Page urges Grand Canyon National Park to reopen the eastern entrance of the South Rim as the economy struggles | Local

But these arguments have no water for Diak.

“You only had three cases of COVID across the nation yesterday. So you were way ahead of what the state is doing, ”said Diak.

Diak fears that the continued closure of the freeway will do lasting damage to Page’s economy and small businesses, just as they are trying to make a comeback after last year.

According to Diak, Page has marketed itself as part of the big circle for years when tourists make a big loop when visiting southwestern national parks and monuments.

“People come from Vegas and come one way on I-40 and do the south rim of the Grand Canyon, go on to Page, Lake Powell, or they go on to Monument Valley, come back in the other way,” said Diak. “Both Utah and Arizona have been marketing this for years, and then it has finally caught on in the last three years. Now we’re going to lose it all. “

With Highway 64 closed, Diak said, the great circle was broken and Page was cut off. If visitors to the South Rim want to go to Page, they must first go south to Flagstaff and add hundreds of miles to their journey.

It’s not just local businesses that have problems. Coldwell said that Page, like many local governments that rely primarily on local sales taxes, has seen its own revenue decline.