Mountain Windows buys former Taco Bell building

The fast food industry has well and truly departed from the former Gunnison Taco Bell location.

Last month, Mountain Windows and Blinds purchased the building at 310 W. Tomichi, and is set to swap crunchwraps and chalupas for a windows, blinds and doors showroom and office. The building is expected to reopen this October, and will be the city’s first showroom of its kind.

“It’s pretty wild that the same four walls that I went with my friends for tacos as a teenager will now be the building where my family grows our business,” said Mountain Windows co-owner Evangelyn Willrodt. “We want to add to this community as an employer, and in the way we work with people. This gives us the space to do that.”

Mountain Windows and Blinds currently operates out of a small Main Street office with additional storage space in South Gunnison. The company serves as a retailer for doors, blinds and windows and partners with local contractors and homeowners. In recent months, the business expanded beyond the Gunnison Valley and took on projects in Lake City, Buena Vista, Montrose and Salida.

“Our current office space is very small, especially for our team of five,” Evangelyn said. “So our vision for the new space is to include offices, and a big conference room where our contractors can meet directly with homeowners and with us.”

While Evangelyn was raised in the Gunnison Valley and graduated from the Crested Butte Community School nearly 20 years ago, her husband and co-owner Patrick Willrodt grew up around his family’s small business in South Dakota. The couple returned to the Gunnison Valley in 2019 and after six years working as a contractor with Mountain Windows, Patrick purchased the company.

Although the design of 310 W. Tomichi caters to fast food, Evangelyn said the building will not require an overhaul. The couple plans to integrate a conference room and office space into the layout, with most of the building serving as a showroom for partnering manufacturers, such as Marvin Windows, ProVia and Hunter Douglas blinds. Although an exact date has not been set, the couple estimates the new location will open its doors this fall.

“We’ve looked at a lot of different commercial spaces, but with a little creative vision, decided on [this location] because it’s a very large space, and right on Tomichi,” Evangelyn said. “There isn’t anywhere else in the valley where homeowners and contractors can get a hands-on idea of options for interior doors, windows and blinds.”

(Alex McCrindle can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or alex@gunnisontimes.com.)