By mid-June, heavy machinery operated in the westbound lane of 21st South above 1100 East, and No Left Turn signs blocked access to side streets where people used to park. Only a  narrow strip of sidewalk remained for customers to access shops along 21st South’s north side.

Andrew Neff, president of Utah Lubricants LLC, owns seven Jiffy Lubes in Salt Lake City, including one that has operated at the corner of 12th East and 2100 South since 1999.

“We do everything we can to look open,” Neff said. “We talk to our customers and they say, ‘Oh yeah, we’re just avoiding Sugar House altogether.’”

Neff said that customer visits have dropped 15.5 percent, which he estimated could total $300,000 to $500,000 in lost revenue this year.

Mark Williamson manages Sterling Furniture, a longstanding staple of the Sugar House business community at the northeast corner of 21st South and 1100 East. The family-owned business opened there in 1940.

“Business is off,” Williamson acknowledged, but “loyal customers still manage to maneuver the obstacle course to find us.”

Five-year Plan

Thanks to an $87 Million General Obligation Bond that voters approved in 2018, Sugar House is more than halfway through intense road reconstruction and infrastructure replacement slated to finish in late 2025.

Salt Lake City’s website describes the final outcome for 2100 South as a way that “connects people to destinations in Sugar House in a safe, welcoming, and accessible way by providing more space for all kinds of road users.”

That vision includes raised medians in some spots, a multi-use path along the south side — and fewer left turn options that allow access to side streets.

Salt Lake City Engineer Mark Stephens is tasked with balancing business concerns with construction challenges as crews reroute traffic to dig up streets, replace aging water and sewer pipes and repave road surfaces. 

“We constantly field concerns that come in,” Stephens said. “We’re seeing these different projects all interact … and we’re able to make real time adjustments to traffic control.”  

The aim of such adjustments is to provide access to businesses, Stephens added. 

The work on 2100 South spans two years and should finish by fall 2025, Stephens said. It partially coincides with a one-year road construction project along 1300 East in 2025.

Barely  hanging on

Shauna Deboe manages Soup Kitchen on 1100 East just north of 2100 South, a spot it has occupied for half a century.

“It has definitely affected us in a really bad way,” Deboe said of the roadwork nearby. “Business is way down, and online orders are way down too because people don’t want to come into the area.”

Deboe said her location — one of three in the Salt Lake City area — had to pare back its three employees from full time to part time. 

“We’re trying to survive the best we can with what we’re dealt,” Deboe said.

Road construction on her block of 1100 East coincided with that along 2100 South. But Stephens said they could open that section of 1100 East by the third week of June to accommodate access to those businesses. 

Time to litigate?

Bob Campbell, owner of All About Coins at 1123 East 2100 South, said he intends to file an injunction against the city for misrepresenting what the final outcome of the road construction will accomplish for Sugar House.

“We’re not opposing the water line, the sewer line, the electrical line, the gas line – all of that’s necessary. Repave the surface? Absolutely,” Campbell said. “This project is necessary but they’re killing businesses here and will actually kill them when they get done with the final project.”

Campbell predicts that the raised medians will cut off business access “because there’s nowhere to turn.” He organized the Sugar House Business Alliance to coalesce opposition to the final design.

Treading water

Jiffy Lube’s Neff noted that “we’ve had to be really vigilant with the contractor” as the road work progressed.

“We’ve had times where we’ve been almost all the way blocked off … and they haven’t put the sign up that they were supposed to that says here’s your access to Jiffy Lube,” Neff said. “We’ve had to speak up.” 

Jiffy Lube requested a Left Turn option in the final design so that customers could have easier access, Neff said, and the project team listened. 

“They did allow us a left turn” on Douglas Street, meaning that customers must perform a U-turn to get to their entrance. “That’s the best they could do,” Neff said. The city offers grants to affected businesses: