DAVENPORT, Iowa — The Mississippi River has reached its crest, meaning folks living in the floodplain in the Quad Cities can finally see an end to flooding in the near future.
For businesses in downtown Davenport, the end of May can't come soon enough.
Steven Webster wasn't expecting the floodwaters to be so close to his business' doors when he opened Solar Vision 42 years ago. He pointed around his business to show the vacancy the flood has created over the last few weeks.
"This is our front office and reception, our counters and stuff," Webster said as he pointed. "They're all empty. Everything is empty, they've all been moved, but if you look out there ..."
Out there, meaning the window of his front office, is currently a front-row seat to the mighty Mississippi's show.
"It's a major headache," Webster said. "The amount of time it takes to put this up ... you're shut down for that."
Webster said the flood is draining him of thousands of dollars, and he hasn't seen a customer in days. A wall wrapped around his business is to blame for that, keeping around 4 feet of water from coming inside.
The many road closures along downtown Davenport aren't helping Webster catch customers, but they are helping divert customers to another business just around the block.
Frank Berner owns Sippi's American Grill & Craft Beer. He's reaping the benefits of onlookers who are wanting to see the Mississippi's power.
"Well, 2019 was the last major flood we had," Berner reflected. "Well, if you have a 4-year-old or 5-year-old, they may not remember that. So you might want to bring them down and see."
Those onlookers are definitely taking advantage of Sippi's spot, with last Friday being the busiest day so far during the flood.
"Friday was extremely busy with the nice weather, it brought people out and they wanted to see what was going on," Berner said.
Now that the river has crested, that extra tourism could also soon recede, bringing some form of relief for Webster, but a sigh signaling the unavoidable from Berner.
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