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College senior to run city’s “deconstruction” program
YOUNGSTOWN — City administrators want to pay $39,000 to a college senior, with 10 months’ experience as an intern in Youngstown’s planning department, to develop and implement a plan to “deconstruct” dilapidated houses rather than just demolish them.
The city received a $39,000 grant from the state Environmental Protection Agency for the program. Steve Novotny, the 24-year-old Youngstown State University student to be hired as an independent contractor, wrote the successful grant application for the money.
Rather than using a wrecking ball to demolish a house, deconstruction is a technique to systematically take apart a structure by removing portions of it — such as wooden floors, copper piping or chunks of bricks — that is salvaged and then sold.
City council is to consider legislation to hire Novotny at its Nov. 18 meeting.
Besides writing the grant, Notovy has worked for the city through an internship for the past 10 months, and helped to deconstruct a house on Brentwood Avenue, one of two vacant structures taken down this summer using that process. The other house was on Illinois Avenue.
“I’ve gone through 10 months making the necessary contacts and doing the work and talking with the demolition guys as to what works,” Novotny said. “Quite frankly, it’s a new industry. I don’t know of anyone else who’s done what I have done.”
The concept includes selling the usable materials, which hopefully covers the additional costs and diverts those items from landfills.
For the complete story, read Saturday’s Vindicator or Vindy.com
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Comments
great hire! Great kid!! Good luck Steve!!!
The headline and lead paragraph here seem carefully designed to stir controversy. Without reading further, the initial impression being pushed is that the city is making a questionable gamble on untested talent.
This is unfortunate, especially since this is an important program for the area, which by all accounts Steve is well qualified to lead. Plus, the City is only spending money to hire him that he obtained in the first place.
The City has been determinedly pursuing education and consultation about deconstruction, which takes advantage of the historic and valuable assets in our vacant structures while reducing the negative environmental impacts of demolition.
Another approach to marketing this news would have been: "City awarded grant for deconstruction program; intern leads effort". This seems a more objective headline that still gets the essential points across.
Tyler, it's been my experience that the Vindy has not ever been an objective newspaper, especially about news related to the city.
I agree, though, that it is a definite boon for the city. One more example of Youngstown trying new ideas and approaches to shrinking the city.
Smart move all around-the more run down houses and buildings that are removed the better.Who knows maybe some native oaks could be planted in their place and we will have a mini forest in Youngstown .That would be a huge improvement good job folks.
If Steve saw a good idea, invoked OJT, studied it, and spearheaded the funding for it, he has demonstrated he is an entrepreneur.
My humble advise to him is to run it wherein it will support itself without taxpayer infusion, then it truly will become an industry. Go free enterpise, long live capitalism!
"Deconstruction" may be new in Youngstown & rare in the United States , but it is the "normal" way of removing a home in many other countries . Alternatively , in some countries , buildings not required on one site are moved on large trucks to another site .
Rising landfill costs & relatively cheaper labor costs have made deconstruction more economic & and demolition operators should be gearing up their operations to cope with it , either instead of or alongside their traditional wrecking operation .
http://bcw-congo.blogspot.com/2009/06/bl...
Great program. Great hire.
This sounds like it could be a huge future liability risk. When using heavy equipment to demolish, the operator of the equipment is in a protected cab. With deconstruction, the workers are up close and personal with the materials being removed. Not only is personal injury from mechanical factors an issue, but also dust inhalation hazards. How is using an 1/8 hp human going to outperform a 300 hp machine? Deconstruction is used mostly in third-world nations. This is a step backwards devised by liberal minds and shows their hostility to the modern, mechanized world.
Just a hint to Steve Novotny, and I don't mean this with any malice. The PBS TV show This Old House has run segments showing them going to warehouses of old mantles, bathroom fixtures, doors, windows, and everything else one can salvage from an abandoned house. It's not all that new an industry - although it is new HERE. Perhaps he can contact the producers of This Old House and have them put him in touch with their contacts regarding salvage and deconstruction. He may be able to pick up some good information.
Yea, I remember the days when I used to be a landlord and we learned to remove all the antique mantels, brass door knobs, sconces, chandeliers, etc. before the crack heads would strip them and run the loot down to buyers. They were the true deconstruction pioneers. We would replace the antique parts with Stambaugh hardware.
The only way deconstruction will be cost effective, is to secure labor from JFS. JFS has around 3000 recipients who are required to do WEP hours. This will solve the labor problem. I know, we built the Peterson Park with WEP workers.
As far as liquidating the material, that is key also, I would make a deal with Rothenthal at Star Supply to market the used building material, perfect fit.
And Steve, I have all the brick from the Williamson school and several of the W. Federal bldg.s, you need labor to clean the brick and they are hard to sell. Many homeowners like them, for backyard projects, like patios, grills and sidewalks.