The Jefferson City area has been dealing with an exceptionally rainy summer so far. It's not only an inconvenience for the community, but it can considerably affect some businesses.
It's easy to understand how those doing outdoor work have difficulty reorganizing a schedule.
In the landscaping business, that is the first problem during rainy periods.
"Sometimes we are unable to work for entire days, and then we have to work longer hours to catch up," said Amy Mueller, owner of Mueller Landscape Construction. "We are used to adapting to the elements."
She said customers are understanding most of the time. They can still do some tasks even on rainy days, such as working on patios or on concrete surfaces. And in the days right after heavy rains, landscaping businesses "get more requests that are damage-related," since bad weather can damage trees and plants, Mueller said.
The situation is worse for some construction businesses that work primarily outdoors. Cathy Crocker, co-owner of Vaughan Pools & Spas, said the swimming pool contractor has nothing it can accomplish when it rains.
"You basically stay behind with everything," Crocker said, "and sometimes you don't get to catch up at all."
Rain doesn't only affect construction sites, it also causes troubles for existing pools. "When the amount of water is significant, too much additional fresh water goes into the pool, so it becomes harder to keep the chemicals as they have to be," Crocker said.
One surprising business has benefited from the rainy summer days: fireworks. People seem to feel more comfortable lighting fireworks on wet ground rather than dry grass, said Joey Kramer, who operates a fireworks stand off U.S. 54 just outside of city limits southeast of Jefferson City.
Kramer said his business has been affected positively by rainy and cloudy summer. Even running a business out of a tent, they just need to "cover the fireworks with plastic, just in case," Kramer said.