A Conoco sign now stands tall above Boulder, signaling to residents that Town Pump has made some big changes — most visibly, the completion, after three years in the works, of a 14,437-square-foot building. The new store’s bronze roof sits high enough to catch the eyes of drivers on top of the Boulder hill with reflections of sunlight.
The recently built Town Pump Convenience Store and Lucky Lil’s Casino opened to the public on June 22, two days later than planned. While this event sparked excitement among community members, longtime regulars also expressed bittersweet tones as they reminisced about 30-odd years of life and times at the former establishment.
“We are very excited about the new Town Pump, but the old one will for sure be missed,” Sheri Sullivan told The Monitor via a Facebook thread started by Dawn Pierce, reflecting on the memories made at the former building, built in the late 1980s.
One of Sullivan’s favorite traditions from the old location, she said, was the “Town Pump run,” which often occurred after a long day of successful elk hunting. She said this custom of “showing our game off” will continue at the new store.
Jefferson High School alumni recalled many runs to Town Pump during early morning practices. “I used to get 64-ounce Mountain Dews after basketball double days morning practice,” Stacey Ann exclaimed on the same Facebook thread.
The site of those memories is now being dismantled. On Monday, workers began removing equipment from the well-used Town Pump store. And early Tuesday morning, workers began to demolish the building; by 10:30 a.m., it was rubble. All told, “the [demolition] process should only take a couple of days. It includes hauling debris to the dump,” said Bill McGladdery, director of corporate communications for Town Pump Inc.
Following the demolition of the building, work to remove the old diesel islands, automotive pumps and underground storage tanks will begin. Town Pump plans to install eight new automotive fueling islands with 16 fueling positions and 11 new dispensers. The new layout will offer gasoline and diesel #2 at every fueling position. Drivers can find diesel #1 and #2, 50/50 blend and red-dye diesel at the northern most fueling positions.
Town Pump has yet to determine a date for the new store’s grand opening celebration, but expects to do one after completing the changes to the fuel islands as a way to thank the customers.
The new building has already started making firsts in Boulder, including the introduction of self-checkout lines. Visitors on the stores’ inaugural day of operation called this feature “cool,” going on to say they had never seen it in a gas station before. McGladdery told The Monitor that implementing the self-checkout lanes is part of the company’s beta testing to see how customers like them. Town Pump locations in the Bozeman area have used this feature for over a year now, he said.
The new building will build on more than three decades of community ebbs and flows. On Facebook, Jessie Molitor and Quinn Mann recalled “getting early risers [a hash brown patty filled with eggs and bacon] and chocolate milk for morning laps” at their Jefferson High sports practices.
The wee morning hours weren’t the only time Boulder residents made the trip to the Town Pump. Pixie Roeber remembered visiting the store with Linda Micthal “after long nights of tending bar for a bite to eat at the tables in the back.”
Some Boulder residents experienced several “firsts” at the former Town Pump. Buck DeMers thought back to purchasing his first can of Copenhagen and his first case of beer. DeMers also shared his first fist fight in the parking lot with Keva Aguirre. “I’m sorry for upsetting you that night but you didn’t need to hit me that hard,” DeMers joked with Aguirre on the Facebook thread.
