Smelly Tempe Town Lake doesn't necessarily mean bad business

TEMPE, AZ - The fallout from the Tempe Town Lake dam breaking is rising from the muddy riverbed like the smell of dead fish.

One local business is taking steps to fight the smelly fumes now coming from the dry lake.

"It was pretty bad, it smelled bad," said one Tempe Town Lake visitor.

"It smelled like a bunch of stagnant water," said another.

The aroma filling the air near Tempe Town Lake isn't fresh flowers or the desert after a monsoon rain.

"It smelled like low tide," said a third visitor to the park.

According to most in the area, it smells like dead fish.

That's why a local candle maker, Gold Canyon, is stepping in.

"So we thought let's bring down a couple of thousand pieces of our property and hand them out to the locals down here to see if we can make their lives smell a little better," said Scott Brown with Gold Canyon.

But it's not just candles. They are giving away spray fragrances too.

"Lots of different ways we can add fragrances to their lives," Brown said.

They can't change the odor in the air.

"It will definitely affect the fragrance, make it good in their own personal space," said Brown.

Like inside Monti's resturant. Right on the front lines of the smell.

"I think it's a great concept for those who need it," said Monti's co-owner, Eddie Goitia.

Who despite the stink says... "Over the past 3 days, business has never been better."

The drained lake helped business.

"Everyone has been coming down to look at it and then they've been coming to eat," Goitia said.

But Monti's and Gold Canyon both agree, it will be nice to see the lake full again as soon as possible.