DES MOINES, Iowa — If you've driven along Ingersoll Avenue in recent weeks, chances are you encountered some roadwork.
Phase three of the Ingersoll Streetscape Project is renovating the stretch of the street between Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway and 28th Street.
When the project is complete, it will mirror the reconstruction that happened on the south side of the street. Visitors can expect a bike lane, pedestrian zone, parking spaces and flower beds.
Kathie Anderson has owned Tandem Brick Gallery on Ingersoll since 1977, and says this project is one of the more memorable ones she's encountered.
"We've had construction off and on throughout the years, but this is probably the worst and the longest period of time," said Anderson.
But Anderson says even though some customers have complained about fewer parking spots as construction continues, their loyalty hasn't wavered one bit.
"This is strange, but our business has been up for the last three years," said Anderson. "It's just like steadily getting better and better and better. It's been better every month."
The Avenues of Ingersoll and Grand Executive Director Lauren Kollauf says the organization has been working to support businesses by providing them social media toolkits and launching a marketing campaign to draw attention to the region.
"This is really a first-of-its-kind design in Des Moines," said Kollauf, "Ingersoll has always been a model for urban planning. So, we're really excited to see this streetscape come to life on both the north and the south sides of Ingersoll."
Kollauf says while most businesses along the stretch have a loyal customer base, she's hopeful others will fill in any customer gaps made worse by the renovation process.
"We hope that people will continue to support their favorite Ingersoll businesses, whether those are restaurants or retailers and we understand that the construction is a bit of a headache right now. So we just want to help the businesses continue to get customers coming back regardless of the construction that might be outside their front door right now," Kollauf said.
If you're looking for a way to support some of the businesses along the stretch, you can check them out while attending Ingersoll Live! on August 27th.
If you want to learn what's next on tap for Ingersoll, click here.