Vancouver celebrated the reopening of its historic Main Street on Wednesday, Oct. 7, after a $26 million reconstruction aimed at replacing deteriorated infrastructure and making downtown safer and more welcoming for people on foot. The project rebuilt century-old sewer, gas, water and electrical systems along the stretch between Fifth and 15th streets. The redesigned corridor includes new traffic signals, outdoor seating, overhead lighting and accessibility improvements such as curbless extended sidewalks, tactile guidance and audible crossings. Removable bollards on eight blocks will let the city close the street to cars for events. A block party near the historic Kiggins Theatre marked the reopening. The city says some work, including planting more than 100 trees, will continue through the Thanksgiving holiday. The project broke ground in December 2024 and finished about five months ahead of schedule, according to Michael Walker, executive director of the Vancouver Downtown Association. Funding came from the American Rescue Plan Act, grants and other local sources. The overhaul was designed to link downtown more closely with the waterfront and Esther Short Park, while creating a public space that can support street life and local businesses. The city says 26 businesses opened or expanded on Main Street or within a block of the construction zone during the project. Walker said the Downtown Association tracked about four business closures, while cautioning that the construction could not be blamed for every one. For some businesses, the disruption was severe. Joe Brown’s Cafe owner Karen Carlton said customers struggled to reach the diner as sidewalks and streets were torn up. The restaurant removed its four-table parklet, laid off two employees and reduced other workers’ hours. Carlton compared the disruption to the pandemic and said some customers were unsure whether the cafe remained open. The diner has operated at the same Main Street location since 1932, when it began as a Depression-era soup kitchen. Carlton’s husband, Lewis, took over in 1985 and supported the redevelopment before his death in January 2025. Carlton said he believed the work was necessary because the underground utilities had grown old and unreliable. La Fiesta Mexican Kitchen, near Main and Eighth streets, estimated sales dropped 60% after construction began in January 2025. Co-owner Jose Garay said noise, dust, rain and difficult access kept customers away. The restaurant’s West Linn location helped sustain its Vancouver business, and Garay hopes the rebuilt street and a new menu will help recover his $300,000 investment. At Love Potion Magickal Perfumerie & Marketplace near Main and 11th, front-of-store manager Mercy Crowe estimated sales fell about 30%. The store’s online business and regular customers helped it weather construction, she said, and Crowe has seen more people returning as work wraps up. The downtown project followed decades of delays. Vancouver planned improvements in 1993 but completed only work in Uptown Village, north of the historic district, because of funding limits. A later effort reached final design before the 2008 recession halted it. The recent project took about three years of public consultation, design and construction. Walker said the finished street is intended to be safer, more accessible and better connected to nearby destinations. For business owners who endured months of construction, the reopening marks a chance to see whether those improvements bring customers back downtown.