Laval businesses hurt by roadworks call on city to help them out

Laval businesses are worried about a lean holiday season because construction is keeping customers away, and they aren't having any luck getting the city to help them financially.

Last week,Montreal unveiledthe details of its planto compensate businesses struggling due to roadwork, and some entrepreneurs in Laval want to see their city follow suit.

GeorgeTsolis, a salesman at Auto Shelby, located on St-Martin Boulevard inChomedey, said walk-in customers are nowhere to be seen since the city started working on the sewer and aqueduct network near the car dealership.

"Of course I'm hurting," he said. "Let's just say it's going to be a rough Christmas if it continues like this."

Construction work started Oct.22 and is expected to continue until the end of December.

Tsolisrelies on commission from his sales, but since construction started, he hasn't been able to deliver cars to clients.

"If we can't deliver, we can't pay bills. We have children to feed at home," he said.

"Christmas and New Years are coming up."

NearbyParfumerieternellewas empty whenCBCvisited on Friday.

Its owner,YoussefShaw, said the city told him it is not responsible for lost revenue.

He's concerned about the next month and a half.

"They could have done this in January, it's a slow month," Shaw said.

Compensation in Montreal

Montreal's newly announced programs includeone, worth$25 million, to compensate for losses due to sewer repairs and other underground work, including STM construction, and another, worth $16.8 million, to support business development organizations during construction periods.

• City's compensation for businesses impacted by construction not nearly enough for some

Laval isn't going to follow Montreal'slead, however.

"At this point in time, the city is not working on a compensation plan," public affairs manager Sarah Bensadoun said.

With files from Matt D'Amours