Mount Vernon businesses struggle from Skagit River Bridge closure

No bridge, no business. That's the reality for several shop owners in Mount Vernon tonight. A major closure is cutting off traffic, leaving business owners frustrated as foot traffic plummets. Fox 13's Shira Matsuzawa asked WSDOT why the project is taking so long. All looks normal here, but on the other side of the bridge, businesses tell me things are dire right now. Along Division Street in Mount Vernon, things are quiet as crews work on the SR-536 Skagit River or Division Street Bridge. Back on November 1st, WSDOT closed the bridge in both directions as part of a preservation project to paint the bridge. But nearby businesses say the closure now has them painting in the red. Cruiser Coffee owner Nicole Cruz says since the bridge closed... It's like a ghost town over here. She says it started with a partial bridge closure back in June, but now... It's been pretty terrible, not going to lie. Instead of serving more than 100 people a day and having two employees, she's now working by herself. I really hope that they have a way of paying it back to the small businesses because we've been impacted so badly. Up and down the street... Signs like this are posted outside other businesses. I don't see any of my regulars, hardly, you know. It's very rare to see people, which sucks. Yeah, it's just been really hard. Bud tender at Northwest Cannabis Co., Caitlin Britton, says sales have been down about 40% most days. I get it's for a good cause, but I just wish. We had more of a voice of how this was going to go down. While WSDOT Public Information Officer David Rasbeck understands the toll this is having on some businesses, he told FOX 13 they worked with the city to expedite this project. We know there's a lot of strong interest in getting this work done and reducing the amount of time that construction affects the residents and businesses in this area. On both sides of the bridge, but we also have to balance the need to preserve this important piece of infrastructure between downtown Mount Vernon and West Mount Vernon. In the meantime, Nicole is holding on. And WSDOT says if the weather cooperates, SR 536 is expected to reopen fully in time for the holidays. In Mount Vernon, Shira Matsuzawa of Fox 13 News.