Happy Friday, Longmont! And happy National Name Your Car Day (We also think national days have gotten out of hand). Nevertheless, today marks a great opportunity to give a name to one of the most important physical items in our lives. Whether you choose Ruby, Turbo, Professor Zoom, or Steve, make sure you feel a connection to it. But, if the name you’ve chosen for your cherry Plymouth Fury is Christine — run.

Today — Longmont businesses are embracing Bitcoin, the 1st and Main Transit Station will soon break ground and Longmont’s power provider finished a big solar project.

Let’s dive in.

Longmont businesses are quickly embracing Bitcoin. And a group of volunteers has played a big role in making it happen.

Boulder Bitcoin, a volunteer-run meetup group in Boulder, has been spending the last six months helping local businesses unlock a piece of their business they didn’t know they had: The ability to accept bitcoin as a payment.

A Square deal

Square is a payment-processing company that provides businesses with the tools to accept payments. It’s perhaps the most popular payment system in the U.S. Any merchant who utilizes it has had the capability to accept Bitcoin since Square launched the option about a year ago. But, particular settings need to be activated to enable it. It only requires about 15 minutes of screen tapping, but it’s not exactly intuitive.

That’s where Boulder Bitcoin has come in. It’s members have been visiting businesses in person and showing owners and staff how a Bitcoin sale works.

“These businesses already had the hardware. What they needed was someone to walk them through it," Rich Youngstrom, co-organizer of Boulder Bitcoin, said.

And a big deal because businesses can save major dough. Credit card transaction fees eat a significant chunk of a business’s revenue. Square’s typical credit card fees for an in-person transaction are 2.6% plus 15 cents.

Teresa Shaheem, owner of downtown Longmont barber shop Deluxe Barbers began accepting Bitcoin payments in March after meeting Youngstrom — as luck would have it — while cutting his hair.

Shaheem says she pays thousands in credit card fees every year, and the prospect of slashing that number was enticing. But saving money isn’t the only benefit she sees.

“I saw it as an opportunity to gain Bitcoin exposure without making an investment,” Shaheem said.

Customers dig it, too.

At Ozo Coffee, a staff member says he knows of at least two customers who visit his coffee shop for the sole purpose of using Bitcoin to pay for their daily brew.

Zooming out:

Bitcoin hit an all-time high value of $126,000 last October, but experienced an Anakin Skywalker-like downfall ever since, at one point dropping below $60,000.

But several conditions have contributed to a recovery, including the U.S. Treasury’s bond buyback in August, a weakening U.S. Dollar earlier in the recovery, and changing expectations about the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy. Bitcoin closed Thursday at about $84,900.

It’s October 2. There’s no escaping Fall now. Fully immerse yourself into the season with Grossen Bart Brewery’s newly-tapped Mutton Chop Marzen, any NFL game your heart desires, and delicious food options. Or, you know, continue to reject the end of Summer and grab Grossen Bart’s Coconut Haze IPA. Either way, you can’t go wrong. Find Grossen Bart in the heart of Longmont at 1025 Delaware Ave.

Groundbreaking ceremony for 1st & Main Transit Station: One of Longmont’s most ambitious projects in recent history takes a big step forward next Friday. That’s when the City of Longmont will mark the start of construction for the transportation hub that’s two decades in the making. The five-story transit center will include a bus station, 10 bus bays, 700 parking spaces, bicycle storage, and provide connections to regional bus service and passenger rail service, which is slated to be ready in 2029 (fingers crossed on that one). Construction should be completed by the end of 2027.

Longmont’s power provider completes massive solar project: On Wednesday, Platte River Power Authority celebrated the completion of a 1,700-acre, 257-megawatt solar farm. PRPA, which is Longmont’s wholesale electricity provider, began the project in 2019 and started construction in 2024. The complex is expected to generate about 608 GWh of electricity per year — enough to power 73,000 homes and businesses across PRPA’s communities (which also include Fort Collins, Estes Park, and Loveland). For perspective, 608 GWh is roughly 71% of the power Longmont consumes annually. The same figure is also 19% of what all four communities use every year.

Silver Creek tennis falls in first round of state tournament: In the first round of the Dual Team State Championships, Silver Creek High School fell to 6th-seeded Cheyenne Mountain by a score of 5-2. The tennis season isn’t over just yet — Silver Creek’s players will compete individually in next week’s regional tournament for a shot at qualifying for the state tournament in Pueblo. This week’s competition was team-based. Each round features one school playing seven matches against another — three singles matches and four doubles matches. Whoever wins the most, wins that round. Next week, SCHS’ individual players will advance — or get eliminated — on their own. It’s been a stellar season for the Raptors. Prior to their Thursday loss, Silver Creek had been carrying a 9-1 record into the postseason.

Longmont Restaurant Week: For the next 10 days, nearly 40 Longmont restaurants are participating in Longmont Restaurant Week. The event doesn’t exactly offer special discounts, but it does offer special menus. It’s focused on getting locals to try restaurants they wouldn’t normally visit, or offer a different experience than what’s typical for that place. Nevertheless, it’s an excuse to go out to eat, and who doesn’t love those? Check out menus and find out all you need to know here.

Electrify Longmont Fair: Want to test-drive an EV, tour an electric tiny home, or get a free Halloween costume? Sunday’s free Electrify Longmont Fair has all three. The event celebrates the role electricity plays in Longmont, the innovation taking place around the city, and showcases the ways everyday people can use electricity to make our lives more sustainable. It takes place on Sunday from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. at the Boulder County Fairgrounds. Learn more here.

Actually, It Is Rocket Science: Here’s your appetizer for ski season. Wibby Brewing is hosting a screening of the annually-released film Actually, It Is Rocket Science. The film showcases the world’s top skiers and snowboarders, the science behind their stunts, and “the seemingly reckless abandon that many of the world's best snow athletes display as they push the physics of what is possible.” Learn more and buy tickets here.