By Kris McDowell
The City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS) is expanding its work in deconstruction through the support of a grant from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). BPS was one of 14 organizations across the state to receive a portion of the $1.2 million in grants from the 2024 Reduce, Reuse, Reimagine: Materials Management Grants Program. BPS will use the money to explore commercial sector deconstruction and provide important data to promote the use of salvaged lumber in new construction.
“We are grateful for the state’s support as we continue Portland’s leadership in deconstruction,” said Sonnie Oliveira, deputy city administrator for Community and Economic Development. “This work reduces waste and creates opportunities to grow a local industry that supports Portland businesses, reduces environmental impacts and generates good, sustainable jobs in our city.”
Deconstruction, unlike demolition, which uses heavy machinery to crush and tear apart buildings, involves careful dissembling of buildings by hand. It reduces the amount of waste taken to landfills; reduces greenhouse gas emissions by diverting landfill waste; decreases the need for manufacturing new materials; and creates and supports local industry and green jobs.
In 2016, Portland became the first city in the nation to require deconstruction of houses or duplexes if they were built in 1940 or earlier or the building was designated as a historic resource that requires demolition review or is subject to the 120-day delay provisions of Title 33. Since then, nearly 600 houses have been deconstructed, saving over 2,000 tons of building materials from going into the waste stream, supported at least 30 new jobs and resulted in 15 deconstruction contractors, the most of any city in the US.
Even though deconstruction has become common for houses and duplexes, until now, it has been rare for commercial buildings. The funds from this grant will allow BPS to support up to 10 commercial building projects in identifying valuable materials that can be salvaged through deconstruction. Commercial buildings that are eligible include retail, office, warehousing, light manufacturing, places of worship and schools.
BPS will create case studies from these commercial deconstruction projects that will provide valuable insights for local designers, builders, developers, salvage material retailers and policy makers. Once completed, the case studies will be posted to the deconstruction program website and shared with local and regional deconstruction and salvage materials organizations like Carbon Leadership Forum Portland Hub and the Pacific Coast Collaborative Low Carbon Construction Task Force.
In addition, the grant funding will allow BPS to assess salvaged wood from deconstruction projects. The assessment will provide data showing that salvaged lumber, which is often old-growth Douglas fir, meets the same safety and quality standards as new lumber. In doing so, BPS will help remove one of the barriers to reusing framing lumber to frame new structures.
Commercial property owners interested in grant funding and help with deconstruction can contact Lauren Zimmermann Onstad with the Deconstruction Program at deconstruction@portlandoregon.gov or call 503.823.6041. For home and business owners looking to buy salvaged materials for construction or renovation projects, BPS has a listing of salvage retailers at bit.ly/4izh1NM. The retailers offer a variety of items, including doors, hardware, light fixtures, appliances, windows and bathtubs.