Lopez Garage utilizes Rural Energy Grants for Building Upgrades!

The Lopez Garage business was started way back in 1929 by Lloyd Weeks. He built the building in 1946 and owned it until 1975. Lloyd worked with his son Carroll throughout his career and passed the business to Carroll upon his retirement in 1975.  Carroll operated the business until its sale in 2005.  Lloyd’s grandson, Lyn Sorensen, grew up coming to Lopez and staying with his grandparents during the summers. He remembers the garage fondly as a gathering place for locals and getting all the latest island news while getting gas.

“I loved working in the garage and remember things always ran on island time,” says Lyn of his summers at the Lopez Garage.

In 2020, Lyn and his wife Katherine were living almost full time on Lopez and saw that the garage was going up for auction. It was a surprise to both of them when they ended up being the winning bidders. The couple knew the building needed a lot of work and weren’t sure exactly what they were going to do with it. They started by working with Sustainable Connections to get a commercial energy audit. Sustainable Connections works with island businesses to provide tools, access to incentives, and technical assistance. Businesses can access energy and money savings through efficiency upgrades and renewable energy projects.

The first thing they did was to replace and insulate the failing roof. Then they replaced some of the single pane windows and will add inserts to some of the original windows to retain their aesthetic but have the needed energy efficiency.

The building was originally heated with oil heaters (they would use the old oil from the cars to fuel the heaters). To bring it to a more modern and cleaner way to heat the building, they will be adding five Ductless Heat Pumps. They also plan to install solar panels on the rooftop. The solar and ductless heat pump upgrades were supported through two grants from the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP), which Sustainable Connections helped them access. The grants can pay for up to 40 percent of the projects.

Lyn and Katherine want the building to remain a part of the community. One of the bays was renovated to make it a functional gym space for Lopez Strength and Conditioning. Another section of the building is being used as a small distillery. The building still has a lot of work to be done but little by little it’s coming together.

Through current grants funds, businesses in San Juan County can access the same full service commercial energy audit and grant funds. Contact energy@sustainableconnections.org or visit communityenergychallenge.org.