Tacoma, Wash., recently initiated a study to find ways to increase building material reuse through deconstruction and salvage.
The city council unanimously voted to direct the city manager to investigate deconstruction options and estimate costs. The study will focus on devising salvage assessments that identify reuse cases for recovered building materials and identify ways to reduce deconstruction costs and shorten timelines.
Tacoma joins several cities including Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, and San Antonio that are developing programs to recover, reuse, and recycle building materials from buildings that are slated to be torn down. Portland, Oregon, already has a deconstruction ordinance on the books. That city requires buildings constructed before 1940 to be deconstructed rather than demolished.
Proponents for a similar ordinance in Tacoma cited several benefits: a higher likelihood of finding and safely disposing hazardous materials, limiting air pollution resulting from demolition, and reusing historic building materials to build new structures that reflect existing architectural styles. Opponents cited concerns over longer project timelines that would result from the proposal.
Related Stories
75 Top Building Products | Dec 12, 2019
Top Building Envelope Products for 2019
Sto's beetle-inspired exterior coating and Dörken Systems' UV-resistant vapor-permeable barrier are among the 28 new building envelope products to make Building Design+Construction's 2019 101 Top Products report.
| Sep 13, 2019
ABC Supply Co. opens a branch in Sharonville, Ohio
ABC Supply Co. opens a branch in Sharonville, Ohio
Building Materials | Nov 9, 2018
As trade war heats up, long-term impact is anyone’s guess
Seven months into Trump’s trade war, the jury is still out.
Sponsored | Building Materials | Aug 17, 2018
Creating an identity for the New England Conservatory Student Life and Performance Center
The first New England Conservatory building to be added in 60 years presents a singular vision.
Sponsored | Building Materials | Aug 1, 2018
Building for now... and the future
Metal building systems are often selected for large-sized structures, and with good reason.
Office Buildings | Jul 25, 2018
New study on occupant comfort advances Saint Gobain’s design approach for renovation and new construction
The building products giant gauges its employees’ perceptions of old and new headquarters environments.
Great Solutions | Jul 13, 2018
Fungus may be the key to colonizing mars
A Cleveland-based architect and a NASA Ames researcher have a novel idea for building on Mars.
| May 30, 2018
Accelerate Live! talk: T3 mass timber office buildings
In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), architect and mass timber design expert Steve Cavanaugh tells the story behind the nation’s newest—and largest—mass timber building: T3 in Minneapolis.
BD+C University Course | May 24, 2018
Accommodating movement in building envelope materials [AIA course]
We may think of the building envelope as an inanimate object, but in reality its components can be quite mobile. This AIA CES course is worth 1.0 AIA LU/HSW.
