Solar Roast Coffee, known for its environmentally friendly coffee roasting practices, is gearing up to reopen in March after enduring significant damage from a fire. The October incident forced the shuttering of its Colorado Springs location, at 134 N Tejon St.
The blaze originated at Bingo Burger, a neighboring downtown establishment, but it caused extensive smoke damage to Solar Roast’s premises. The aftermath left eight employees without work and halted daily operations that typically served between 100 to 200 customers.
Mike Hartkop, co-founder, told a local publication that the fire resulted in damages exceeding $110,000. He recently received a grant from the Colorado Springs City Center Partnership for $10,000 to help with the associated hardships.
Founded in 2004 by Hartkop and his brother David, Solar Roast Coffee prides itself on being the world’s only solar-powered coffee roaster. They built their first solar coffee roaster using a satellite dish, plastic mirrors, and a broccoli strainer. Over the years, their ingenuity led to the development of advanced solar roasters, culminating in the Helios V, a grid-tied photovoltaic array powering their operations.
The Hartkop brothers relocated to Pueblo in 2007. They opened their first retail shop on Main Street, establishing Solar Roast as a cornerstone of the local community. Today, Solar Roast operates three other locations in addition to the impacted Colorado Springs store.
