SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Some help may be on the way for businesses in City Heights that have been impacted by the construction that’s been going on in the area since 2023.
Business owners and some local leaders held a meeting on Thursday to roll out new programs to help the shops that have been impacted along University Ave.
The City Heights Development Corporation is calling this a relief fund. At this point, it’s unclear how much each impacted business could get or when that funding could be rolled out.
The corporation is also working to organize a local “passport program,” where shoppers can collect stamps and be entered to win prizes for shopping locally.
Business owners say the help is needed.
“I’ve never seen the full potential of our restaurant due to the fact that there's been an interruption to driving, parking and foot traffic around the entire corridor,” said Jennipher Dainty, Owner of the Key & Cleaver.
The city started installing roundabouts and medians to improve traffic and parking on University Ave. in 2023, and the project was supposed to be finished last summer.
Even though the city’s website says construction should be complete next month, some business owners still have doubts.
ABC 10News first talked to Rosa’s Ice Cream and Fruit Bar in January.
Surrounded by an impassable stretch of University Ave. under construction and fencing around the sidewalks, the business says it’s lost as much as 95% of its sales since construction began due to a lack of foot traffic.
They came close to shutting down earlier this year before a generous donation and a social media campaign helped them stay open.
Still, owner Francisco Gonzalez says he and his wife’s life savings are gone — and they’re worried they will have to close if the construction doesn’t end soon.
“It’s really hard to run the business because no people going through the front of the sidewalk,” said Gonzalez. “And even no people driving through, because the whole street is closed. So basically, you see people around, but not too many.”
This is also coming at a difficult time for a lot of shops since potential tariffs could make it more expensive to buy supplies and force them to raise prices for customers.
