Works cause city shops to ‘haemorrhage money’

Jazz Hart said she had managed the Spendless Shoes store in the city for six years, but was concerned about her future because business had "choked".

"It's really stressful because what do I have if I lose my job?" she said.

Ms Hart said the road works deterred people from walking past her store because of the noise pollution and dust.

"It looks like you can't access the pathway so people don't come past," she said. "We're losing hundreds of dollars every day and I've lost about $3000 in bonuses because we're not even making budget.

"You put your blood, sweat and tears into it and it's really sad."

Ms Hart said she felt disgruntled because the City of Perth had to fix the damage that workers caused to the store front last week.

Comiczone owner Michael Petrusich echoed Ms Hart's sentiments, saying his sales had gone down by 30 per cent since works started in May. "The fact that people don't walk down here is the biggest issue," Mr Petrusich said.

Mr Petrusich said he knew the works were necessary, but he would have to close his doors if business did not improve.

City of Perth acting chief executive Gary Dunne said he recognised the inconvenience major projects could cause.

"There are two projects being undertaken on Barrack Street " two-way conversion and street enhancements by the City of Perth and pipeline upgrades by Water Corporation." Mr Dunne said.

"Incidents such as damage to shopfronts are being dealt with on a case by case basis," he said.

"The new Barrack Street will be a much more attractive and inviting pedestrian-friendly precinct, with new shared cycle paths, street furniture, lighting and trees."

He said the city had offered free signage, window cleaning services and digital advertising to affected businesses.