FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - A restaurant that has been in Downtown Fresno for six years says their most recent issue made them realize that if local businesses do not advocate for themselves, they run the risk of losing everything. Libelula Fresno owner Ian Cookson says, along with rising costs, construction just six feet away from his outdoor dining area has now added another burden. "The first week of it being done we've had a drop in sales," Cookson said. "It's already really rough out here right now." Cookson says despite new struggles, the area outside the restaurant has proven to be trouble since the beginning. "The plants in front of the restaurant, were never maintained very well," Cookson said. "We were tired of it being an eyesore and, and honestly a hazard for people, we decided to take it upon ourselves to put some plants in there to make it look nicer." After Cookson and his staff introduced new plants into the planter, leading to some regular customers also beautifying the space. "They put some landscaping out there for us," Cookson said. "That's even better than getting really good sales, people legitimately caring, and that's something that I feel like we're getting away from nowadays." Last week, Cookson says he was alerted to construction by a worker spray painting the sidewalk in front of his business. "That's usually a good idea that they're going to be doing something around there," Cookson said. "I asked [the construction worker] if he could at least give me a heads up before it happens so that we could do something about the landscaping that we put in." Cookson says he was never given a heads-up and only saw the construction happening by chance while checking his security cameras on March 3. The next morning he came to work to find the planter he and his customers had worked to build "covered in metal plates." Cookson says that's when he began compiling a list of people, each passing along the blame for the construction to someone else. He spoke to the foreman at the construction site, who said the landlord had been notified, Cookson says the landlord told him all she knew was that PG&E "wanted to put something there." According to Cookson, as he continued compiling his list, he found out that the project was a collaboration between PG&E and the California High-Speed Rail Authority. He says his landlord contacted a High-Speed Rail representative who came out to talk to Cookson herself. "She told me she was under the impression that it was going to be done in the street," Cookson said. Cookson says the High-Speed Rail representative never told his landlord or the City of Fresno that any construction was going to be done. "This is the whole problem, really big entities are not communicating well enough with each other to actually get something done in a timely manner," Cookson said. "The only people suffering are business owners and their employees. Right now, it's me. But I guarantee you, it's not just going to be me and it's probably not just me right now." In a statement, PG&E spokesperson said in part that they have "assessed the situation involving Libelula in Fresno, and confirmed that the particular infrastructure project is connected to High-Speed Rail." PG&E also says High-Speed Rail is accountable for notifying residential and business customers who may be affected by their work. Our objective is to ensure a positive experience for our customers when work on our infrastructure takes place in their local communities, and we apologize for any inconvenience in this case. We are notifying the High-Speed Rail team of this situation and anticipate that they will communicate with the restaurant owner to resolve their concerns. Pacific Gas & Electric High-Speed Rail says they are continuing to work with various local businesses and residents as they continue construction in Downtown Fresno and Chinatown areas. "Our team along with representatives from the city of Fresno and PG&E have been in communication with the business owner of Libelula regarding sidewalk restoration," High-Speed Rail said. "We are also coordinating replacement of plant boxes and plants in front of their business that were also removed. The Authority was made aware of this issue and acted accordingly to ensure Libelula wouldn’t be impacted while utility work continues in the area. We are working to have the work completed by the end of the month. California High-Speed Rail Authority Cookson says in dealing with this construction issue he's learned that it is up to small business owners and the customers to speak up, now. He says he believes he wouldn't be receiving the help he is now if he hadn't spoken up. "They are working with me," Cookson said. "Because it's become kind of a situation that they feel obligated to do - I'm glad that they feel obligated to do something because they should feel obligated to do something. That goes for anybody who's dealing with these things. Don't keep your mouth shut." ...read more read less