Midtown Atlanta businesses struggle in wake of partial crane collapse

ATLANTA — The partial crane collapse in Midtown Atlanta has businesses in the area struggling.

Several of them on 10th Street – including two restaurants, a yoga studio, and a dentist’s office – are shut down indefinitely as streets remain closed.

“I think all the businesses around here have been affected,” said Lauren Nguyen, who works at the Bijou Nail Bar on Spring Street.

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The collapse prompted the closure of West Peachtree and Spring Streets between 10th and 12th Streets.

It also forced about 1,000 people out of their homes, most of them residents of Tens On West, a luxury apartment complex.

Even for those businesses that remain open, it’s a tough period.

“Since the collapse, it’s been pretty slow,” Nguyen said. “Usually we have a lot more traffic going through, but since they blocked the road off and all the residents got evacuated, it’s been dead in here.”

The collapse happened Monday afternoon along the 1000 block of West Peachtree Street at a high-rise apartment complex under construction.

A counterweight on the crane became dislodged, causing one of the four structures attaching it to the building to fall away.

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Four workers were treated and released from the hospital.

At Xi’an Gourmet House on 10th Street, the collapse has put a dent in business. “On the day that it happened, our business was for sure impacted,” said employee Beita Tang. “There was a noticeable decline in customers, but today’s been kind of normal.”

With the street closures, it’s a longer walk home for Tang.

He’s sympathetic toward the businesses that can’t open, saying, “That’s not good.”

Officials have given no timetable for when work to dismantle the crane will be completed and the streets reopened.

They say the block will remain closed as long as necessary for the safety of the public.

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