11-03-2025
Bike lanes now open on Central in Downtown. Businesses on Central question the cost.
Mar. 10—The construction of new bike lanes running through Downtown is complete after an expenditure of $220,000, nearly a month of construction and the dismay of some neighboring businesses.
Two new lanes on Central Ave — one eastbound, the other west — give bikers space between the street and the sidewalk. These lanes will eventually link to the Rail Trail, a 7-mile urban pedestrian loop set to open in 2028.
The lanes that opened Sunday are part of a broad effort to revitalize the city's core. This includes using Tax Increment Financing and a policy that fines landlords who own vacant buildings on Central Avenue.
While looking to spur the area's growth, its city councilor, Joaquín Baca, is focused on improving walkability and increasing transportation options Downtown.
"Best practices in an area like that, where you have a main street, is you want to slow it down, get more people walking, make it safer for them," Baca said.
Baca, who used funds set aside for district projects on the lanes, said he decided on the project after getting feedback from Downtown residents requesting better biking options.
"This was done over a period of a year, with multiple meetings with businesses, residents ... keep in mind, Downtown is not just businesses," Baca said.
Yet, some business owners on Central are unsure if bike lanes will help them and felt left out of the conversation.
They also complain about how the construction harmed their sales.
Downtown staple Lindy's Diner — which has been open for half a century — saw a 30% drop in business during the construction of the bike lanes, according to its owners Steve Vatoseow and Dawn Vatoseow.
"Maybe in the long run, it's going to be good for Downtown. But right now it's not," Steve Vatoseow said.
He said that while the parking spots in front of the shop are no longer blocked by the construction, he worries about the safety of bikers as people are parking or opening their car doors.
Less than a block down the street, Stuart Dunlap, owner of The Man's Hat Shop, is also questioning the construction of the lanes.
"There's a lot more people riding bikes, but there just aren't people that are riding bikes to come Downtown," Dunlap said.
He also expressed frustration that the lanes narrowed the street and that construction slowed business.
"In my opinion, it was a bad call, and I hope they change it," Dunlap said. "Where they come up with these ideas, I have no idea. 'Well, it works in other cities,' well, this is not other cities."
He added that even though Baca is a customer of his store, he was not given a heads-up about the project.
Baca acknowledged that the construction of the lanes took longer than expected, but said he wanted it completed in time for warmer weather.
"We figured we better just do it now, while it's still colder, so there are definitely complaints about the time," Baca said. "It was three weeks, that's not an insane amount of time; the long-term benefits far outweigh the short-term impact."
A study shared with the Journal reports that an average of 6,700 to 9,000 cars pass through the city's main corridor on Central , where the bike lanes are located, each day.
The study also states that the environment for bikers was "relatively sparse and disconnected," and suggested adding bike lanes to the side of the road with buffers to protect cyclists.
"If you build it, they will come. We've seen this with highways. In particular, the more lanes that you add, the more cars go on the highways; that is a self-perpetuating cycle," said Mark Bailon, a member of Strong Towns, a non-profit group that advocates for urban development .
Bailon, a biker himself, expressed his excitement about the lanes opening and believes that it will spur businesses along Central .
"It probably would increase business. ... It's a lot easier to step off your bike to walk around and walk into a business," Bailon said. "As it connects to the Rail Trail, as that gets built out, there's going to be a lot more of a place-making option people can then connect from Central Avenue into the rail trail, or vice versa."
