Mary Hodson, the Director of the Chamber of Commerce (her title may have been President), had a three year notice to brace for the enormous disruption that complete reconstruction of Minnesota State Route 15 – through their downtown would cause. It included replacement of all city services below ground. In most communities the businesses would just have to close. The Chamber of Commerce decided that would not happen. They formed a task force to educate and support businesses on all 133 parcels along an eight block by two block-corridor of downtown that would be affected.
The project, Main Street 2020- Road to An Even Better Hutchinson, had a goal to keep 100% of the businesses open during the entire construction period. A bright orange working binder was built that included:
- contact information for key personnel,
- ADA improvement surveys,
- project parameters,
- suggestions from local bankers, marketers, and others on best practices during construction.
The binder was hand delivered to every business and building owner along with a conversation about what was possible. Ultimately, it was determined that the businesses could be accessed from the back of their stores instead of the front. Back alley access was upgraded and improved for each business during 2018 and 2019. EDA facade loans and sign and awning grant changes to support alley access were also put in place. The businesses continued to thrive and ultimately, construction was completed.