Building Lives Through Deconstruction: Guest Blogger Azzam Elder

The Wayne County Deconstruction Program is a unique combination of sustainability and workforce development. The Deconstruction Program is a cooperative effort between the Wayne County Land Bank, Goodwill Industries of Greater Detroit, Inc., and Architectural Salvage Warehouse of Detroit.

The idea of deconstructing homes and recycling the materials was brought to Wayne County by local businessman Jerry Belanger, owner of Park Bar in Detroit. Jerry, who also participates in other local rehabilitation projects, is part of a group of local developers, architects and others who are trying to build sustainability into development practices in Detroit.

Deconstruction is seen as an alternative to demolition and land filling. The focus of deconstruction is to salvage materials for reuse and recycle. The deconstruction of a typical 2,000 square foot wood frame home can yield 6,000 board feet of reusable lumber. Fairly obvious items are salvaged like sinks, fireplaces and windows. Other items include joists, shingles, wood planks and even drywall if it's asbestos-free. Furthermore, research at the Deconstruction Institute website shows that deconstruction provides nearly 20 more worker days at a living wage than would conventional knock-down-and-haul-away demolition.

Two homes, currently owned by the Wayne County Land Bank, were completely deconstructed in Detroit as part of the pilot project. An unanticipated benefit of the pilot project was that one of the houses was located in the Osborne neighborhood of Detroit, where several of the participants currently reside. They made several comments about how meaningful it was to be a part of the revitalization of their own neighborhood. The training they received will provide opportunity where little existed before, and provide hope for a bright, stable future.  

Wayne County residents who are non-violent offenders and have taken part in an early release program through the Michigan Prisoner Re-entry Initiative (MPRI) are trained through the Deconstruction Program. Each participant is educated on the process for dismantling structures to preserve reusable materials. The participants are trained on safety, construction basics, and the sustainability of the project.    

Wayne County's Economic Development Growth Engine (EDGE) is currently working with project partners to design and implement a permanent deconstruction program, slated to kick off in September 2009. The permanent program will involve the deconstruction of approximately 50 homes per year, and train approximately 25 residents each year. Along with Wayne County's Nuisance Abatement Program, the Deconstruction Program will provide another mechanism to foster healthy neighborhoods for our citizens.

Azzam Elder is the Deputy Chief Executive of Wayne County.