Happy Monday, Longmont! Tomorrow marks a long-awaited day for many parents and a long-dreaded day for many kids: the first day of school. Moments like these remind us that while we are often divided — opinion of U.S. presidents, super bowl halftime shows, and pineapple on pizza — unity isn’t far away. For example, we can all agree there’s no possible way to organize Tupperware.
Today — We highlight three Longmont businesses receiving ribbon-cuttings, review the results of a rainy weekend, and preview a slew of city meetings taking place this week.
Let’s dive in.
TOP STORY
🌎 Trio of ribbon-cuttings this week as Longmont continues to see swift development
You may not often need a vinyl record cafe, a Vitamin C shower, or an industrial battery charger, but Longmont has them if you need them.
This week, three Longmont businesses are celebrating a ribbon-cutting: The Vinyl Cafe, Be Well Body Works, and Stored Energy Systems.
The Vinyl Cafe is cutting the ribbon on its new location at 704 Main St. Described as “More than just a record store, The Vinyl Cafe is a community gathering place where music sparks conversation, nostalgia and new discoveries.”
It’s been in business for nearly three years and sells new and pre-owned vinyl records, CDs, turntables, music-inspired apparel, and more.
The cafe moved just a few doors down from their old location at 716 Main Street, which allows them more space and parking, and with it, the opportunity to host more events.
The ribbon-cutting takes place Tuesday from 4-5 p.m.
Be Well Body Works is celebrating its new building at 1840 Mountain View Ave. It’s a wellness studio that offers a wide range of services, including several things we’ve never heard of…
A Vitamin C shower, a Himalayan salt stone massage, and lymphatic drainage massage, in addition to many others.
Of course, the Be Well staff offers traditional services as well, from classic massage therapy, to saunas and cold plunges.
They’ll be hosting a grand opening party, along with a ribbon-cutting. Visitors can see the new studio, meet their team, and enjoy free giveaways, special discounts, healthy snacks, live music and more. It goes down Thursday from 4-7 p.m. and be sure to RSVP.
Stored Energy Systems is celebrating an expansion that included the creation of over 300 new jobs. SENS specializes in designing and manufacturing battery chargers and power systems for very power-dependent environments like hospitals, data centers and utilities. Going back in time…
SENS began in Silicon Valley in 1971 but relocated its headquarters to Longmont in 1992, when it had just three employees.
After outgrowing its current facility due to high product demand, SENS announced in January it would be staying in Longmont to carry out its expansion.
The expansion included the creation of 314 new jobs, offering an average annual wage of $97,493 — 109% of the average annual wage in Boulder County. Positions included: engineering, manufacturing, customer service, and sales roles, among others.
Celebrate SENS from 4-5 p.m. on Thursday at 375 Disc Drive.
Zooming Out:
The Vinyl Cafe joins several other businesses in giving new life to north Main Street. Kuper Wine Bar, Drifters Thrift Bar, Colorado Dumplings, and Gaia Masala & Burger have all opened up shop within two blocks of each others in the past two months.
Headlines
3 Big Things
Latest rainfall collections disappoint: Many parts of Colorado saw heavy rainfall over the weekend, prompting flight delays at DIA and flash flood warnings aplenty. While Longmont partially got in on the party, it only recorded about 0.2 inches of rain across a four-day span from Thursday - Sunday. That’s a stark contrast to cities like Castle Pines, who clocked nearly four inches. But hey, a rising tide lifts all boats: Parts of Denver, Fort Collins, Nederland, Idaho Springs, and more, collected between 1-2 inches.
Rough & Ready Greenway Trail closes…again: The City of Longmont announced the trail will close tomorrow for a week to put finishing touches on a recent project. The city originally announced in July that construction of the improved trail was complete and open to pedestrians and cyclists, but is now saying “additional work” is needed. The two-month project included replacing the asphalt trail with a new concrete surface, as well as infrastructure and drainage upgrades. The project created a continuous 8-foot-wide concrete path between 9th Avenue and Mountain View Avenue.
