After losing everything in Marshall fire, Louisville family rebuilding home and neighborhood
Dec. 29—Davidson Mesa in Louisville is a popular spot for runners, bikers and four-legged friends. Nestled in its shadow is the Centennial Heights West neighborhood.
The Marshall fire annihilated the almost 40 homes there one year ago Friday.
Three hundred and sixty-four days later, residents like Mark Carson and his partner, Amber Tetreau, welcome the sight as homes begin to pop back up in the neighborhood.
They've watched it go from charred and covered with the blackened debris from 36 families' lives, to completely bulldozed and rendered a dirt field.
Carson has lived in Louisville since June 2009. Tetreau moved to Colorado from Arizona in 2020. The two moved into their Louisville home in July 2021. Six months later, the most destructive fire in Colorado history destroyed it all in what seemed like an instant.
But there was never any doubt in their minds how they would move forward.
"We were going to rebuild from day one, and we were talking to builders the next day," Carson said. "It didn't make sense not to rebuild. This is going to be our forever home."
They're not alone. One home at the top of the hill that their neighborhood sits on has almost finished construction. Others have broken ground, and across McCaslin Boulevard wood panels and brick facades populate the once blackened plots of land.
Some owners have taken another path, however: selling.
"Our street was 37 homes, one survived, but they can't live there because it's just absolutely gutted, four that have sold or being sold," Carson said. "And I expect that to double in the next couple of months. People either can't do it emotionally or financially."
One of their neighbors had lived in the area for a long time. The idea of moving back to the area proved far too painful for them and they found another place to live in a nearby town, Carson and Tetreau said.
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The future of the neighborhood does look bright, though. While saddened about losing neighbors, both Carson and Tetreau said they're excited to see what kinds of homes people rebuild.
"We're going to lose some of the neighbors that we know, which is sad, but we lived in one of those cookie-cutter neighborhoods and now people are doing designs that fit them," Tetreau said.
Carson is also excited for the diversity in home design coming to the neighborhood and said the transition to custom homes is welcome.
As homes are rebuilt, the feeling of normalcy builds alongside it. Tetreau said this is a great development for adults, but far more significant for children.
"We gained some stability for us and our children. They've been through a lot the last few years and it's been traumatic for everyone, but children have a harder time understanding," she said.
Tetreau and Carson have four children ages 6 to 13.
As rebuilding proceeds, Carson said he hopes the area is remembered for the small town charm once oozing from its streets. Not the ashes of homes and the wind-whipped prairie lands that remain.
"I don't want what's happened in the last year to define Louisville or our neighborhood," he said. "I look forward to the day where we don't just talk about our rebuilds."
What does he look forward to talking about? The simple things in life. Not the stressors and the challenges of the rebuild.
But he predicts that will take five to seven years.
"We try to find the silver linings."
