As construction continues on East Colfax Avenue, Walter McDonald waits and watches.

"We're doing okay, we're getting by," he told CBS News Colorado. "But other businesses, you can really see that it can shut them down."

His tattoo shop, Lifetime Tattoo, has been in business on the stretch just past Lafayette Street and Colfax Avenue for 24 years. But now he's seeing the effects of the Bus Rapid Transit, or "BRT," construction on businesses and neighbors.

"[The disruption is] definitely on par with COVID in terms of the impact it's had on our business," McDonald said.

Earlier in 2025, the city of Denver unveiled grant applications to help businesses impacted by the construction. Among the various criteria to be eligible for up to $15,000 per business, owners had to prove that they suffered a 20% loss or higher directly tied to the road work. CBS Colorado talked to many business owners who expressed concerns that the city was trying to disprove the impacts more than they were trying to help the businesses that were hurting.

The Colfax Ave Business Improvement District has been working closely with owners up and down the strip.

Denon Moore, business support director for the district and a Colfax Avenue business owner herself, told CBS Colorado that they've rolled out a program of microgrants entirely funded by private sources to be able to provide individual businesses with somewhere between $500 and $1,500 to those who need it. Unlike the city grants, a business would have to prove a 10% loss directly tied to the impacts.

"We think of it as a tool," Moore said. "They can put $1,500 towards a project to stimulate sales for some type of promotion. I'm on the street every day speaking with operators. I don't think it's hard for many of them to see a 10% loss has occurred."

The micro grants could serve a variety of purposes, Moore said. It could be seed money for projects or marketing campaigns to drum up business or add another revenue stream. They could also be used as a stopgap for a bill or unexpected expense that an owner already on the margins due to construction could absorb.

McDonald is thankful for the grants but worries it might be too little, too late. The impacts have already been significant, with some businesses announcing they will be shutting down directly due to the BRT construction.

"It is a nice gesture, but it's not gonna help us," McDonald said. "But the lack of foresight, the lack of planning on the impact to small businesses is unbelievable."

As Moore and the district continue to try and find ways to help their neighbors, while others like McDonald aim to survive and keep Colfax's culture alive in a post-construction era. The work is expected to continue through 2025.