The free books. Good morning, Boulder County. It's Wednesday, April 29th. I'm your host, Shay Castle. And this is the Frequency, a weekly local podcast covering the news, events, and voices shaping the Boulder Valley. Today's episode is brought to you by the Netherland Farmers Market. The new season is just around the corner. This year's market will run May 10th through October 18th. Along with all your favorite vendors, we're planning a few special fundraiser events throughout the season. This year is extra meaningful for Ned's Farmers Market, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. That's 10 amazing years of bringing people together, supporting locals, and celebrating everything that makes our community so special. The celebration will last all season long. To kick things off, the opening day theme is Gold Day for the market's golden birthday, because we're turning 10 on May 10. Come out, wear your best gold, bring your friends and family, and help start the season strong. There's nothing quite like that first weekend back. Seeing returning vendors, reconnecting with the vibrant community, and of course, enjoying access to fresh local produce every single weekend. We can't wait to see you there. We've got a short show for you today, but it is packed full with news from every corner of Boulder County. Here are your headlines.

Like all the other mountain towns, there is one business that's the center of the towns. Jamestown has the mercantile, Allens Park had their little pizza coffee house or Ferncliffe, but they had a hub, Gold Hill had the Bluebird Lodge, the Inn, and the General Store. So there was a place for folks to come.

