VENTURA COUNTY NEWS : Seaward Merchants Fear Downturn While New Bridge Goes Up : Transportation: Project to widen structure over 101 Freeway is expected to take 2 1/2 years to complete.

VENTURA â€”  Eva Greiner knows it’s necessary. She knows traffic will have to get worse before it gets better. She’s sure her little coffee shop can weather the trials.

But she also knows 2 1/2 years is a long time to weather.

That’s when the California Department of Transportation expects to have a new Seaward Avenue bridge in place over the Ventura Freeway, an $8.6-million, fast-track project expected to unclog one of the most frustrating intersections in the city--where Seaward and Harbor Boulevard meet.

In the meantime, Greiner worries about the future of her store, Full o’ Beans. She’s afraid traffic backups during construction will keep customers away from her business in the Pierpont area of Seaward just south of the freeway. “People aren’t patient like they used to be,� she said Wednesday. “And there’s nothing we can do about it. We’re just stuck here.�

Gary Pierson, on the other hand, is mourning a childhood play area, mowed under in the name of progress.

Crews last week chopped down trees and cut up cattails and brush near the highway, wetlands Pierson, 48, once played in.

“These [tractors] came and destroyed my swamp,� he said. “I used to walk through there and catch snakes and frogs. At one time it was a beautiful place. Now, it’s bald. It looks like someone gave it a haircut.�

Pierson, a real estate agent who grew up nearby, attempted a one-man peaceful protest last week for the small strip of wetlands. He posted signs--one reading, “You are now witnessing the destruction of a natural wetland�--which were soon removed.

“I was bummed,� he said. “I thought, ‘You know, Ventura, we just killed another wetland.’ �

For their part, Caltrans officials say some of the wetlands aren’t natural. They were created by the freeway’s construction in 1960s, when the adjoining land was razed to let water run off the road, eventually creating the oasis for cattails and lizards.

Additionally, they point out that Caltrans has all its permits for the new bridge and has set aside an equal amount of wetlands elsewhere to compensate.

Crews from contractor C.A. Rasmussen Inc. should begin construction of the bridge soon, said Jorge Malacalza, the Caltrans engineer working on the project. Crews will build half of the bridge for traffic, destroy the old four-lane bridge, and then finish the remainder of the new eight-lane overpass.

Other than closing the southbound onramp to the Ventura Freeway, officials say traffic near the intersection should be unaffected because the same number of lanes will be available until the new bridge opens.

That provides little comfort to area merchants, who worry about temporary ramp closures and bumper-to-bumper traffic crawling past construction sites.

Greiner is thinking about opening her store early, at 5:30 a.m., to catch Pierpont commuters trying to miss morning traffic. Bartender Bud McNair, of Juro Cho restaurant, talks about joining with other area merchants to offer traffic-time specials.

Micci House, manager of the Beach Hut, a surf shop on the corner of Seaward and Harbor, fears that the area could become as bad as the snarled Ventura Freeway interchange at Victoria Avenue, where work has continued for a year.

“When it’s done, it’ll be great,� she said. “But that’s still a long way away. If people can’t get through, this could get tough.�

Last week, workers plowed over a nearby parking lot to make way for construction, and although no businesses have reported a loss of customers yet, owners fear the lack of parking could turn people away.

That was the biggest concern at Tacos ‘N Beer, which opened two weeks ago on Seaward, said manager Albert Munoz.

Otherwise, he was putting on a brave face Wednesday.

“We already have a big clientele,� he said. “It’s going to affect you no matter how you look at it. But, most locals really like to come down here.