Commuters in the Glebe enjoyed their last day of normalcy Monday before construction shut down Bank Street Tuesday morning.
At 9 a.m. Tuesday, the stretch between the Queensway and Holmwood Avenue closed for six straight months to traffic, with traffic and buses re-routed to O'Connor Street.
$22 million of work is being done to replace water and sewer pipes that are over a century old, as well as re-design roadways, curbs and sidewalks.
Glebe residents are resigned to the fact that the work was inevitable.
"(I'm) not looking forward to what's going to happen, but it has to be done at some point," said Gavin Doak on Monday.
While the streets may be closed, businesses will remain open.
"There's no point in pretending it won't be big, but we want people to get the message that everything is open," said David Chernushenko, councilor for the area on Monday. "Please do keep coming, the stores really need it."
Sales did drop during similar construction on the other side of the Queensway, but the Glebe BIA is trying to put a positive spin on the construction.
They are holding a barbeque at noon Tuesday to mark the start of construction with the message that it's short-term inconvenience for long-term benefits.
Business owners said they're hopeful the nature of the Glebe will help them tough it out.
"We have a resilient community that really supports all the stores here," said David Nicastro, owner of Nicastro's Italian Food Emporium. "That will be key."
Customers said they're torn on whether or not they'll take advantage of the free parking at Lansdowne Park and walk to their favorite shops.
"I'll be taking a detour and won't be shopping in some of the local shops like I would normally pop into," said Norm Looker, Old Ottawa South resident on Monday.
"My son loves construction, he'll like to look at the diggers," said Kareen Wolfe from the Glebe. "We support our local business one hundred per cent."
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Joanne Schnurr
