All Under One Roof!

We've done it! It's taken a while and it's not completely done just yet but we're all under one roof again. No need to walk up the street to a temporary service department. No need to walk around the store to find an open door. We're now open for business in the Greenlake Service Department. Thank you all for your patience during our remodel.

The new service area is operational. We're still organizing and setting things up but we are fully operational and ready to go! Bring your bike into the huge automatic sliding doors on the east side of the building and check your bike into service. We'll make an appointment for you or do any "instant" work you need done. If you do make appointment we'll whisk your bike...

Upstairs where all the real service work is done. This way our service technicians can take care of your bike with little distraction and all the space they need. When you come back to pick it up we'll run up stairs (or take the elevator) and grab your bike off of the...

hanging racks in our second floor warehouse and bring it right down to you. No more having to run up the street to the warehouse or searching for your bike. We're looking forward to being able to service our customers much more quickly than in the past.

Come in and check it out. There is still more to be done so stay tuned!

Construction in Greenlake

Now that our project is just about done and things are starting to get back to normal for us, a look around the neighborhood shows that the Greenlake area is changing quite a bit. Gregg's has been right here at the same spot for 75 years now but it looks like some others have finally caught on to what a great place Greenlake is. While construction always disrupts the area, we're really excited about the growth around the Greenlake and welcome all the new construction and new people in the area. Below you'll find some pictures of some of the other construction going on in the area.

This is the Florera. As their website says, "it’s a place where eco-friendly design meets luxurious lakeside accommodations, where sustainable resources save you money while helping to save the planet, and where residents can take part in unlimited activities (cycling!) right outside their door."

Albertson's was a fixture in Greenlake for 50 years. The sudden closing of the store shocked the neighborhood and it's standing empty for over a year has been "your worst nightmare" according to Ref Lindmark of the Greenlake Community Council. We're not sure what the plan is at this point but the building has started to come down and we're all excited to see what is going to take it's place.

The largest project in the area has also just started. The Vitamilk Dairy has recently started to come down and according to a 2004 Seattle PI article, the developer "envisions an anchoring grocery store, underground parking and ground-floor shops. Upward of 250 housing units, likely to be apartments, could be built above."

Change can be tough but like I said before, we are very excited about the growth in Greenlake. All of this construction has of course been a little tough on parking in the area but in the end it will all be worth it.

Greenlake Expansion Opening Soon!

It's been a long process for everyone invloved, but the end is in sight. We're planning on having our service department up and running in the new expanded area of Greenlake sometime around the middle of this week.

We've started to get all the bikes sorted out and stored in our new warehouse space on the second floor and were pretty excited to get everything under one roof.

We've already got some mechanics working in the new area and everyone should be at the main location by the end of the week. No more walking down the street to service or to grab a new bike.

Our parts area has also started moving into their new storage area. It'll be a while before we get everything completely organized but we're on our way.

The doors are open to the new area but we're still "employees only" at this point. When the process is completed our customers will no longer have to go outside to get to another part of our store. The whole store will be connected and under one roof!

For Immediate Release - A Word from Stan

Gregg's Cycle Inc.
7007 Woodlawn Ave. NE Seattle, WA
www.greggscycles.com
Stan Gregg / Martin Pluth / Jeremy McKinley
(206) 523-1822
info@greggscycles.com

For Immediate Release - 6/27/07

Re: Gregg’s Cycle Renovation/Addition to Greenlake store, move of Aurora Store to Alderwood and construction of larger Bellevue location.

The Gregg’s Cycle building located at Ravenna Blvd. and Greenlake Way has been undergoing a major remodel and expansion that is slated for completion by mid July. Approximately 40% of the existing structure was demolished and replaced with a two-story 10,000 square foot addition. The new facility will have 18,400 Square feet of space and will be the largest cycle store in the Northwest. The 80 year old Gregg’s building has become a familiar Greenlake landmark and one of the longest operating businesses in the Greenlake area. Gregg’s Cycle originally opened in 1932 in a small portion of the southeast corner of the building with a bicycle rental operation. Renting a bicycle for a ride around Greenlake became a popular and inexpensive form of recreation during the lean economic times of the Great Depression. Bicycle sales and service were added in the late 1930’s and soon became the dominant portion of Gregg’s business.

