PITTSBURGH — After months of construction along Fifth Avenue near PPG Paints Arena, nearby business owners say they are finally seeing relief and are now looking ahead to a busy stretch of events to help recover lost revenue.
Nazim Islamov, owner of Pizza Bosa, said business has recently improved after a difficult period when road closures made it hard for customers to access his shop.
“It’s been a couple months. It’s been great. We are doing better,” Islamov said.
During construction, Islamov said customers often canceled orders because they could not find parking or easily reach the store.
“The customers would not show up or call and cancel and be like there is no way we can find parking so we can pick it up,” he said.
Now, with the Pittsburgh Penguins playoffs starting next week and the NFL Draft coming to Pittsburgh shortly after, Islamov is hopeful business will rebound.
“Hopefully, we are going to even it out,” he said. “On top of that, we have an NFL draft. It’s coming up here. We are excited to make that money back.”
Across the street, Khalid Qureshi, owner of Cafe Fifth Avenue, said his business has also struggled in recent years, especially without playoff games drawing crowds.
“For a business like me, it’s moved to a model for event only,” Qureshi said.
While he is optimistic about the upcoming playoffs, Qureshi said frequent construction along Fifth Avenue remains a concern and has limited the area’s ability to attract visitors.
“They’ve claimed that they were going to do all this stuff down here. It hasn’t become a destination for people to come down here,” he said.
Later this year, a new concert venue, Citizens Live at the Wylie, is set to open in October and is expected to bring more foot traffic to the area, too.
Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW