Parts of vacant Dayton homes to be sold for reuse

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By Joanne Huist Smith, Staff Writer 4:35 PM Wednesday, September 30, 2009

DAYTON — A long-vacant house on Steele Avenue could be stripped of its woodwork, windows, floorboards and fixtures early next week. About 90 percent of materials that make up the nuisance structure, in fact, could be dismantled, then sold for reuse.

The pilot deconstruction project, by the newly established Dayton Works Plus LLC, would be the first of 42 strategic demos in Dayton.

The Dayton City Commission, this evening, Wednesday, Sept. 30, will consider a $500,000 agreement with Dayton Works to fund the project using Neighborhood Stabilization funds.

The endeavor, a collaboration between the East End Community Services, PowerNet of Dayton, a program for ex-offenders, and the Architectural Reclamation Company, has been in the planning stage for six months.

“Deconstruction allows us to recycle all these wonderful old materials,” Jan Lepore-Jentleson, executive director of East End Community Services, Inc. said. “The real focus for us though is job creation.”

The organization has hired 18 employees (15 laborers earning $9 an hour plus three crew chiefs at $12 per hour). On the job training will be provided.

“It’s going to be hard work,” said Lepore-Jentleson, adding stone foundations, roofing shingles and in some cases 100-year-old wooden frames will be reclaimed.

The goal is to help the workers move on to building trades apprenticeships and certificate programs or construction-related jobs.

Key to the program’s success is sale of the salvaged materials. A portion of those receipts will be funneled back to grow Dayton Works. The retail marketing operation will be handled by Habitat for Humanity-Dayton and the Society of St. Vincent DePaul.

The city has helped Dayton Works identify houses, throughout the city, for deconstruction. Lepore-Jentleson said the organization also is open for business to private property owners.

“If they see value in the structure, they can contract with us,” she said. “The more projects we have the more jobs we can create. We need to get the retail end pumped up with materials and keep that product line going.”

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