For the Triple-R trio -- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle -- to sing with meaning and harmony,there needs to be both a stage and an audience: the stage is the place businesses and consumers can put their unused or unneeded materials and the audience is the buyers who make the show a success by "closing the loop." Until recently, there was no performance space in our area for used building materials. Those who wanted to donate or buy unused two-by-fours or unneeded doors, either needed some luck or to make individual, catch-as-catch-can arrangements. In fall of 2001, though, that changed when the ReStore Home Improvement Center opened in Springfield, MA.

The ReStore is the latest venture of the Center for Ecological Technology (CET), a 27-year-old Northampton-based non-profit that focuses on encouraging practical and affordable environmentally friendly alternatives. The ReStore leases its space from the Gasoline Alley Foundation, an community-oriented nonprofit which incubates sustainable and socially responsible businesses. The store began with 3,000 square feet of space, but has found their inventory and customer base increasing so fast that in the summer of 2003 they expanded for the second time to 10,000 square feet. "More people find out about us every day," says ReStore Marketing and Outreach Coordinator, Tammi McBath. "We needed the newly expanded space so we could accept more donated materials and provide an even larger and more varied inventory."

That inventory -- courtesy of donations made by hundreds of local homeowners, contractors, retailers, and manufacturers -- includes cabinets, doors, windows and a myriad of other materials such as claw foot bathtubs, fireplace mantels, shutters, or old doorknobs. Everything they sell is in excellent condition. In fact, some of their offerings are brand new surplus or mis-ordered items that warehouses or retailers don't want taking up space.

NESCOR, a home remodeling company in West Springfield, MA that works with replacement windows and vinyl siding, is one of many contractors that likes donating to the ReStore. "We save on storage space and disposal costs, help those who need the materials, and keep useful things out of the landfill," says NESCOR representative Diane Simonich. "It's a great opportunity for us to give back to the community." Consider, for instance, a sprawling suburban home in Northampton, MA going through a major renovation that includes a new kitchen, bay windows and modern fixtures. "We're always taking out windows and doors and cabinets and all sorts of things in perfectly good condition, or at least restorable condition, but which can't be used on a construction site," said contractor Nelson Shifflet. He notes that on large projects, his crew can end up removing 5-10 tons of perfectly usable materials. "Previously we wouldn't have a source for these, and we can't store them in our warehouse." he said. Now Mr. Shifflet can ease his environmental conscience, and save money on dumping fees.

Since the ReStore gets its materials essentially for free, they can pass on excellent prices. Materials typically sell for 50-75% off retail. This helps make home-improvement projects more accessible for lower income people, and makes the Restore a popular stomping ground for bargain hunters.

Julie Blake falls into the deal-hunter category. The voice teacher and her husband bought a fixer-upper two years ago. "When we moved in, the house was running on 60 amps [electric service] and [old-style] fuses. We had to redo everything," said Ms. Blake. "We put in a new furnace and an on-demand water heater." She estimates she's saved $4,000-$5,000 buying used materials to remodel the house. "We got a shower stall for $75 that would have retailed close to $350," she said.

But Julie Blake doesn't only buy from the ReStore; she's adding to its stock by donating the old doors and windows she removed during her renovation. That kind of recycling is good news to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. The agency has given $200,000 in grants to the ReStore and similar businesses in Massachusetts. State planner Jim McQuade says that support is necessary, as Massachusetts is trying to implement a ban on disposing certain kinds of solid waste in landfills. "Organizations like ReStores are going to play a key role in making the disposal ban work," he said. "They promote the use of valuable materials, they allow contractors to avoid disposal, and they help local communities, the economy and the environment."

But Mr. McQuade says the shrinking state budget could hurt funding for projects like the ReStore, which still relies on grants and other donations. ReStore founder John Majercek says he hopes the store will eventually become a profitable, self-sustaining business as solid as the homes his recycled materials help build.

For more information about Green Living Journal visit www.greenlivingjournal.com.

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