DDi - October 2009 - (Page 34)

34 S Renew and reuse With its ﬁrst retail outpost, Green Depot crafts an accessible space from discarded treasures By Katie Weeks | October 2009 ince its founding in 2005, Brooklyn, N.Y.-based Green Depot has sought to make green building products and services readily available, as well as cost competitive, to facilitate the adoption of green practices into standard construction. Targeting the trade, the company’s showrooms and distribution centers across the Northeast stock materials— including sustainable building products, services and home goods—that must pass through a ﬁlter examining their health, durability, performance, lifecycle, natural resource conservation and energy conservation. In opening its ﬁrst retail outlet for general consumers, it was important that the new venue dovetail with this overarching corporate philosophy. “Our mission is to demystify green, because ‘green’ is such a nebulous term that means different things to different people,” explains Honey Berk, marketing director for Green Depot. “The design of the store is meant for people to walk in and see a green space that’s not beige, not boring, not ‘crunchy.’ It’s very colorful. The idea is to show people that green really is affordable, easy and accessible, and the materials can be quite beautiful.” Rather than tearing down and building new, the company commissioned New York-based architecture and design ﬁrm Mapos LLC to rehab and renovate a landmarked structure on the Bowery in Manhattan. Like many of its neighbors, the building—the 1885 Young Men’s Institute, and the home of the city’s ﬁrst YMCA—had a storied history. Remnants of past tenants remained, including original glazed ceramic tile on the wall, the YMCA’s maple gymnasium ﬂooring, and a swimming pool added in 1915 that was cemented over in the passing decades. While to some architects and designers these souvenirs would be immediately discarded, to Mapos they served as an opportunity to turn trash into treasure. “We actually directed the demo crew to keep anything they found,” says Caleb Mulvena, co-founder of Mapos. Adds Colin Brice, co-founder: “It was constant work with the demo team to make sure their axes weren’t ﬂying too violently or quickly.” Among the ﬁnds: At the street front, existing brick ﬁnishes were peeled away to reveal an original Queen Anne-style façade. A large sliding ﬁre door uncovered during demo was relocated to the front room. The swimming pool itself was converted into a storage room, while the locker room is now the manager’s ofﬁce, with both spaces showcasing the original ceramic tiling. The gymnasium’s wood ﬂooring was kept in the main retail area and at the rear of the ﬁrst ﬂoor. Windows onto a large www.ddimagazine.com Photo: Colin Brice http://www.ddimagazine.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of DDi - October 2009

DDi - October 2009
Table of Contents
From the Editor
Newsworthy
Consumer Insights
Quick Tips
Greentailing
Editor’s Choice
Design Snapshot
Green Super Section
Eco Shoppe
Hannaford Bros.
Channel Focus: Hospitality
Green Depot
Right Light
How to Pass the LEED AP Exam
Green Products
In-Store Technology
Product Spotlight: Color & Materials
Calendar
Advertisers
Classifieds
Think Tank

DDi - October 2009