Little Free Library built with plastic waste opens today: A project nearly two years in the making culminates today. Several local organizations, along with Blue Mountain Elementary School students, collaborated to sustainably build a Little Free Library using an emerging building material called Ecobricks. These are plastic bottles packed densely with non-recyclable film plastic. The projects used 44 plastic bottles, filled with over 20 pounds of plastic, and other natural and upcycled materials to create the little library. Mayor Susie Hidalgo-Fahring will be in attendance to open the library. The library’s opening ceremony begins at 5 p.m. on Mountain Drive opposite Blue Mountain Elementary School. Check out how Ecobricks have been used across the world here.
Check this out
Longmont City Council isn’t meeting this week, but everyone else is.
Or, at least it seems that way.
As of now, seven different Longmont city agencies are planning to meet in the next three days to discuss a variety of topics, from issuing housing revenue bonds to the results of Longmont’s water fair.
Three boards meet today: The Water Board, Museum Advisory Board, and Library Board.
The Water Board is discussing the 2026 Water Fair Impact Report, as well as a water right exchange agreement with the St. Vrain and Left Hand Water Conservancy District. This is essentially a one-year, drought-driven swap of water. SVLHWCD needs more water to fulfill a legal obligation, and in return, the organization with an excessively-long acronym provides access to water from the Colorado-Big Thompson Project — one of Colorado’s major water supply systems.
Two boards meet tomorrow: The Housing Authority Board of Commissioners and Urban Renewal Authority Board.
The HAB will decided whether to accept a bond that supports an affordable housing project at 180 Emery Street. It’s routine, but needs to happen tomorrow or the city will risk missing the deadline to keep $6.7 million worth of cash devoted to housing projects.
Meanwhile, the URA will vote to approve tax increment revenue agreements for the First and Main Urban Renewal Plan. This doesn’t raise taxes — on the contrary, it allows Longmont to fund the downtown project without raising taxes. It’s a financial mechanism cities use fund improvements by capturing the future increase in tax revenue a development is expected to generate. So, you can put your pitchforks and torches down.
Two more meet Wednesday: The Sustainability Advisory Board and Planning and Zoning Commission meets Wednesday.
Among the Planning & Zoning Commission’s biggest topics is the potential relocation of a Longmont nonprofit. Recovery Cafe wants to move from its current spot at 402 Kimbark St. to 801 Main St.
Events
Happening this week
Free presentation on 3D printing & digital sculpture: Head to Longmont Public Media Thursday night for an interactive discussion about the technology, concepts and tools behind 3D digital design and 3D printing. The evening will feature special guest speaker Tim King, of King Sculpture Studios, who has been sculpting — digitally, and otherwise — since 2000. It begins at 6 p.m., learn more here. If you can’t make this event, the Longmont Public Library is holding a 3D Printing orientation on Wednesday.
Aquatic Macroinvertebrate and Stream Biology Field Work Shop: Those running this show are great at science, but not so great at naming events. Join City of Longmont staff for an evening in and along Saint Vrain Creek at Button Rock Preserve for a dive into stream biology. Learn how to evaluate biological stream health, collect and identify aquatic macroinvertebrates, and better understand ecosystem function within the local watershed. The event is open to everyone but registration is required. Learn more here.
Open mic night at Valor Peak Distillery: Support a local business while supporting local musicians this Thursday night. Grab a cocktail and listen to some of Longmont’s hidden musical gems or, hit the stage yourself and show Longmont what you can do. Wear any kind of band merchandise and get 10% off your total bill for the evening. If you’d like to perform, bring along an instrument and sign up to play a 2-3 song set. Signup is at 5:30 p.m. and closes at 6.
Last Call
Gas prices in the Longmont-Boulder area are still high as the average price per gallon sits at $4.31, according to AAA. That’s 32 cents higher than a week ago.
Forecasts show a clear and sunny Monday for Longmont with a high near 91 degrees, per the National Weather Service. There’s no rain chance today, but storms will threaten the rest of the week.
Colorado author and Pulitzer Prize finalist Megan Kate Nelson will visit Composition Shop in downtown Longmont this Friday.
Inside Longmont released its latest edition. Read about the brand-new Hotel Longmont, how the Longmont Buddhist Temple has evolved over the last century, and much more.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day not only won the weekend box office for the third weekend in a row, but has earned over $2 billion worldwide. It’s one of eight films in history to accomplish the feat. See Regal Village at the Peaks showtimes here.
Until next Wednesday,
The Longmont Brief
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