MARK HENNINGER / IMAGIC DIGITAL
Baltimore has been successfully running a similar program since 2016, and Philly officials have visited. In addition to milling old trees, Baltimore’s program also salvages wood waste from building deconstruction.
Source: Philadelphia to launch ‘Reforestation Hub’ to sell fallen trees as lumber – On top of Philly news
Alan Schein / Getty Images
Reusing old wood, windows, metal, brick, and even concrete seems like a no-brainer (even some animals recycle used materials!), but it sadly doesn’t happen as often as it should. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, between 230 million and 530 million tons of construction and demolition waste are produced yearly in the United States.
Ava Mandoli/The Daily Northwestern. Sustainability is part of the Evanston Rebuilding Warehouse’s deconstruction practices, as well as its retail location’s construction. Some of the store’s walls have been reclaimed from other buildings and are reinforced with scrap material.
“We want to make sure we get those barriers removed, make sure that we get the supportive services in place,” Nicklin said. “So that they get into a job, and they’ve got their gas figured out. They’ve got their childcare figured out. They’ve got everything ready to go because they’ve practiced it.” The transitional employment program connects participants with local employers, which allows them to support themselves and their families. The program has a job placement rate of over 80%, Nicklin said.
WJZ: The Second Chance Inc. Warehouse in Baltimore
Sunday is set up just a few booths away from Black Women Build-Baltimore, a homeownership and wealth-building initiative that trains Black women in carpentry, electrical, and plumbing. “This is great, great exposure for us because we are relatively new so we want to see more Black women learn about what we do and apply,” Tonika Garibaldi, with Black Women Build, said.
Source: Second chance creates new opportunity for small businesses and local artisans – Local News 8
Photo: SeventyFour (Shutterstock)
Getting a door or hardware second-hand from a resale outlet can save money on a project. Check out local reclaimed lumber and hardware outlets for deals on everything from lighting fixtures to cabinet hardware.
Source: How to Keep Inflation From Ruining Your Home Improvement Plans
The building’s facades are made using timber offcuts and approximately 700 windows donated by the community. The fixtures were measured, repaired and assigned a position using computer software, creating a seemingly random yet precise patchwork effect.
Source: Kamikatsu Zero Waste Center is built using waste materials
For a limestone mantel from the Waldorf Astoria, the church that owns the Olde Good Things antique stores asks for $8,500. But for the death of each child in a fire at a home it ran in Haiti, parents said the same church offered to pay just $50 to $100 in family compensation — along with $150 for funeral-related costs such as new clothes and transportation. The wealth of the Church of Bible Understanding in the United States has long stood in contrast with the shoddiness of its two children’s homes in Hai
Source: US church faces neglect allegations after Haiti child deaths
At the Olde Good Things antique store on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, a French crystal chandelier can go for tens of thousands of dollars. A marble mantel sells for more than $20,000 and hand-carved dinner tables are priced even higher. The store’s Christian missionary owners offer their well-heeled customers a heart-warming story: Part of the proceeds pay for the group’s orphanage in Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world. What they don’t say is that even though they claim in IRS filings to be spending around $2.5 million annually, the home for boys and girls was so dirty and overcrowded during recent inspections that the government said it shouldn’t remain open.
Karen Koseck is the executive director of Creative Junk Therapy, a nonprofit creative reuse center that promotes creativity, environmental awareness and community through reuse.
If you ask Koseck what she likes most about her job, she’ll tell you it’s the excitement she brings to her clients. “I love the excitement of the people,” she said. “We have tried to make a fun, interesting environment and there is a lot to see. Our goal is to encourage people to reconsider the things they throw away.”
Source: Creative Junk Therapy, New Nonprofit, Brings Creativity To The Community – Osprey Observer
Image: SenUVK
The B-Wa (h) renhaus with its shop-in-shop range of used goods is also a unique project nationwide. It is an important step on the way to ‘department stores of the future’, which offer attractive shopping opportunities for used goods. As part of the Re-Use initiative, three to four “used department stores of the future” are to be built in Berlin in the medium term.
Source: Erster Re-Use Store in Berliner Kaufhaus eröffnet – Berlin.de
Photographer: Stefan Sauer/picture alliance via Getty Images
Berlin hopes to use the stores to “anchor the re-use of used goods in urban society” by functioning as centers to educate and spread tips on re-use — especially to sections of the public that aren’t currently much involved in the circular economy. The initiative is part of a broader plan from Berlin’s ruling center-left/Green/left coalition that looks to slash waste in all areas of the city’s economy.
Source: To Cut Waste, Berlin Opens Its Own Secondhand Shop – Bloomberg
“It’s an industrial sewing machine and would have been operated by several women at the same time,” Jill says. “We added a glass panel so you can see through to the mechanics as you eat.”
