By Leslie Wilber
Colorado Hometown Newspapers

Outfitting the new Louisville Public Library with solar panels could cost the city about $38,000 up front, architects reported during a Tuesday, June 6, city council meeting.

That’s less than half the actual cost of the panels, Mike Johnston of Architectural Energy Corporation said.

But it could take up to 39 years for the panels to make up for the city’s original cash outlay.

“From an absolute prospective, it is not attractive economically,” Johnston said.

But solar power has other advantages, like curbing pollution, he said.

“(The benefit) is real,” Johnston said.

New state laws require major energy companies like Xcel to rebate a portion of the cost to install solar power — up to $4.50 per watt, Johnston said.

He estimated it would cost about $8.14 per watt to install the panels on the library.

The rest of the cost would be paid back over time in the form of energy savings, he said, supplying between 10 percent to 15 percent of the library’s energy needs.

While Johnston said that could take almost 39 years, Mayor Chuck Sisk found the estimate too conservative.

Johnston’s estimate was flawed, Sisk said, because it did not take into account the rising cost of energy. That factor could help pay off the panels sooner.

The roof of the library would be a good surface for installing solar panels, Johnston said.

It is flat and not shaded, so they could absorb the most sunlight, he said.

The panels could also be installed without piercing the roof, Johnston said.

That would lessen the possibility of a leaky roof that could damage library materials.

So far, construction of the new library is about $500,000 under budget, deputy town administrator Julie Boyd said. The bond money cannot be used for projects other than building the library.

“I don’t think it’s purely dollars in return,” Sisk said of the system.

As of deadline, council members had not decided if they would pursue the second phase of the study exploring the possibility of installing panels.

The first phase of the study, presented Tuesday, cost about $4,000 Boyd said. The second phase would cost slightly less, she said.

In the second phase, architects would begin designing the project, Johnston said.

In other business, the council approved plans for two developments in Louisville.

The first would allow the old Louisville Public Library’s new owners to remodel the space for retail and offices.

Council members also approved construction of the Residences at Balfour. The two-building independent living complex would be across Hecla Drive from the Lodge at Balfour, a similar development.

By Leslie Wilber
Colorado Hometown Newspapers

Antique vehicles always have been a part of Mallory Martin’s life.

Her father, Park Martin, drove her home from the hospital in a 1948 Cadillac when she was a newborn.

Twenty years later, the family still has the car.

Over the years, Park Martin has worked on many cars.

But when Mallory Martin was in eighth grade, she and her father began their biggest restoration project yet.

They drove to Kansas City to pick up a 1948 Greyhound Silversides bus.

The bus is iconic — Greyhound has a restored model often used in movies and television shows.

It has a sleek, art deco design, more like a train than a modern bus.

And the Martins’ is one of the few Silversides in the country labeled as a Greyhound.

Park Martin drew up a contract with the company that allows him to display the company’s name and logo on the outside of the bus.

“We’ve gone for the authenticity of it,” Park Martin said.

The bus will be on display at the Louisville Recreation Center from 9-11:30 a.m., Saturday, June 10, during the annual Touch-A-Truck event.

The event will feature more than 50 heavy vehicles that participants can tour, said Louisville’s activities coordinator Mandy Perera.

By Saturday, Park Martin said, the bus will be painted with it’s original number and bear the company name.

“We’ve had it for six years but it’s not done yet,” Mallory Martin said.

The restoration has been a father-daughter project.

The pair painted the outside to Greyhound’s specifications. Parts like lights can be hard to find — they were made of glass and are no longer in production. So they’ve had to scavenge.

Many details are original — recently, the marquis announced the bus’s destination as Los Angeles, but they have signs for other cities along the southwest route, Mallory Martin said.

The rebuilt Detroit 671 diesel still rumbles easily to life with a baritone rattle that shakes a passenger’s guts.

“It runs good,” Park Martin said. “It runs clean.”

Park Martin drives milk tankers, so he’s used to handling long vehicles. But the older bus poses some challenges. It uses air brakes, but they’re an early model.

“You have to pay attention,” he said.

Even though the bus tops out at about 60 miles per hour, other drivers never seem to mind.

“People usually slow down to take a look,” Park Martin said. “You don’t see these too often.”

It also gets about five and a half miles per gallon, so it’s not the most efficient vehicle for a road trip.

And there’s no power steering. Just manpower.

A big part of the bus’s attraction is it’s historical value, Mallory Martin said.

“In my dad’s town these buses drove all around,” Mallory Martin said of her father’s childhood.

The buses often make people of his generation and older nostalgic, said Park Martin, 61.

Other vintage truck collectors “love it,” when the Martins attend events, he said.

“Most people my age remember these,” he said.

Mallory Martin is now a junior at the University of Colorado at Boulder. She and her father still spend weekends working on the bus.

In addition to putting in manual labor, the family has spent time researching the history of Greyhound. They were able to track down the number the bus used when it was in service. They’ve been able to find old tickets, uniforms and drivers’ manuals.

Park Martin guesses he and his daughter will never be entirely done working on the bus.

And it is truly a labor of love. Under the Martins’ contract with Greyhound, it can’t be used for commercial transportation.

Mallory and Park Martin don’t plan to part with the bus.

“I doubt we ever would,” Park Martin said.

From 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday, June 10, the Louisville Chamber of Commerce will host the Taste of Louisville in downtown Louisville. The festival highlights the diverse restaurateurs and merchants who do business in the community.

By Leslie Wilber
Colorado Hometown Newspapers

At Louisville’s Memory Square Park, charred playground equipment recently was removed and soon should be replaced.

“Hopefully, we’ll get it done today,” said Tom Coats, a member of the city crew removing the destroyed equipment on Thursday, June 1.

The equipment was destroyed during a Saturday, May 20, fire. Louisville Fire chief Tim Parker said the fire was arson.

There are no suspects.

Insurance adjustors toured the site last week, Louisville’s land management director Scott Robson said.

So far, the city has reordered more than $40,000 worth of equipment, Robson said.

It should arrive in about six weeks.

The equipment being replaced was designed for use by toddlers, Robson said. It was installed earlier this year.

“What’s up now is not as appropriate for the toddlers,” he said.

The crew repairing the playground was hoisting charred stumps of toys from the ground and removing a tower and set of stairs, worker Neal Martin said.

“From the bridge over we’re planning to take out,” Martin said.