TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – All eyes have been on border towns like Nogales with the Trump Administration’s first two weeks in office.
Many business owners who spoke with 13 News said there has been a drastic decrease in people in Nogales, Arizona since President Donald Trump took over.
“We already have one or two months having a lot of problems because people aren’t coming here,” said Jorge Felix, owner of Felix’s Warehouse.
Felix said they have felt the impact of Trump’s border, with sales plummeting after he was inaugurated.
Sergio Castaneda, whose wife owns BKY’s Place, told 13 News they’ve seen a nearly 70 percent drop in customers.
“You can look around, there’s no people around. We’ve (been open) all day here and we have only had a couple of sales. So, we are not going to survive with that,” Castaneda said.
Other business owners 13 News spoke with, like Higos Coffee and Chilorios’ Jaemi Heueraa, said a big part of the drop-off has been fear from people who cross into Nogales, even legally, from Mexico.
He believes it’s due to Trump’s border policies.
“I think people are going to be more scared of going out on the streets to run errands and the ones who come from Mexico are going to be hesitant to come because they’re scared of the intentions of the administration,” Heueraa said.
The extra enforcement at the border has also caused delays in getting to the town from Mexico which has impacted the customer base for owners like Felix.
“The thing is they take too much time to come here. One hour, two hours. It’s too much,” Felix said.
It’s something businesses said has customers looking for alternatives in Nogales, Mexico, willing to pay a higher price to avoid the time and fear of coming to America.
“The same merchandise we have here is in Nogales (Mexico). A little bit more expensive but they prefer to buy over there because of time,” Felix said.
While these businesses get used to the effect of the Trump Administration, they are hoping officials speak highly of the border town to keep their businesses thriving in the future.
“The government needs to say something better (about Nogales) to the people from Mexico. Tell them that everything is safe over here,” Castaneda said.
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