Source: Inside a vintage-filled Belfast home brimming with clever upcycling ideas | IMAGE.ie
Skanska’s Jimmy Mitchell has been a strong advocate for salvaged building materials for more than a decade.
From Long Beach to Boston, a new generation of organizations has grown up around the deconstruction of buildings and the sale of reusable materials. They’re often nonprofits backed by local architects, builders and environmental groups. Their aim is to build a supply chain that puts salvaged goods on equal footing with new products and materials.
Source: 10 tips on salvage materials from Jimmy Mitchell – Living Building Chronicle
“The results of deconstruction are less dumping in landfills, prevention of demolition by neglect, and healthier and safer neighborhoods. In the long term, we envision a citywide ordinance to deconstruct historic structures instead of demolishing them. This will significantly improve the environmental impact of the City of Savannah.” said Mae Bowley, Executive Director of Re:Purpose
A team of workers demounts ceramic tiles in the Institut de Génie Civil in Liège © OPHOTO
“We see this as a pilot project, research,” Devlieger says. “[We are] testing methods for the professionalisation of reuse. Architects sometimes don’t understand the power they have. They are diverting huge streams of money towards new materials when they specify and there are social, environmental and economic consequences of those decisions.”
Source: Why tomorrow’s architecture will use yesterday’s materials | Financial Times
“It can be hard to describe exactly what we do because we do a lot! Our deconstruction team takes apart old buildings; our resale team finds new homes for the reclaimed materials; and our Refab Lab crew turns some of those materials into high-quality home furnishings. On top of all that, we provide training and reemployment opportunities to recently homeless men.”
Source: Nonprofit Rescues, Revitalizes Area Historic Structures | Features | laduenews.com
“I’m first and foremost a preservationist,” Sauer said. “I don’t like to see historic buildings come down.” But, when buildings are demolished or remodeled, saving as much as possible is important, Sauer said, noting, “I don’t like seeing this stuff end up in a landfill.”
“I’m an architectural ambulance chaser. I’m here to pick up the pieces.” Adam Hills is sitting in his retail showroom on one of west London’s grungier thoroughfares. He is explaining the business model for Retrouvius, the salvage and interiors company he co-founded in 1993.
Source: Architectural salvage: antidote to the age of bling | Financial Times
Homeowners love features that come with a story, says Rich Ellis, publisher of Architectural Salvage and Antique Lumber News. “When you can point to your floor and say it came from an old shoe factory in Connecticut, for example, that’s a big attraction,” he says. There are between 500 and 700 architectural salvage businesses across the country, and business has been good, he says.
Source: Salvage shops offer decor with a story | The Sumter Item
Chelsea Pickett, Stardust’s business development manager, says the growth of metro Phoenix makes it challenging to keep up with construction demands, but more people participating in the reuse movement could ease the pressure. (Photo by Megan Marples/Cronkite News)
A 2015 Environmental Protection Agency fact sheet on construction and demolition waste found more than 545 million tons of debris ended up in landfills every year, even though 75% of those materials had the potential for reuse.
Source: Valley companies give new life to discarded building materials
For the first six months of 2018, Holiber worked on the flock’s wooden frames, using reclaimed lumber from Big Reuse, a surplus salvage vendor in Brooklyn, and scraps he collected from the streets.
You can’t get these pieces anywhere else, and it’s worth it to search through stores like these to truly find something that fits with your style.
Source: Best Architectural Salvage Stores in Every State – Top Yelp-Reviewed Salvage Store Near Me
A trove of original architectural ornaments is being offered by the dealer, including “magnificent complete paneled rooms, finely carved marble mantels, elegant stair railings in iron or carved wood, leaded glass windows, parquet flooring, and so on.”
Source: Architectural artifacts from two demolished 1909 Upper East Side mansions will be for sale | 6sqft
Re-use Hawaii founder Quinn Vittum talks about the salvaging operation at Kona Village Resort at their yard below the Kaloko Light Industrial Area. (Laura Ruminski/West Hawaii Today)
One company on Hawaii Island has assumed a more macro view of recycling and in only a year has filled an entire baseyard with salvaged material from demolished structures. Re-use Hawaii is a nonprofit deconstruction business, and the only one of its kind, focused on reducing the single largest landfill waste stream in the state.
Source: Waste not: Company takes environmental approach to deconstruction in West Hawaii – West Hawaii Today
Ruth Smith pulls up the stencil to reveal a painted design on a block of reclaimed wood, during an art class at Reclaimed By You, on Main Street in Ellicott City. (Amy Davis / Baltimore Sun)
“It was perfect and meant for me,” said Mundell, who works at Community Forklift and is also a customer at Reclaimed By You. “It’s such a unique and inspiring business where people are really creating connections and truly being a part of something local.”