A group of Jamestowners is trying to raise$1.5 million to keep the Merc alive. The Jamestown mercantile, the building, not the restaurant it houses, is up for sale. The property owner has given locals until the fall to raise money for a purchase before he seeks an alternate buyer. They've formed a nonprofit with the name the Jamestown Home for Wayward Artist, Pirates, and a Somewhat Feral. They've also set up a website, save the Merc.org. As of this recording, they've raised over$7,000. One of the organizers is Rainbow Schultz, owner of the Merck, the restaurant that operates inside the Mercantile Building. The property also includes a second structure and eight apartments. If the Save the Merck campaign is successful, a nonprofit board of directors will manage the rental units and both buildings and keep renting space to the Merck. The campaign's Instagram page hinted that fundraising events would be planned for the coming months. Learn more and donate at save the Merck.org. That clip you heard at the top of this headline was Mason Moyer, who has been working for over 18 months to save another historic building in another mountain town, Columbia Hotel in Ward. Tune in next week to hear more from Mason. In other restaurant news, Boulder's beloved hot dog stand, Mustards, made headlines recently for a pending closure. The coverage and resulting community response didn't always reflect reality. So I thought I'd take a few moments to make sense of what's actually happening. Here's what we know Mustard's Last Stand will close at its current location, but the restaurant has up to two years left at the corner of Broadway and Arapaho. Mustard is located in a city office building. The entire property is being vacated and demolished because it's in a floodplain next to Boulder Creek. That's been the plan for several years. In 2018, I wrote a story for Mustard's 40th anniversary. The eatery's owners knew even then they'd eventually have to move out. The demolition date at that time was set for 2023. Now it's been pushed back to late 2027 or 2028. So what changed? And why is this making news now? As I reported in that 2018 story for the Daily Camera, the plan at the time was to find Mustards a new home in the eastern edge of the city's civic area, where the Boulder Farmers Market is held. But draft plans for the area were recently released, and they didn't include a spot for mustards. Instead, an existing city building will be used for a year-round food hall and community space run by the farmers market. The city is still working with mustards to find it a new home, officials said. The business will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2028, likely around the same time it will either have to move or close. From businesses to workers. Friday, May 1st, is May Day, also known as International Workers' Day. The holiday has historically been used to support labor movements, including the fight for an eight-hour workday. Boulder County Democratic Socialists of America and the Boulder Area Labor Council, along with local unions, are holding a May Day rally from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Glen Huntington Banshell in Boulder's Central Park. Speeches, sign making, and a march are planned to bring awareness to local labor issues, which include a county rollback of minimum wage increases, possible cuts to tipped wages, and the detention of immigrant workers. Boulder County residents are encouraged to participate in the national May Day Strong campaign and abstain from working or shopping on May 1st. In related news, the city of Boulder is seeking feedback on those tipped wage cuts via an online survey opened through June 2nd. Find that link in our show notes. Erie may sell or lease its mineral rights to an oil and gas company seeking to build 26 wells next to the town. The issue has divided elected officials and residents. Those opposed to the deal say retaining those rights is the only way to stop the Draco Pad project, approved by state regulators last year. Erie owns only a fraction of the mineral rights involved. But if operator Civitas Corp can't drill under the town's land, operators may not be able to access a significant amount of the oil and gas they have rights to. That could result in a lawsuit, according to proponents of selling or leasing the mineral rights, since it would prevent the company from utilizing assets to which it is legally entitled. Proponents of the deal, including the town's mayor, argue Erie should try to benefit financially from a situation over which it has no control. In a Facebook post, Erie Mayor Andrew Moore wrote, The hard reality is that the Draco project has been legally approved by the state. To face this head on, the focus has shifted from prevention to protection and compensation. Erie's staff and legal team are working to negotiate every possible safeguard to protect our environment and ensure Erie is fairly compensated for the impacts this project will bring. Complicating the matter, a consultant hired by the town to negotiate with Civitas is a former executive of that same company, raising ethical and legal concerns. The town chose the consultant without conducting a formal, competitive bidding process. The negotiations could be a test of a Colorado law meant to stop the practice of forced pooling. Under forced pooling, oil companies could force property owners to allow drilling on their land if neighboring areas were already approved for fracking. Negotiations continue to happen privately between Erie and Civitas, but any future agreement would be subject to a public hearing. No vote has been scheduled. You can read more about the issue in two wonderfully reported pieces by Salem Goodman for Yellow Scene. Find links to both stories in our show notes. We've got a triple dose of airport news for you today. First up, Boulder City Council informally directed staff to keep accepting money from the Federal Aviation Administration for maintenance and upkeep at Boulder Municipal Airport. The decision likely means the airport will continue to operate indefinitely. Staff told council that if Boulder stopped taking FAA grants, the city would need to find$9 million through 2040 to keep the airport safe and operational. The direction comes as some residents and elected officials were seeking to redevelop the airport into housing. Boulder sued the FAA for the right to redevelop, but that lawsuit was dismissed in September. The federal government argued that any airport accepting federal dollars had to remain operational in perpetuity. Lafayette will support Superior and Boulder County as the governments seek relief from the state's highest court for noise from Jefferson County's Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport. A Colorado Appeals court in March dismissed a portion of the case relating to airport noise while referring a claim over environmental impacts back to local courts. Lafayette will submit a formal letter of support in that appeal after that council gave its okay at an April 21st meeting. And lastly, Longmont is inviting residents to a May 7th event to discuss noise from Vance Brand Regional Airport. The virtual meeting starts at 6 p.m. and can be joined by visiting bit.ly slash airport live. We'll post that link in our show notes. Louisville will not purchase a building and parking lot at 101 South Taylor Avenue. City Council decided last week. The city was looking at the eight-acre property for potential use as offices and community event space. Louisville entered into a purchase agreement in March. The agreement included a due diligence period during which it was revealed that needed maintenance would put the full cost of purchase above what the city was willing to spend. Boulder Valley Frequency is officially an award-winning podcast. Our October 22nd episode with Rosana Longo Better about Elevate Boulder and Iris Fields won third place in the podcast category at the top of the Rockies contest hosted by the Society for Professional Journalists this past Saturday. The four state contest honors news outlets and freelance journalists in Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Wyoming. Find that award-winning episode at Boulderfrequency.com. Later this week, we'll release our interview with the man inking a deal to finally bring a train from Denver to Boulder County. And no, it's not fast tracks, but it does involve some of the money we've all been paying to RTD for the past 22 years. That interview drops Friday at boulderfrequency.com or wherever you get your podcast. As always, thanks for listening. Before you go, here's one more thing.

Like we thought we were. We're just part of the system.