Kick construction talk to the curb and help local businesses
Ongoing roadwork at Danforth and Kelly has resulted in lane closures and traffic reroutes, increasing congestion on nearby streets. This construction has led to obstructions to neighborhoods and businesses across the area, creating a challenging environment for the businesses that line those streets. Although the construction is needed to improve the safety and efficiency of Edmond drivers, the damage that is being done to local businesses cannot be overlooked.
The Danforth and Kelly intersection was reported to have the most accidents out of all Edmond intersections in 2024 and was ranked one of the busiest in Edmond in 2025. Because of the safety concerns and heavy traffic, the Oklahoma Department of Transportation decided to add double-left turning lanes, improve the sidewalks around the intersection and raise center medians. What was supposed to be a 210-day project that began on Sept. 8, 2025, has become so much more: it has left a heavy financial burden on surrounding stores. With the end date now extending to this fall, these businesses need the community’s support.
Issues such as traffic jams and reroutes, blocked entrances and more have left the businesses to struggle with the limited access created by the construction left, preventing would-be customers from entering the stores. One such business is 15th Legion Tattoo and Body Piercing, where the artists have felt the financial toll of the construction.
“The roadwork has slowed our business exponentially,” the general manager of 15th Legion Tattoo and Body Piercing, Raegan Robinson, said. “Our walk-in traffic has declined drastically, and our appointments were even slowed down [in] the first few months they started. It’s made things really hard for [our employees] but even harder on our clients. There have been days they’ve blocked off our entrances, knocked out our water and electricity, and just cost our artists and us a lot of money. Our clients have to plan to be here much earlier or are much later than planned because of the mess it’s become out there.”
Oklaboba, a locally owned boba tea and dessert shop in a shopping corner on Danforth, has seen firsthand how the road closures are driving customers away from its store. It should be a convenient stop for drinks and deserts, not a frustrating detour for all the customers.
“As a business manager, the revenue isn’t all there,” Oklaboba manager Chhuatha Biherei said. “A lot of customers told me that it is hard getting in here. It has caused our sales to go down because of customers not being able to access our business.”
The lack of customer traffic is detrimental to small businesses in Edmond. The construction is not just an inconvenience; it is the direct cause of a loss of money. FiiZ is a franchise that opened in December 2025, only a couple of months after the construction started, and is a neighbor to 15th Legion Tattoo and Body Piercing. FiiZ quickly discovered that it is a challenge for employees and customers to enter its parking lot.
“It’s actually been pretty devastating, to put it lightly,” manager of FiiZ Max Smith said. “We have two entrances, but both of them are right turns only. So to get here, you have to go basically a full mile and make a U-turn. You really have to make it a point to get here. It’s not something you can just drive by, see and want to check out. You have to plan for it.”
While large corporations have the stability to be able to withstand months of reduced customer traffic, small and locally owned businesses do not always have that luxury. These stores are a huge part of what gives Edmond character. They provide jobs, gathering spaces and keep money circulating within the Edmond community. If construction continues to limit accessibility without solutions to support the affected businesses, the long-term effect could go past just a few traffic delays.
To support local business owners, protect vital jobs within the community and protect the identity of Edmond, we as citizens must do our best to see the Danforth and Kelly businesses through the construction. Buying a drink from FiiZ, ordering a poke bowl from Oklaboba, making an appointment at 15th Legion Tattoo and Body Piercing and visiting all the other small businesses in that area help keep the stores afloat during a harsh time they did not ask for. If Edmond wants those places to be there when the construction is concluded, now is the time to show up and support.
Contact Erin Hamm and Anna Vitiello at [email protected]