In recent weeks, Fairy Meadow hairdresser Jessica Adams has been on a wild ride of emotion about the upcoming UCI Road World Championships.
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As a business owner near one of the main race routes for the cycling event, known as Wollongong 2022, she's gone from excitement to panic and now cautious relief as she navigates ever-changing information in the lead up to the race week.
Ms Adams owns J+Co Hair, which is located on the corner of Daisy Street and the Princes Highway in Fairy Meadow, which is right near the city circuit.
She said her initial reaction on hearing a huge international sporting event would be coming past her town was a positive one, as she'd heard about the tourism benefits, and that the event would bring an influx of money to the region.
I'm happy this information has finally come out, but I do think it would have been better to get this type of detailed information sooner, so businesses can make plans
- Jessica Adams
This all changed when she found out about road closures on Daisy Street, Elliotts Road and the Princes Highway, as full closure of these streets would have forced her to close on race days.
Information on the Wollongong 2022 website showed that these streets would shut for at least five and up to 10 hours on nine days from September 17 to 25, sending Ms Adams into a panic about how she and her clients would access her salon.
"I was worried, because it would be a massive loss of income for me if I couldn't get to my shop and if there was no way for my customers and staff to get in," she said.
"I started rescheduling clients when I found the list of road closures. I sent the event organisers an email to try to find out more, but I didn't hear anything back."
She is not alone, with many Mercury readers expressing concerns about the money they will lose if they can't access their businesses or get to work during the event.
This week, however, an interactive map allowing people to zoom in and see nitty gritty details of the race routes had given her hope that she will be able to open, and she has turned her attention to working out more detailed logistics so she can inform her clients.
"I'm happy this information has finally come out, but I do think it would have been better to get this type of detailed information sooner, so small businesses who haven't had the best time lately, and are just getting back on our feet can make plans," she said.
"But I'd advise people who are worried to go back and take a closer look now that there is better information, because you might actually be able to open after all.
She said she would now begin liaising with her clients and staff about how they will get to the salon while road conditions are changed during the race.
This weekend, race organisers will release even more detailed road closure information, which will provide information on one-way access on some streets which appear on the map to be completely closed, as well as how road access during race times will work for local residents.
The UCI event organisers and Wollongong City Council have acknowledged that the event will cause disruptions across the city.
However, they are asking people to "pull together as a team" to get through the "relatively short period", and say businesses - and workers - will have to make their own choices about how they navigate the road closures and traffic situation.
"We have spent time with more than 300 local businesses to try to help them understand the operations of the event and the impact it will or may have on their business," Wollongong 2022 CEO Stu Taggart said.
"While it will be up to the individual business owners' discretion about how they best manage the event period - the last thing we want is for parts of the city to be "closed" when the world comes to town.
"We've demonstrated amazing resilience during the pandemic and by thinking outside the box, the majority have been able to trade successfully during those challenging times.
"If ever we want a city to pull together as a team, to think differently and to work a little differently, this is it."
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Kate McIlwain
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
