The Green Project expands its creative reuse facility with partnership

After four months of planning, a local creative reuse nonprofit just expanded its Bywater facility by 10,000 square feet.

Today, November 15, The Green Project and the Preservation Resource Center announced their partnership to promote creative reuse projects in New Orleans. The re-opening ceremony, held at The Green Project’s facility on Press Street, took place on Americans Recycle Day.

Over the last 14 years, The Green Project and Preservation Resource Center Salvage Store operated side-by-side, offering similar recycling services.

Today, The Green Project officially consolidated the Preservation Resource Center Salvage Store one whole area, separated by a small walkway. The partnership and physical addition expanded The Green Project’s useable space from 18,000 square feet to 28,000 square feet.

“The resource that this facility provides is just outstanding,” said local artist Steve Martin at the re-opening event. “New Orleans is a unique city, historically and architecturally. [Its] buildings are made from pieces of materials that cannot be duplicated anymore, and a lot of it comes though [The Green Project].”

The creative reuse nonprofit has aisles of stacked doors and cabinets, and shelves full of recycled light fixtures, ceiling-fan blades, and door knobs. Recycled paint, doors, and lumber are among The Green Project’s most popular wares, according to its Executive Director Catherine Crowell.

Photo by Kelsey Campion

“With the partnership with the Preservation Resource Center, we are able to carry more historic items,” Crowell said. “So, if someone is living in a historic neighborhood and they need do repairs to keep that character and integrity of the house, they’ll be able to find it here.”

After the partnership, The Green Project will be able to accommodate more recyclable material. Right now, it receives nearly six tons of reusable material every day, which otherwise would be transported to landfills.

“All under one roof, we are celebrating recycling from an environmental standpoint, a historic preservation standpoint, an artist standpoint,” Crowell added.

Proceeds from the Green Project’s newly acquired wares will go toward the Preservation Resource Center’s Rebuilding Together New Orleans program, which is a volunteer effort created to aid low income homeowners. Proceeds from The Project also fund its in-house paint recycling program, environmental education programming, and various community grants.