A local entrepreneur has restored a former gas station to imitate a vintage Texaco station from his youth.
Colin Bidmead, who has helped resurrect several buildings in downtown Coldwater, says he's always wanted to breathe new life into the former gas station building.
"I always wanted that to look like it did when I was young," he said. "It was an Esso when I was young, and I remember my dad pulling in there to get gas."
Bidmead, 59, says the gas station gave him "original" and "downtown" vibes when he would visit it in the '70s.
The building served as George Webb's Garage from 1946 until around 1975, while at one point becoming part of the Texaco empire.
After Texaco franchises left Canada in the '80s, it served as an Esso until it was later turned into a strip mall.
The building has also served as a snowmobile repair shop, a real estate office, and, lastly, an equipment rental shop from 2009 to 2022.
In 2018, the former gas station became available for purchase and Bidmead jumped at the opportunity. Almost four years later, he finally decided to put his dream project in motion.
In July, Bidmead bought an 18-foot-tall Texaco sign and drove down to Alabama to pick it up. He then took it to renowned artist Ron Schell in Orillia who resurrected it to look brand new.
On Oct. 30, Bidmead had a crane install the sign and he put a 1951 Dodge truck on the roof.
"We are still adding a little bit to the truck and we aren't quite finished," Bidmead explained. "We stripped it, we painted it, and Ron Schell did all the bodywork to get it done in about 21 days."
Chelsea Kinkaide of Coldwater Thrift and Collectibles helped Bidmead source the retro gas pumps and the Texaco sign. He also thanks Curtis O'Rourke for helping him prepare both the building and the truck.
"I had a lot of help," he said. "It's just amazing and people love it."
While the building looks like a gas station, it is not an operating business. Instead, Bidmead says it might eventually serve as a place to display historic archives.
"We might eventually have a commercial operation there, too, but we haven't decided what it's going to be," he said. "One option we are considering is a barber shop."
Bidmead, who was raised in the Coldwater area, says the newly refurbished building has attracted lots of interest from the community.
"People are coming by to say when they were young they worked here or bought something from here," he said. "Some people say they still have something from when it was George Webb's Texaco."
Bidmead hopes the new building will continue to attract people to Coldwater and will help the community continue to thrive as a popular tourist spot.
