NATCHEZ — Road work in the name of community progress isn’t something businesses along U.S. 61 North near the intersection of Seargent S. Prentiss Drive are smiling about these days.

Construction in front of stores and restaurants is costing them money, managers said.

“People say it’s hard to get here, and some of them have to park next door,” said Letty Kiser, La Fiesta Grande Too’s manager. “There are a lot of people complaining.”

The Mississippi Department of Transportation began construction on a flyover at D’Evereux Drive and Seargent S. Prentiss Drive in August 2010, and MDOT aims to complete the project by Aug. 6, 2012, Project Engineer Steve Smith said.

However, he said, the frontage road that runs in front of business’ entrances should hopefully be back in good shape by the end of summer or early fall.

“I’m just going to ask them to be patient,” Smith said. “We’re trying to work with businesses to keep giving them (entrance) access.”

In the meantime, Kiser said, La Fiesta Grande Too continues to lose customers.

“(At lunch) we usually have 30 tables full, and now it’s about 20,” she said. “Some people don’t have long to eat lunch, and it takes 10 minutes to figure out how to get in here.

“People used to love to eat outside, and now they can’t because there’s too much dirt.”

Construction crews are working on one section between businesses at a time, and that should help alleviate some of the businesses’ complaints, Smith said, but there’s no denying that there will be some problems.

“The main problem is, it’s hard for trucks to bring our merchandise in, and it’s hard for us to put things outside for display because of things like debris,” said Courtney Graves, store manager at First Choice Home Furnishings.

Oftentimes, he said, people think the road in front of the store is closed, so they don’t try to come in.

“It’s even hard for me to get in (to work),” Graves said. “When you don’t get traffic, there’s a drop in sales.”

Subway General Manager Shalanda Tuesno said she estimates that she’s losing $3,000 a week and 100 customers per day.

“There’s a big difference now,” said Chris Nealey, a Subway employee. “Usually it stays steady during lunchtime, but now we’re looking for things to (keep us busy).”

Smith said he thinks businesses will be very pleased with the construction’s end result — it’s just about being patient.

The project’s estimated cost is nearly $19.7 million, Smith said.