Little Italy business community reacts to Highway 417 disruptions

Ottawa continues to experience heavy traffic on streets along Highway 417 while construction crews replace the Preston Street overpass.

Work began Thursday night, kicking off major detours around the construction site. On Saturday, many motorists were trying to avoid the area entirely, and the Little Italy business community has begun to take notice.

"It's a little bit slower this weekend," said Dreamland Café owner Coco de Leo. "I think everyone is aware of what's going on."

She says when customers do make it in, the traffic is all they can talk about.

"People are stressed about it, but we really try and ease everyone's stress. We're giving extra wait times on reservations," she adds.

Meanwhile, it has been mostly smooth sailing for membership-based businesses like Yogatown, though in their unique case, which is being situated directly next to the overpass, has made it tricky for members to access the building.

"The lack of parking, even though the city has set up a temporary parking lot, I feel like that's been the biggest impact,"  said yoga instructor Maddie Lishchynski.

The construction noise has also caused some headaches for a business looking to foster a Zen environment, though Lishchynski sees it as an added challenge.

"Trying to focus on your meditation despite everything going on around you is pretty much the essence of yoga in the first place," she said.

Some businesses blame the slowdown on cottage season.

"I'm noticing there's a lot less foot traffic on the sidewalks, but it's really slow this time of year," said Gabriel Fayad, owner of Gabriel's Auto Sales. "Everyone's on vacation, but we still have our regulars coming in."

"People are out at the cottage, school is also out - everything will go back to normal in September," said Pasticceria Gelateria Italiana ownerJoe Calabro.

Crews are steadily making progress on the Preston Street project – the replacement overpass in place by late Saturday afternoon. Highway 417 is set to reopen on Monday at 6 a.m., while the stretch of Preston Street running underneath the overpass is scheduled to reopen Aug. 6.

• Sign up now for daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App