Small businesses continue to struggle as West Seattle Bridge remains closed

The West Seattle Bridge is not expected to reopen until mid-2022.

SEATTLE – It has been more than 18 months since the West Seattle Bridge closed.

For West Seattle residents, trying to exit or return during rush hour can sometimes take twice or three times longer than their normal drive.

For some business owners, that extra time is a cost.

“The closure of the West Seattle Bridge affected my business more than COVID,” said Ben Oleson of Zook & Oleson Gardening Inc. “It’s the biggest thing that has affected my business in 21 years.”

Before the bridge closed, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) said it carried 100,000 people a day. Some of these people are now using West Marginal Way, which is where usage has increased 200% according to SDOT.

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Heavy traffic jams on diversion routes mean that the landscapers from Zook & Oleson clock in earlier.

“My payroll is up. Everything I can account for is downstairs, ”said Oleson. “So the margins are now much less than half of what they used to be.”

Oleson also has to decide which jobs outside of West Seattle are worth the trip.

“We’re getting a lot of new calls,” said Oleson. “I’m in a situation where I worry that with every new job I will lose money, not money.”

The traffic jam also affects business decisions and increases the costs for Niederberger Contracting.

“Frank Lumber, who delivers a lot of doors to me, now costs $ 100 to West Seattle. It used to be $ 30 or $ 35. There is also inflation in there, but now everyone is laughing at West Seattle, ”said Seth Niederberger.

Neiderberger says there is enough business in West Seattle to keep his company going.

“It is not profitable for us to remove jobs from West Seattle,” said Niederberger. “It’s becoming such a logistical headache that we’ve denied people.”

Both owners believe that access to the Spokane Street Bridge (Low Bridge) could help their businesses. Neiderberger and Oleson applied for it, but were refused.

“Retail and restaurant workers get these passes, it seems strange that small businesses like ours have been denied,” added Neiderberger. “Clearly rejected. No explanation, just denied. “

The SDOT website says it is open to emergency, transit and cargo vehicles.

People traveling to and from life saving medical treatments, medical on-call staff, all restaurants and retail businesses in West Seattle, ridesharing, employer shuttles, vanpools, international longshore and warehouse Union Local 19 members, maritime and industrial companies near the Low Bridge and government vehicles can request use.

“My business couldn’t be closer to the bridge. Our store is right under the pylon and I don’t know, we didn’t get the permit, ”said Oleson.

KING 5 asked SDOT why certain small businesses like Oleson and Neiderberger’s didn’t qualify for access. It released a statement that said in part:

West Seattle restaurant and retail businesses were selected for low bridge access based on several factors. While COVID-19 and the closure of the West Seattle Bridge affected all people and businesses in West Seattle, these two business sectors have been most disproportionately affected by COVID-19 in terms of jobs and economic losses. Through our ongoing outreach efforts, we have also learned that these types of businesses have been particularly struggling with receiving and moving shipments issues, and that limited access to the low bridge for critical supply trips may make all the difference for some of these troubled businesses could.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to change the current definition of retail or expand business access to craftsmen or professional services without creating heavy traffic that would block emergency vehicles and all other low-bridge travel. The low bridge only has room for about 300-400 trips an hour, depending on the time of day, and there are about 4,600 commercial licenses for professional services in West Seattle. We need to stay within that capacity limit to ensure reliable access for ambulance, transit and cargo.

SDOT said it was on track to start construction in November and open the bridge in mid-2022.