Celebrating its 75th year of operation and now in the 4th generation of operation by the Gregg family, the store occupies the entire block. Gregg’s had leased offsite space near the store since the 1970’s as the business had outgrown the existing building. With the popularity of the Greenlake area for condominium projects, available nearby commercial space has all, but disappeared.

2007 has been a busy year for Gregg’s with the move of their Aurora Cycle store to a new location near Alderwood Mall. The Aurora store had operated continuously at 74th and Aurora Avenue North since 1937. To cap off a year of moves and construction, Gregg’s Bellevue store was moved in April to a new 11,500 square foot facility that was specifically designed and built to be a bicycle shop. The new store is a three-story facility located on Bellevue Way just south of Bellevue Square. This move was also prompted by development plans for the location at Bellevue Plaza that Gregg’s had occupied since 1984.

The new stores will allow for more selection and greater customer convenience and we cannot thank our customers enough for their support and patience during the construction and other disruptions. Gregg’s is planning Grand Openings for both the expanded Greenlake store and new Bellevue store later this summer.
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Greenlake Construction : Closer and Closer!

The Greenlake construction project is getting closer and closer to being completed. This is good news as we are currently having to send people on a little trek to get to our service area. When all is done we'll get moved in as soon as possible and be able to get back to a better than normal operation. Below we've got a bunch of pictures of the new space. Check it out!

This is the north end of the second floor which will eventually hold our expanded service department. Our service guys and gals are pretty excited to be up stairs in this space where they can get things done much more efficiently. We're looking forward to being able to expand our ability to build bikes for the sales floor and get service work done in a more timely manner.

With the new construction we've done everything possible to meet the standards set out in our mission statement. And one of the most important aspects of that is to provide our employees with, "a working environment that allows us to attract, develop and retain the best staff members." During this time of construction and re-construction our employees have had to deal with quite a few challenges. The new building will have an updated employee lounge, shower room and sun deck.

And here is the sun deck, right off the back of the employee lounge. It's not huge, but it's got a view of the lake and will be a great place to sit and have lunch or just take a quick break.

This is the south end of the upstairs addition. It will be mostly used for storage and have some service functions as well. This, of course, is all pretty flexible at this stage but we're looking forward to being able to service our customers faster and easier by having all of our bikes under one roof.

More storage space.

The door there on the left will be the new door to what was the Skate and rentals area. For the time being we plan to put everything back the way that it was on the bottom floor. But in the future we'll have the flexibility and space to make sure that everything is in the right place and easy to find. No longer will our customers have to search for the right door or go back outside to find another part of the store. In the new building once you come in any of the three doors to the building you can get to any other part of the store.

Stariway to the service area. Not for customers, as we'll have a check in area downstairs on the first floor and take the bikes up the elevator to get work done on the second floor.

Another view of the first floor of the addition.

This a view from what will be the new serive area looking down the hall where you'll pass two new bathrooms and head down to the skates and rentals area.

All the guys from Foushee are hard at work trying to get things done ASAP. We're still a few weeks out but after all the long hard work it's finally taking shape.

Greenlake Addition Getting Close

As many of you know, along with moving the Aurora store to Alderwood and building a brand new store in Bellevue, we've also been doing an addition to the Greenlake store. Since 1932 Gregg's Greenlake Cycle has sat unchanged on the corner of Woodlawn and Ravenna. The building has been in the family since then and it was not without great reason that it has been changed. And that reason is the recent expansion in the Greenlake neighborhood. For years we had a large warehouse across the street at what is now "The Greenlake" condos. They are beautiful and we welcome them but it did change a few things for us. For the last few years we've been using a space near the old Vitamilk dairy for our warehouse. While not perfect this worked well for us . Soon, this space will also be torn down for mixed use buildings. Again, we welcome the change for the neighborhood but it left us with some pretty weighty decisions of our own. To be the successful bike shop that we've been for the last 75 years we've always need a great deal of storage. So, after careful consideration, it was decided that we would put the whole operation under one roof and build our own warehouse and new retail area of the store. The pictures below are what we have to date. This project is looking to be done in the next six weeks or so.

