California’s drought has been negatively affecting businesses throughout the Golden State, particularly in Folsom Lake, where water levels have shrunken so much that the area which should be bustling with beach-goers and water sport enthusiasts resembles a desert, resulting in a major drag on local businesses.
“Twenty-thousand-plus [dollars] in July, this year we just barely wentover $2,000 for the whole month, so a very big difference,” said Chris McIntyreof the Snack Shack in an interview with local CBS affiliate in Sacramento. “It’s kinda depressing to come out here and see what’s going on,” she noted as she looked towards the dry land where water once flowed.
In addition to food and drink sales taking a hit, boat and equipment rentals have also been suffering.
The steep drop in commerce has been felt by Dustin Conner, whose depleted sales at the Granite Bay boat shop due to the drought will likely leave him licking his wounds. For context, he said he’s sold only one-third of inflatable boat-towed disks he usually sells this time of year, CBS notes.
“It’s definitely going to be a hard year. We’ll see what happens,” he said.
The lake’s receded water line has forced swimmers and kayakers to hike in the heat for longer distances with their rentals in tow in order to reach the water, a dissuading factor, CBS notes. What used to be a few foot walk from the rental station to the reservoir now takes much longer.
When asked about what she’ll do if a repeat of this summer occurs next year, McIntyre said ,”I’ll probably have to think about doing something else.”
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