YOUR AD HERE »

Bank spares house from garbage heap

by Dennis Webb
GSPI News Editor

GLENWOOD SPRINGS – A brick house torn down last week to make way for a new WestStar Bank on Grand Avenue is gone, but won’t be forgotten.

Much of the old Rose family home, built in about 1950 at 1901 Grand, is being recycled for use either on site or elsewhere.

“The goal is to recycle 80 percent of the structure. I believe we’re on track to surpass that goal,” said Norm Bacheldor, project manager for Meldor Construction.



After three days of work last week, only one Dumpster had been filled with trash. Several large pine and fruit trees on the site have been fenced off and fertilized so they will survive demolition and construction, according to a news release from WestStar.

Nails, rebar, ductwork and other metal scraps, which are removed from recycling piles with a large magnet, will be sent to a recycling center.



Wood scraps, floor joists and any trees removed are being ground into mulch for use in landscaping the property. Brick, asphalt and concrete are being crushed and turned into structural fill that will be used under sidewalks and parking areas.

Some of the recycling efforts will be more visible. Workers last week set aside old metal J.V. Rose Motor Co. signs that had been stored in the home.

J.V. Rose ran the Glenwood car dealership for half a century, starting in 1922. Cindy Cochran, executive director of the Frontier Historical Museum, said the dealership operated at least part of that time at 9th and Grand, where the Bank of Colorado is now located downtown.

John Pattillo, market manager for WestStar in Glenwood, said the signs will be displayed in the bank building. So will a hand-painted safe discovered in the basement of the house.

Crews also recovered from the basement some old family films of activities such as ski trips, and gave them to James Rose, a family descendant now living downvalley.

Colorado Resource Management, an Aspen company, set up a grinder on the bank site to recycle building materials. The company also has done similar work at Colorado Mountain College’s Spring Valley Campus.

Pattillo said the new bank will make use of colors similar to those of the brick home.

He said he is pleased that so much of the existing material can be recycled for use in the new building.

“It will give the building a connection with past. We’re proud of what the team is accomplishing through these efforts,” Pattillo said.

The next step after the demolition will be to backfill the basement and grade the property, he said. Groundbreaking for the bank is set for Oct. 23, and the bank is scheduled to open next August.

Contact Dennis Webb: 945-8515, ext. 516

dwebb@postindependent.com


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Glenwood Springs and Garfield County make the Post Independent’s work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.