Like many non-profits around the world we were impacted negatively by Covid disruptions. Renewed interest in bicycling for transportation has meant our shop is extremely busy. Donations will help us endure this pandemic and emerge stronger as an organization.
In 2019, we were awarded Platinum Bike Friendly Business by the League of American Bicyclists. We join an extremely elite group of 3 other businesses in Colorado which are Platinum Bike Friendly Businesses.
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In the summer of 2010 my main source of transportation was an old Fuji bike in dire need of service. I was close to abandoning the bike before someone told me of the co-op.
Something remarkable happened. With humor and hard work of the Co-op staff that bike went under a transformation before my eyes. It was as good as new in a matter of hours costing me only free time to help out around the shop!
Fast forward a year and I bring a "Walmart Special" bike with little hope of it really being a decent bike to ride. Doug, the president of the Co-op happened to be my service tech and with humor and mindfulness managed to create a very useful vehicle for me to get around town. Many thanks! You folks are a vital part of the Ft Collins community. Jamie Clare 2011
Great customer service! They were amazingly patient and gracious as they taught my daughter and I how to maintain our bikes. We were even able to get new helmets that fit well at a reasonable price. What a great resource for the community! Colleen Holland Sept 2015
The Fort Collins Bike Co-op exceeded my expectations in every way. The highest quality of service in a non profit that I have ever experienced. Ben and the staff that worked there went beyond and helped me fix many problems on my bike within the space of an hour. I not only solved the problems I went in to fix like a busted crank ring and a new lefthand grip shifter, but did my brakes, and trued a wheel. You can either work with a mechanic for the donation of only $10/hour and very cheap costing, high quality used parts, or trade the time worked on the bike for an equal amount of time working at the co-op, which you can often do the same day! Awesome service and I hope it stays around for many years. They also have a select few used bicycles for sale that you know were fixed and function right. -- Quent Beck 2013
Awesome place!! Went in today and fixed up a bike for myself from the "as-is" bikes. I liked that you work with the volunteer mechanic yourself and can learn about your bike and how to take care of it. Got a great deal, all used parts are super cheap and even went home with a bike rack for my car. Highly recommend this place for repairs, purchasing a bike, or whatever else you need bike related. Wonderful staff. Cassandra Lenton 2012
Building Community Through Bicycling
Our goals are:
- To keep our community riding, including those who can't afford to buy a bike.
- To educate our neighbors in all things bike-related including bike maintenance, bicycle education and safety.
- To keep good bikes out of the landfill and to recycle poorly built or unsafe bikes.
- To refurbish and donate bicycles for a wide variety of charity events and programs for those in need.
Since its inception, the Bike Co-op has kept an endless number of bikes out of the landfill and helped thousands of people in the community learn to maintain and repair their own bikes. In addition the Co-op has donated bicycles to socially and financially challenged individuals and families through several city, county, and private agencies.
Today, our community bicycle shop still holds close the same ideals and philosophy that gave birth to the project; "To create a space where people from all walks of life can learn a valuable skill in a fun, safe and embracing environment, and a place where nothing is wasted and everything is for everyone."
Our organization has evolved and strengthened through 5 phases of growth so far in our history.
Phase One: The Fort Collins Bike Co-op began in the spring of 2003 in a casual manner based out of a residence when all the key components necessary to start a community bike shop somehow came together at once. During the first year we quickly realized an organization like this was really needed in Fort Collins as hundreds of people started to drop off donations of bikes, bike parts, tools, accessories, etc. or dropped by to learn about bicycles and bicycling, performing maintenance and repairs on their own bikes assisted by experienced "bike neighbors"; all by word of mouth. In the three following years the co-op experienced a growth of almost 100% each year until it finally outgrew its original location.
Phase Two: In early 2007 an agreement was reached with the city of Fort Collins that would allow the Bike Co-op to operate out of a larger, donated, city owned space thanks to the city's transportation planning board, city council and the city's bicycle coordinator. In February of that same year the bike co-op became a project affiliated with Bike Fort Collins and acquired Non-Profit status under their umbrella. These partnerships with the city and Bike Fort Collins were very helpful and moved the Co-op to the next level. A board of directors was established and many of the co-op programs were initiated with program coordinators to lead us forward. The co-op began actively pursuing grants and other funding streams.
Phase Three: Soon the co-op found that these partnerships that had once been so helpful brought with them some limitations. While partnering with the city the co-op was unable to sell anything because of an agreement with local bike retailers. Also, the bike library partnership was putting a significant drain on the co-op volunteer pool. The Co-op needed to evolve yet again. It applied and received its own 501c3 Non-profit status. Then a lease was signed and the co-op moved into its current location September 1st, 2009.
Phase Four: For five years now we have operated out of a leased location with the imminent threat of short-term lease cancellation. For the past 4 years we have been searching for a new property we could purchase ourselves and increase the stability and longevity of our service to this community. In July 2014, we purchased a property formerly operated by Resource as a recycled building supply store. The good news is the price was affordable, but the reality is it needs some serious repair before we can move into the building. Like each of the phases in our organization to date, we stepped up to the challenge and launched a capital campaign to help raise funds for the roof repair.
Phase Five: In fall of 2015 we moved into "Big Blue" building as a temporary space since the front building was deemed unsafe for occupation due to structural roof issues. After a successful capital campaign and securing additional finance we completed the construction project to completely replace the roof, trusses and several walls on the front building in 2017. This enabled our daily operations to move to a dry, heated and well-lit work-space mid-year of 2017.
Our current buildings are now habitable, insulated and water-tight roofing. We continue to improve our facilities including a recent collaboration with the Ft Collins Mural Project. Our long-running programs of Open Shop, Earn-a-Bike, Recycling are continuing to serve our community. We recently started an emphasis on providing Spanish-speakers and signage to encourage our Latinx community members to take advantage of our services.
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Organization name
Bicycle Cooperative of Fort Collins, Inc.
other names
FCBC, Fort Collins Bike Co-op
2008
Tax id (EIN)
26-3547740
Category
Human Services
Organization Size
Small Organization
Address
1501 North College AveLarimer County, CO, US