A Little More Waiting: An Update on the Bookmobile Opening

TL;DR: New Grand Opening date set for November 21st, 2026. 

Some of you may remember that I originally planned to open on Labor Day weekend. We had to push that date back because the flooring I ordered from the UK was delayed, and we weren't able to get it installed in time. I decided to set October 15th as our soft opening date to give myself plenty of time to finish the flooring, sort out insurance, and get all my books into inventory.

In retrospect, this was not a great date to pick.

I already had Book Fair planned for October 9th, and a ton of time and energy goes into planning and managing that event. Then I found out I'd received a scholarship to attend the Mountains & Plains Independent Booksellers Association's Fall Conference in Denver from October 4th through 7th.

I was so honored to be chosen for the scholarship, and the conference was incredible. I'm really glad I went! But timing-wise, it put a lot of pressure on my October 15th opening date. I'd have just one day between getting back from the conference and Book Fair, followed by only a few days to finalize everything and get the bookmobile ready to open.

Before leaving for FallCon, I managed to get all my books loaded onto the bus (huge thank you to Tara for the assist!). I thought I only had two remaining paperwork hurdles to clear:

1. Converting to a commercial insurance plan.
2. Getting the title transferred to Texas.

I was confident I could get both done before the 15th.

I was wrong.

A Little Problem Called the Texas DMV

I made an appointment to take care of the title and registration on the one day I had between FallCon and Book Fair. Unfortunately, I was incredibly disappointed to find out that Texas won't accept the unladen weight listed on the paperwork from Alabama, where the bus is currently titled.

The clerk told me I'd need to unload the bus and take it to a truck weighing station in Texas to get a certified unloaded weight before they could title it here.

Here's where things get complicated.

To title the bus in Texas, the DMV needs the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR). That weight can be calculated using the vehicle's unladen (empty) weight, which is usually listed on the title, but for some reason, it isn't on my Alabama title. It can also usually be found on the Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin, which I don't have. 

So, according to the DMV, my only remaining option is to unload the bus and have it weighed at a truck stop.

The problem? Even if I spend several days unloading all the inventory, the bus still won't have its true unloaded weight because of the custom cabinetry that was factory installed. 

Getting the actual unloaded weight would mean removing that cabinetry, which would destroy the value of the bus and add months to my opening timeline.

Obviously, that's not an option.

A Little Detective Work

Yesterday, I contacted Blue Bird, the bus manufacturer, to see if there was any chance they still had a copy of the Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin from 1994 on file. They are currently trying to track it down using my VIN. 

Then I had another thought. My car has a sticker inside the driver's door with the VIN, manufacturer information, tire pressure, and vehicle weight. Maybe the bus had something similar?

So I went outside, crawled around the bus, and sure enough, I found a manufacturer's sticker with the GVWR listed on it!

I've emailed the DMV to ask whether they'll accept that sticker as proof of the manufacturer's weight rating for titling and registration purposes, or if they're going to insist on calculating it themselves based on an unladen weight I can't actually provide.

I'm waiting to hear back, so fingers crossed that this solves the problem.

Bureaucracy in action, folks.

So... When are you actually going to open?

Long story short, I'm not opening in two days.

My dad is also heading out of town for a few weeks to go on a golf trip and visit family. I'll be watching his elderly dog for the three weekends he'll be gone, which means my next realistic window to open is the week before Thanksgiving.

My dad's 70th birthday is November 18th (the Wednesday of the week before Thanksgiving).

So here's the new plan:

• Drive the bus down the weekend Dad gets back from his trip.
• Come back to Houston to celebrate his birthday with him.
• Drive back down the next morning.
• Hold my soft opening on Thursday or Friday.
• Celebrate our grand opening on Saturday, November 21st!

Assuming the DMV cooperates, of course. 

It's definitely not the timeline I originally had in mind, but I'm still excited to get this thing on the road and start bringing books to the community. Thank you to everyone who's been following along, cheering me on, and being patient while I work through all the unexpected hurdles. I can't wait to finally open the doors!

One last thing: if you know anyone who specializes in commercial insurance for mobile businesses or bookmobiles, please send them my way! That's the next big thing I need to sort out once I have the Texas title in hand.

Stay tuned... <3

xo,
Kitty