that none of them are looking for “handouts” or charity.

“I just wish we were seeing more consideration for the impact that construction projects like this have on local small businesses, that contribute valuable tax revenues to the community,” Corbett said.