Real Estate & Construction  October 15, 2024

84 Lumber to return to Northern Colorado with three new facilities

GREELEY — After a 15-year hiatus, 84 Lumber will return to Greeley in December.

The Pennsylvania-based, woman-owned lumber company has been quietly constructing its new business at a former recycling warehouse in northwest Greeley at O Street and 59th Avenue throughout the summer.

But Greeley is just a small part of its expansion plans in Colorado. 

“The 84 Lumber store in Greeley is currently under construction and scheduled to open in early December. In addition, we are preparing to open a new component plant in Fort Collins in the coming weeks and are actively hiring to staff this location,” company spokeswoman Amy Smiley said in an email response to questions. “Looking ahead, we are exploring additional opportunities, including another component plant in Fort Lupton and a store in Colorado Springs. We also have a door shop in Denver that is fully operational and continuing to serve the region.”

The Greeley store will operate with 10 full-time employees and five part-time employees during its operating hours, according to its Use By Special Review permit from Weld County.

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The 18,324-square-foot warehouse operated as a recycling center for almost five years, but it has sat vacant for years after closing in 2014. The recycling market just never became profitable for the original owners, as well as for subsequent trash haulers who took over the property.  Representatives of Gallegos Sanitation, which had taken over the property for a short time, said the cost to collect and transport the plastics, glass, cardboard and other materials at the center outweighs what it could earn by selling them.

Pierce Hardy LP purchased the property in 2024, shortly after announcing expansion plans in Colorado.

The company previously had stores throughout Colorado, including one in Greeley that opened in 2002 at the former Hugh M. Woods store at 2450 29th St. That store closed in the economic downtown of 2008. The company also purchased property in Loveland in 2003, but that site also was closed. 

“Like many businesses, we faced tough decisions during the downturn, which included closing our previous Greeley location. We are excited to return to the area and are committed to expanding our presence in the western United States,” Smiley wrote.

The company, founded in 1956, and headquartered in Eighty Four, Pennsylvania, operates 320 facilities, including stores, component manufacturing plants, engineered wood product centers, and door shops in 34 states. The privately held company reported $6.3 billion in sales in 2023, according to a company fact sheet.

This article was first published by BizWest, an independent news organization, and is published under a license agreement. © 2024 BizWest Media LLC.

The Pennsylvania-based 84 Lumber company will return to Greeley after a long hiatus.

Sharon Dunn is an award-winning journalist covering business, banking, real estate, energy, local government and crime in Northern Colorado since 1994. She began her journalism career in Alaska after graduating Metropolitan State College in Denver in 1992. She found her way back to Colorado, where she worked at the Greeley Tribune for 25 years. She has a master's degree in communications management from the University of Denver. She is married and has one grown daughter — and a beloved English pointer at her side while she writes. When not writing, you may find her enjoying embroidery and crochet projects, watching football, or kayaking and birdwatching on a high-mountain lake.
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