Construction on Redbank Road causing local business to lose profits
GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCBD) — The construction zone along Redbank Road has been in place for a few years now and is part of a major infrastructure project, but one business says it has cost them over the years.
The owner of Bald Monkey Brewery, Melisa Prevatte, says the road work has cost her business.
“Well, we opened in 2014. My husband Stoney started it a little bit before I met him. Originally, he was going to do a motorcycle paint shop,” Prevatte said. “He ended up driving long distances to get coffee every morning and just said, you know what? I’m going to make her into a coffee shop.”
Prevatte told News 2 how the business grew yearly, slowing down during COVID before taking off again afterward.
“It was still good in 2022 when they put these cones up,” she said. “ They put them up like I was saying a year before they broke ground.”
Over time, the infrastructure project has had delays. Prevatte said initially, she was told work would be complete by the end of 2022; then it changed to the end of 2023. Traffic on Redbank would take longer and longer to flow through, and entrances to their shopping center would be blocked, making it harder for cars to get in and out.
“…and as soon as they started getting close to us right along Goose Creek High School, our sales just started going down,” Prevatte explained.
Black Monkey uses computer systems to track their business numbers, and Prevatte said how she’s seen construction work and sales drops correlate.
“I just last year alone, we lost just under $75,000, and that’s just in sales. Like a sales number that doesn’t include the name to our brand losing retention, on keeping customers, building new customers that don’t know where we’re at, if we’re open or don’t want to make the time to come out of their way to fight this maze,” she said.
Prevatte has reached out to the county and contractor handling the project, and she says they have been unable to offer her solutions to the problem. She has been told the work is supposed to be completed by June 2024. In the meantime, she says Bald Monkey needs the community’s support.
“Stop by. Obviously, stop by. Don’t be afraid of getting out of that line because I mean, you guys saw today on I-26 if you’re stuck on I-26, you’re stuck on I-26, you might as well get a cup of coffee and enjoy it,” she said. “I mean, once you get in the line, we’re Chick-fil-A fast, so get in here, and we’ll get you right out. Just keep continuing to support us and all the other businesses along Redbank.”
Prevatte said her business strives to support other local businesses. Bald Monkey buys its coffee beans and roasting beans from local companies, and it works with Goose Creek High School for t-shirts and hats. So, as a trickle-down effect, when their business is impacted, so are other local businesses.
