photo by: Shawn Valverde

An aerial view shows Sixth Street, at center, extending west from Massachusetts Street with Lawrence City Hall at bottom right, in January 2024.

Road construction on Sixth Street that will limit traffic flow on the north end of downtown Lawrence is set to begin next Monday, and business owners in the area have some mixed opinions on the work’s likely impact.

The multimillion-dollar project is set to begin on Feb. 5 with phases of the construction set to last through fall. Traffic will immediately be restricted to one lane in each direction on Sixth Street from Massachusetts Street to Louisiana Street, Kentucky Street will be closed, and additional restrictions will extend as far as Florida Street throughout the month of February. The project is planned to extend the entire length of Sixth Street to Kansas Highway 10 throughout the year before wrapping up in the autumn, as the Journal-World reported.

While commuters might encounter some headaches, not everyone is stressed out about the upcoming disruptions.

“People have to find us anyway,” said Curtis McCoy, who has worked at Waxman Candles, 609 Massachusetts St., for 23 years. “We are down for anything that improves the downtown area.”

photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

Ryder Werts and Curtis McCoy at Waxman Candles, 609 Massachusetts St., on Jan. 26, 2024.

McCoy said that the candle shop has been at the northernmost end of Massachusetts Street for about 30 of its 50 years in business, and employees have seen many changes in the area. The busiest time for the shop just passed with the holiday season so the road construction won’t have much of an impact, he said, noting that candle lovers aren’t likely to be deterred by road construction.

A few doors down, though, at 623 Massachusetts St., the possibility of reduced traffic to the area struck a different chord with Black Stag Brewery & Pub co-owner Kathryn Myers.

“That’s the major way downtown from west Lawrence,” Myers said.

photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

Afternoon traffic is pictured at the intersection of Kentucky and Sixth Streets on Friday, Jan. 26, 2023.

The necessary detours for motorists will likely exacerbate struggles for downtown businesses, Myers said. Between the increasing numbers of homeless people, drivers who don’t want to pay for parking, and street closures, Myers said the city should expect to see more closed businesses on Massachusetts Street.

“Downtown is in trouble, and I don’t think the city knows how bad it is,” Myers said.

She said that removing parking fees could go a long way to bring more traffic downtown and that businesses were already struggling after the COVID pandemic when the city decided to raise parking rates.

She added that not only do people have to pay for parking, if they can find a spot, but they then have to walk several blocks to get to their destination, which discourages customers from going to the farther edges of downtown.

At Liberty Hall, 644 Massachusetts St., Maggie Wiseman, who works at the box office, said that commuting on Sixth Street from downtown is already a struggle, especially at rush hour. She said that she expects to see more accidents with the restricted traffic flow.

photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

Maggie Wiseman poses at the box office on Jan. 26, 2024, at Liberty Hall, 644 Massachusetts St.

“That’s super frustrating. I don’t want to deal with that. Trying to get on and off the bridge is hard enough,” Wiseman said.

She said that she couldn’t say if business would be affected at the theater, but she hopes that the large tour buses that regularly park around the corner don’t get stuck in traffic so long that they run late for their shows.

Next door at Free State Brewery, general manager Dominic Sova said he just hopes the project doesn’t take as long as other projects have in the city.

“It’s a little scary after seeing the effects of the 23rd Street repairs,” Sova said.

The East 23rd Street construction lasted 18 months and caused a great deal of frustration for business owners whose entrances were closed and commuters whose drive times were extendedas the Journal-World reported.

The City of Lawrence has said that the projects on Sixth Street will “greatly improve the road and driving experience for residents and visitors.” As the Journal-World has reported, one of the upcoming projects, pavement maintenance from Massachusetts Street to Iowa Street, will include full-depth patching, curb and gutter work and storm sewer upgrades. The city also plans to install more than 3,000 feet of new waterline infrastructure and a new ADA-compliant shared-use path on the north side of Sixth Street from Iowa Street to Wisconsin Street. The cost of the Massachusetts Street to Iowa Street portion of the project, according to the city, is just under $6 million.

The city has said to expect the following impacts to traffic:

• Kentucky Street will be closed at the intersection of Sixth Street.

• Sixth Street traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction between Louisiana and Massachusetts streets, then return to normal at the intersection of Sixth and Massachusetts streets.

• Westbound traffic on Sixth Street won’t be able to turn left onto southbound Tennessee Street.

• Sixth Street traffic heading westbound will be reduced to one lane between Michigan and Maine streets.

• Starting in late February, Sixth Street will be reduced to one lane in each direction between Maine and Florida streets.

“While impacts will vary during the different project phases, crews will always maintain at least one lane of traffic in each direction on Sixth Street for the duration of the projects,” the city said. “Detour signs will be installed to better help travelers navigate the area.

photo by: Shawn Valverde

An aerial view shows the Sixth and Massachusetts intersection with Lawrence City Hall at top right, in January 2024.