POCATELLO — John Nelson finds himself in an unusual position for a businessman preparing for a grand opening: He's devising policies to keep big crowds away from The Pocatello Greenhouse.

Nelson's new greenhouse and landscaping business, located at 1300 E. Oak St., recently had its soft opening. His grand opening celebration is scheduled for March 27 and March 28.

But amid a pandemic caused by the rapid spread of a novel strain of coronavirus, called COVID-19, Nelson is making special accommodations for customers seeking to avoid exposure to the deadly pathogen.

He's encouraging people to call 208-226-6514 and arrange to have their orders prepared in advance for pickup on a sanitized cart. His landscaping staff will also make next-day home deliveries. Delivery fees will be 10 percent of order value, with a minimum fee of $10 and a maximum fee of $50.

"We don't want to put the community at risk," Nelson said. "We especially want to make sure our older clientele who are maybe more cautious with COVID-10 still get served."

Nelson has opted to use the historic name of the business, which the Chase family opened at the location in the early 1900s.

Nelson explained there was once a glass greenhouse on the property, but it was destroyed by hail in the 1960s. The Chase family rebuilt The Pocatello Greenhouse, and in the 1990s, they upgraded again to the current facility.

Nelson said the greenhouse has 13,000 square feet of indoor space with both a heating and cooling system.

For cooling, the greenhouse utilizes fans and a “wet wall,” which is 6 feet tall and 120 feet long and recirculates cold water throughout a membrane. The greenhouse will be able to offer a prolonged season thanks to its ability to control climate, Nelson said.

The Pocatello Greenhouse closed in the early 2000s. Town and Country Gardens bought the facility and operated it until 2016.

Nelson will initially employ about a dozen workers and plans to add staff during the landscaping season.

He's operated Mountain Top Lawn Care from his Chubbuck home for the past decade. Having both a greenhouse and landscaping business under one roof should offer him significant competitive advantages. Before the landscaping business reaches its peak season, staff will help out in the greenhouse. Greenhouse customers will have the option of having the trees and shrubs they buy planted by professionals, in addition to lawn care services and sprinkler system repairs.

Nelson believes customers will come to The Pocatello Greenhouse for the expertise available and the opportunity to have questions answered.

"Our job is to make sure our clients are successful in their garden," Nelson said.

The Pocatello Greenhouse will launch a special offer during its grand opening celebration, selling $50 gift certificates for $40.