John Gascon, owner of Occhio Café and director of its adjacent Ouch My Eye Gallery, is in the center of a hardhat zone during construction on the Alaskan Way viaduct at First Avenue South near Qwest Field. The work has caused his coffee shop to struggle, as he attempts to turn his focuses on gaining revenue by renting out his gallery space to private parties and events.

“It’s killing us,” he says, looking around his vacant gallery and out toward the street. “Who knows how long the construction will take.”

Gascon began seeing a change in foot traffic once tenants left the buildings surrounding his business. Slowly, his cafe’s sales dipped, as other business owners, sensing an unstable location without reliable street access, looked elsewhere to set up shop.

“Why would any business move here when they can be someplace else with great rates without parking issues?” Gascon says with a shrug, “[The construction] couldn’t have happened at a worse time.”

While Gascon admits his gallery rental has pulled in some much needed revenue, a renovation is needed in order to meet demands in the event rental market. And that could be a pricey risk he’s not prepared to take without a business partner.

“With the right partner interested in fully developing the rental potential, I do believe the gallery could survive the storm and eventually flourish. Either way, it won’t be the art that sustains a space such as ours, but it is the art that makes it unique.”

Tonight, Gascon’s gallery will launch a new exhibit titled “Fraternal Twins” during the neighborhood’s First Thursday Art Walk. But even with new installment, it’s hard to bring a sparkle to Gascon’s eyes.

“We’re expecting no one to come,” he says. “If anything, we’ll focus more on the closing party than the opening party.”

Picture courtesy of WSDOT.