Latest news with #RockfordCityMarket
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rockford's Madison Street reconstruction worries businesses
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Major construction on Madison Street has not only impacted traffic, but some business owners on the corridor say they're worried they will suffer financial losses if the construction deters customers. The City of Rockford announced the Madison Street corridor would receive a of its streetscape, along with water main upgrades, beginning May 12th through October 31st. The road will be closed to through traffic, with access to businesses remaining open. 'It's a little bit more of a struggle if you're not planning the day ahead, considering the construction,' said Ramiro Camacho, manager of Disco Chicken, 212 E State Street. The $6.6 million project was first introduced to the city in 2017. In Phase 1 of the project, the city is looking to completely resurface the northern end of the street from State Street to Prairie Street and improve the sidewalk, bike paths and railroad tracks. Toni Arbisi, the owner of Arbisi's City Body Shop, said he has heard complaints about a lack of communication from the city, but that hasn't been his experience. 'The project manager has been here, Fehr Graham (the engineering contractor) has been down here to explain everything that's going to happen, showed us the blueprints and how it's all going to work out,' Arbisi said. 'Plus, with the City we've had several meetings that we've been part of, in preparation for all this to happen.' Interim Public Works director Tim Hinkens said some of the complaints stem from unexpected construction projects nearby, including utility work along E. State Street. 'Both of those were unanticipated by us before the construction started. So I totally understand if people feel frustrated with the lack of knowledge of exactly what was going to be happening in front of their business and what the timelines are,' Hinkens said. 'We're doing our best to make sure that we continue to knock on those doors and be available to answer any questions.' Arbisi said business owners can agree that they're excited to see the project completed. 'It is definitely something that needs to be done, especially with the railroad coming through here and the trolley that goes back and forth,' he said. 'So it's also nice for that. It's good for the city because people wrap around here to get to State Street, Market, Lafayette, Olivem Prairie Street. So it's got a lot of things that it touches and it needs to be done.' Construction will be paused on Fridays to accommodate Rockford City Market events. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Honey Boy's BBQ among 18 new vendors at Rockford City Market's 16th season
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Rockford City Market, a staple of the summer season, opens for its 16th season on Friday. 'I'm hoping that all that runs fairly smoothly and that the vendors have a great, great crowd down here and the people come down and enjoy themselves and, you know, kind of kick off the summer with the City Market,' said interim City Market director, Cathy McDermott. Eighteen new vendors will join the more than 50 taking part this year. Honey Boy's BBQ is among the new additions. 'We came to the city market last year for the first time, and we said we were like, wow, you know, hopefully, you know, let's see if we can get in there,' said co-owner Dana Bratton. Honey Boys BBQ signed up as soon as applications opened in January and were accepted in March. 'Oh, my God, it was like I think it was tantamount to maybe perhaps winning the lottery or something. You know, we were excited. I mean, just ecstatic because to be able to share your gift with people, it doesn't get any better,' Bratton said. Also, making sure they have everything ready to go for opening day. 'I've been writing notes for about two weeks. Yeah. One of things to do, things to get ready for. And and I'm making sure we have everything packed that we would need out here and everything like that,' said co-owner Chardai Harvey-Bratton. The City Market does not have an exact attendance estimate for opening day, but organizers expect at least 5,000 people if the weather is good. 'It varies on opening day, but normally if it's nice weather, we get a really great crowd of thousands,' McLin said. Bratton said, 'We don't have any expectations.' 'We're just allowing God to take us where we are supposed to be. That's it. That's it,' Harvey-Bratton added. For parking and transportation information, . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rockford pauses construction on Fridays to accommodate City Market
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — The 2025 Rockford City Market will get underway Friday, but construction on Madison Street has some residents concerned. The construction is expected to last all summer. 'Madison Street Construction started Monday, so we anticipate the construction to take all construction season. So by about November. So we should be looking to be complete with it,' said Interim Director of Public Works, Tim Hinkens. The road will be resurfaced and will receive new lights and sidewalks. Some business owners in the area are worried that the construction will deter customers. Ryan Smiley, owner of Smiley's Vintage, a clothing shop at 120 N Madison Street, said he's optimistic. 'I mean, of course it's there's a little bit of uncertainty with it, but, you know, I think I we're just going to try and poise ourselves to not only survive during this, but to thrive,' Smiley said. Friday is the opening day for the outdoor City Market, and city officials are still confident people will show up. 'All through the design of this thing, we knew that this would be impacting the City Market, the local businesses along there as well as any other special event that was going on. So we took very special care to make sure that we communicated with the business owners,' Hinkens said. Construction will be paused on Fridays. 'During our pre-construction conference with our contractor who is doing the work, we made it quite clear to end work early on Fridays to make sure that they don't interfere with the city market,' Hinkens said. During the Market, travelers headed West are urged to use Jefferson Street and those headed East to use Chestnut Street. The Market Pavilion will close at 1 p.m. on Fridays for vendor setup, and road closures will begin from 2 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. Trolley schedules and a parking map can be . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
