While construction is inevitable, the timing of it was unfortunate for many small businesses in Downtown Springfield.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - Summer in Central Illinois means sunshine, heat and the start of construction season. While construction is inevitable, the timing of it was unfortunate for many small businesses in Downtown Springfield. 

"It's not that we don't appreciate the end result, but a lot of us in these areas wish the timing had been better," said Doug Mayol, owner of the Cardologist on 6th Street. "This is our best tourist season, and it's been all messed up. Our most convenient parking has not been available ... and the noise of the construction is not very inviting." 

Mayol said he received a letter at the end of May, saying construction for his portion of the street would begin at the beginning of June and continue for three weeks. But portions of 6th Street have been closed all summer, and customers have told Mayol it has been too difficult to navigate. 

"It's all about convenience to be able to get downtown and find a place to park to get to the stores that you want to support," Mayol said. "This made that much more difficult." 

City of Springfield Public Works Director Dave Fuchs said businesses were a consideration when it came to scheduling out this construction. However, it is a big project and there are lots of factors his department had to consider. 

"That was one of the things that we were very conscious of," Fuchs said. "It does restrict traffic; there was just no way around it. People can't be parking or driving on the portion of the street that you're working on. So we have to redirect traffic." 

Fuchs said they worked hard to develop a plan and avoid complete road closures. With the work it takes to do roadwork, he said it made the most sense to tackle every element at once. 

"The idea is to put a new level of asphalt down on the streets that are in need of it, and when we do that sort of work, we also take that opportunity to put in new curbs, gutters and replace parts of the sidewalk that need replacing," Fuchs said.

With the Route 66 Centennial next year, the city is expecting high volumes of tourists in the area, so they wanted to ensure major projects like this one were completed this summer. 

While Mayol understands the reasoning for the timing, he has a difficult road ahead to make up the profit he missed out on during what should have been his busy season. 

"It has been a challenge in the way that they've chosen to do kind of an all or nothing," Mayol said. "If the money does not come into my register on a daily basis, then I don't have it to pay my bills." 

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