Source: Ellicott City paint-it-yourself business offers ‘reclaimed’ local art projects – Howard County Times
The original idea came from local politicians in 2006 or 2007. According to the waste management plan, all the municipalities should reduce waste and start some kind of business where it is possible to reuse these unwanted resources.
Source: Climate-smart shopping in the world’s first recycling mall | LivingIt
“You never know when you might see something,” said Paula Bishop, owner of City Girl in the Country, an architectural salvage company in Antrim that specializes in sinks. “I am not afraid to knock on people’s doors if I see something in their yard. And I didn’t realize at first that so many New England homes have their own junkyard in the backyard.”
Source: Everything and the Kitchen Sink | Elf | sentinelsource.com
At the ReTuna shopping mall in Sweden everything for sale is recycled, thanks to its clever location.
Source: The shopping mall where everything is recycled – BBC News
Liz Gordon
“Environmental aspects are so important that we save as much as we can. You wouldn’t be able to find any of it because it would all be in the landfills,” says Gordon.Good to know your Spanish Revival restoration pieces not only look good, but aren’t bad for the planet.
Source: Antique Hardware Finding New Life as Interior Fixtures
Mark Raszewski rescues unclaimed materials from businesses when they close or renovate. Nearly all of the items he sells are from Dane County. PHOTO ERICA KRUG
When local businesses or facilities close or get renovated, Raszewski helps to take places apart (recently Mautz Paint, Marling Lumber, UW-Madison’s Agronomy research lab, and Oscar Mayer), salvaging many unclaimed materials.
Katie Deuel, executive director of Home ReSource in Missoula, said thousands of items from the old Mercantile found their way into homes, schools and offices across the city. (Martin Kidston/Missoula Current)
“One woman had a table made for her husband,” Deuel said. “He had worked at the Merc for 35 years, so she really wanted that. There’s some great human interest stories in there. People recognized the value of it as material that came locally from our ecosystem and stayed in the community.”
Source: Piece by piece, deconstructed Merc found new uses across Misssoula ~ Missoula Current
Stardust, a Southeast Valley nonprofit headquartered at 1720 W. Broadway Road in Mesa, is partnering with several Valley companies to divert used building materials at construction sites from the landfill to repurpose and resell.
Stardust, the only building-material reuse nonprofit in metro Phoenix, has created “Starve the Landfill,” focused on sustainability in the construction industry. Starve the Landfill stresses the importance of deconstruction and donating building materials to be reused and repurposed.The goal is to create a strong community of eco-friendly contractors and suppliers that want to reduce their material waste.“One of the amazing benefits is that local companies will be acknowledged for their partnership and commitment to sustainability and the reuse of building materials,” said Karen Jayne, CEO of Stardust.
Find the King of Jeans sign among other local treasures at Provenance. | Photos: Khanya Brann unless otherwise noted
These companies all offer design and construction services (and impeccable craftsmanship) and dig into their inventories of endangered treasures to create the furniture pieces of your dreams.
Source: These 5 Philly Architectural Salvage Stores Are Worth the Visit
Photo credit: Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity
The 7th annual ReStore ReUse Contest is an amazing showcase of innovative building projects constructed predominantly of used building materials. Past projects Past projects have run the gamut from small tabletop items and wall décor to artist studios and tiny homes. The majority are medium sized and include furniture, yard art, planters, chicken coops, little free libraries, sheds and more.
Source: ReStore accepting submissions for annual ReUse Contest | WLOS
Support the reuse industry. This area needs considerable help, and it’s where state leadership is crucial. One state leading the pack is Minnesota. Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has shown its support for the industry in many ways, but here are a few of their initiatives that can be replicated by your state: Hold a statewide summit for industry stakeholders; support the launch of a statewide reuse support network (ReuseMN); offer a free, online materials exchange (MN Materials Exchange); conduct a study
Source: In My Opinion: Time to think beyond recycling – Resource Recycling News
Photo by Darrell Jackson
Pictured is the interior of the Glendale location where Stardust Building Supplies offers a large assortment for sale to the public.
“Our deconstruction service is free and we have a list of questions that we ask to determine if the job is something we can do,” Fulton said. “Due to Environmental Protection Agency rules, we cannot do houses that were built before 1978 due to rules about asbestos and lead paint. A job supervisor will also do site searches to make sure the job is something we can do.”
Source: Stardust a landfill alternative — recycled building supplies – Glendalestar.com: News
“We have lots of architectural items,” Plyer said. “In the form of doors, windows, newel posts, stained glass.”“We have a wedding registry as well,” said Carmichael. “If you’re a vintage lover, come pick what you want and we set it up in a display. We will make a tea towel with the couple’s names on it. All our tea towels sold right now benefit Relay for Life with their proceeds.”