Bellevue Store Open For Business!

It took a few long nights and a lot of work from a lot of people but the largest bike shop on the East Side is up and running. With 11,000 square feet to work with the new Gregg's Bellevue Cycle has enough room to to keep up with the amazing growth going on all over Bellevue.It took a few long nights and a lot of work from a lot of people but the largest bike shop on the East Side is up and running. With 11,000 square feet to work with the new Gregg's Bellevue Cycle has enough room to to keep up with the amazing growth going on all over Bellevue.

The Night Before Opening

The Finishing Touches!

Here are a few pictures of the sales floor and our hardworking staff while we were still getting the store ready.

The main sales floor has room for hundreds of bikes ready for test rides , as well as a huge selection of clothing, parts and accessories.Store manager, Tony along with his staff take in a working lunch while enjoying the great views from the front windows.

We're Close Now!

It's been a few weeks since I've seen the new Gregg's Bellevue Cycle location and when I saw it again I has amazed. I suppose I shouldn't have been, we're planning to open the doors to the public sometime in April so it should be close to finished right? And it is! Here are a few pictures of the building inside and out.
This picture shows the view from what is the first floor. At this point (and things are always flexible at this point!) this will be the bike sales floor. This picture is taken from the east (Bellevue Way) side of the building looking north.

I know, not a very exciting picture, but the elevator will become a very necessary part of a two story bike shop. The service department is located on the second floor of the building and this full size freight elevator will make it a breeze to get your bike up to get it's tune up.

Here, our owner, Stan Gregg and our office manager, Nancy are busy checking out the bathroom in what will become the employee lounge and break room.

Here we are looking down the stairs into what will become our "Grand Foyer". We're planning on making this a very inviting area with displays, cycling information a place to sit and relax while others might be shopping or maybe watch a cycling event on one of the large TV's planned to be in the store. Maybe there will even be a little espresso down here? Like I said, it's all a little flexible at this point!

This is the upper floor which will house our parts and accessories along with our service area. The area you're looking at here may also have kids bikes , trailers or joggers. It's a huge space and we're looking forward to filling it!

The whole store features great views of downtown Bellevue.

Here's a look at the main stairway on the first floor which will be the home to a huge selection of bikes.

Another look at the second floor , the parts and accessories area. Also, behind that window will be our conference room. Great for meetings and clinics.

They are just starting to put the finishing touches on the outside of the building. Our new signage should be up any day now.

This is a view of the back of the store where we also have great windows and a second story employee deck for lunches during the sunny months.

We're really excited about the new Bellevue location. A lot of people have put a lot of work and thought into the planning and building of what will become one of the premier bike shops in the country.

Greenlake in The Sun!

The weather has started to turn a little bit for us up here in the Northwest and things are looking great in the sun. It's also given the good folks at Foushee a chance to work in the sun while constructing what looks to be a pretty impressive addition to the Greenlake Store. It's been great fun to walk out of the building and look up to see what has changed today. As with most construction, to the untrained eye, it seems to go in fits and starts. For a while it seemed as if progress was very slow but then all of a sudden this steel framework popped up! Here's a few more pictures from yesterday.

More Greenlake Pics

A View from the Air

Here's a great picture of the new Bellevue store in it's current state of completion.

Greenlake Construction

It's been a few weeks since our last post about the Greenlake construction project. They've torn down and cleaned up the mess from the old building and started putting up the new one. I've looked for pictures of what the finished project is going to look like but haven't found any just yet. Until then here's a few pictures of the framework going up. Things are moving fast now!

More Greenlake Construction

The building, it's coming down! We've had a lot of questions about what is going on and we want to make sure that everyone knows that we are open during construction at the Greenlake store. We are expanding and growing! Check out more pictures below.

Bellevue Construction Photos

Greenlake Construction Photos