Source: Business Spotlight: Old Lumberyard boasts treasures of yesteryear | News | corsicanadailysun.com
via The Furniture Bank
All that money I spent on rent for the storage locker could have been put to much better use, and all that furniture and stuff that I was storing is now being put to use as well, for people who really need it, and not a bit of it goes to landfill. This truly was a win-win situation.
Source: Got a locker full of stuff? Deposit it in the Furniture Bank | TreeHugger
RePurpose Depot
..Former NASA flight controller Caroline Kostak turned it into RePurpose Depot.
Source: The RePurpose Depot’s Repurposed East End Warehouse | Swamplot
Earthwise Architectural Salvage was founded in Seattle in 1991 by Kurt Petrauskas. He was working as a demolition contractor and was struck by the unique and beautiful items that were being sent to landfills. Kurt started saving the items and holding yard sales, and soon the Seattle store was born. The Tacoma store opened in 2012 as their second location. Each store sources locally from the city around it.
Source: Earthwise Architectural Salvage: Bringing Tacoma’s History to Your Home Projects – SouthSoundTalk
Epstein was a jeweler by day; by night, he chalked his initials onto pieces of buildings that were slated for demolition. The wrecking crews gave Epstein mantels from the old West End, a Roxbury tavern built in 1675, and stonework from the old South Station. During the 1950s and 1960s, they razed so many buildings that Epstein’s collection filled six storage spaces across the city. He later consolidated his findings in a former bus depot/factory on Blue Hill Avenue.
Source: Recycling Boston’s architectural history one piece at a time
Photo: John Davenport /San Antonio Express-News Old is Better Than New store owner Gabriel Galindo carries out some of his merchandise. Galindo specializes in salvaged architectural pieces that usually come from houses that are being torn down.
“You can’t find doors that big at Home Depot,” she explained. “We could have commissioned new ones, but these came from a restaurant in Provence, France, and you hardly ever see craftsmanship like that.”
Source: S.A.’s doors, windows, hardware from old homes finding new lives – San Antonio Express-News
The show is open to the public at no charge Saturday, May 19 from 10 to 5, and Sunday, May 20 from 10 to 3. Artwork will be available in all price ranges. Art sales support CARTM’s reuse and recycling programs, and the Pine Grove Community House.
Source: Unload extra artworks at CARTM this weekend! – Tillamook County Pioneer
Ballard Reuse sells salvaged building materials, vintage decor, and unique twists on hardware store staples. Don’t feel like you’re handy enough? They handmade furniture built on-site from reclaimed materials.
“Since 1993, our community has donated nearly 50 million pounds of building materials to The RE Store. If you combined all of the lumber, doors, lighting, windows and more that you’ve saved, we could construct nearly 600 homes, roughly half the size of the York Neighborhood here in Bellingham.”
Source: What’s Old Is New Again: A Culture of Reuse in Bellingham – WhatcomTalk
The White Brick House on Friday April 13, 2018, in Forest, Va.
Lathan Goumas
The two-and-half-year-old business is run entirely by about 20 women between 18 and 60 years old selling items priced from 50 cents to $600.Breiholz has noticed women are living a more creative life and are finding their own terms of what they want their life to be like.
Pete Brands (left) and Travis Blomberg (right) with WasteCap Resource Solutions
The four departments we plan to offer in the next six months are deconstruction, salvage services, the retail store and Do It Yourself, in which WasteCap partners with Fox 6 News to provide upcycling and reuse tutorials using materials in the warehouse.
Recycled Art Contest Details:
Location:
Habitat for Humanity ReStore East – 420 S. 1st, Milwaukee, WI
ReStore’s 9th Annual Recycled Art Contest shines a light on some of Milwaukee’s resourceful repurposers. The contest challenges the public to create works primarily using the donated product found at ReStore. From artwork to repurposed furniture, the only rule of the contest is the majority of materials must be purchased at ReStore. The winners are determined by your vote!
Source: Recycled Art Contest | Milwaukee Habitat for Humanity
A guide for the perplexed inside Philly Reclaim. As the books and paintings behind the sign indicate, there’s more on offer here than building materials.
And Philly Reclaim will sell just about anything that anyone brings to it. When I visited the store last fall, the available items included organ pipes that a donor had dropped off, deer skins, a phone booth, a pool table, and even old turntables and vintage vinyl LPs to play on them. There was wood reclaimed from a bowling alley, chalkboards from the old West Philadelphia High School, and a wooden bathtub filled with clawfoot feet for those needing them for their own historic restorations.
Source: Who’s (Un)Building Philly: Greg Trainor – Philadelphia Magazine
BRIAN PETERSON – STAR TRIBUNE
“It seems to get bigger every year. I keep saying I don’t want to get bigger, but how do you not?”
Source: Minnesota’s largest building materials salvage yard – StarTribune.com
