New $12 Million state-of-the-art recycling facility for Kent County

[GRDadof3 3948]

New plant will simplify recycling; no more sorting at home

by Ken Kolker {sodEmoji.{sodEmoji.|}} The Grand Rapids Press

Friday December 26, 2008, 11:00 AM

GRAND RAPIDS -- By early 2010, recycling in Kent County will be as easy as taking out the garbage.

The county's Board of Public Works has voted to build a $12 million "single-stream" recycling center on Wealthy Street SW near Lane Avenue in Grand Rapids, board members said.

They hope to open the facility in 2010, allowing residents countywide to dump all recyclable materials -- from paper to glass and plastic -- into bins without sorting.

http://www.mlive.com/grpress/news/index.ss...ify_recycl.html

No more sorting! That's pretty cool.

[fotoman311 50]

New plant will simplify recycling; no more sorting at home

by Ken Kolker {sodEmoji.{sodEmoji.|}} The Grand Rapids Press

Friday December 26, 2008, 11:00 AM

GRAND RAPIDS -- By early 2010, recycling in Kent County will be as easy as taking out the garbage.

The county's Board of Public Works has voted to build a $12 million "single-stream" recycling center on Wealthy Street SW near Lane Avenue in Grand Rapids, board members said.

They hope to open the facility in 2010, allowing residents countywide to dump all recyclable materials -- from paper to glass and plastic -- into bins without sorting.

http://www.mlive.com/grpress/news/index.ss...ify_recycl.html

No more sorting! That's pretty cool.

[GRDadof3 3948]

I should mention that this won't be finished until 2010, so keep sorting!

[numstead 6]

Coolest recycling facility that I know of...

Text and images from A Weekly Dose of Architecture

For Maag Recycling's facilities in Winterthur - a relatively small town northeast of Zurich - architect Open Operating System (OOS) and landscape architect Rotzler Krebs Partner envisioned the building in a multitude of ways beyond its intended function as a recycling center.

Sitting on the roof of the facility is parking. A curb cut at the street leads to the ramp that leads to the roof. One cannot miss it as the concrete is colored a bright green. Without cars the parking lot resembles an American football field. While this may seem like a shallow gesture, it's one of the approaches that coincides with the client's role as a positive force in society. A dark surface would bottle up heat and release it at night, and uncolored concrete would be a drab addition to the neighborhood. Hence a playful color that reduces heat and makes for a pleasing neighbor that just happens to provide parking.

The other rooftop element besides the parking is a small park that acts as a break area for employees of Maag as well as an amenity for the neighborhood. Here, the landscape architect played off the bright green with contrasting pink planters and overflow bins that reveal the workings of the plant below. Lime trees sit in some of the planters, giving the perception that the rooftop park is an extension of the surrounding trees. By incorporating a park into the design in the beginning stages, a rare amenity was built alongside and above the practical elements that usually take precedence and make a park as a late addition an impossibility.

The building itself is a concrete structure wrapped in a steel mesh, shielding the interior spaces during the day but exposing them at night. Bright green walls continue the theme from the roof, as large-scale graphics playfully illustrate the workings of the plant. Here, the architect and landscape architect worked together to make a NIMBY (Not In My BackYard) easier to live with.

[GRDadof3 3948]

Coolest recycling facility that I know of...

Text and images from A Weekly Dose of Architecture

[fotoman311 50]

Looks like construction is set to begin on this next week!

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/ind...operty_gif.html

This is going to be a great thing for the city and the county. Anything that makes it easier to recycle, in this case the "single stream", is a great thing. And this will give them added capacity so that suburban haulers can offer better recycling programs as well.

[GRDadof3 3948]

For those interested, demolition has begun (well underway actually) to make way for the new recycling facility:

Not only will the new facility be pretty cool, it also cleans up that area of Wealthy a bit.

[aowwt 0]

The cool thing is I heard about the single stream system at the last Wyoming Council meeting. It was pretty good goal. BTW the south Kent landfill has about 15 more years left of filling. They did say that had we not started the waste to energy facility back in 1990 we would be out of space now. Their goal is to go to 25% of all waste to be recycled using this single stream method. I do believe it would be doable. They did mention that Allegan County has agreed to allow the South Kent Landfill to cross into their border. They already own or can get the land in that area so that might be the reason for the additional 15 more years. Its still a shame that we can not figure out a way to get the butterworth facility to stop leaking all of those horrid chemicals. That is a problem we as a society need to get resolved.

[fotoman311 50]

Seems that everyone has a live web cam these days.

http://rccicam4.axiscam.net:8192/view/viewer_index.shtml

[fotoman311 50]

Seems that everyone has a live web cam these days.

http://rccicam4.axis...wer_index.shtml

[GRDadof3 3948]

Kind of an interesting look to this facility. Much better than I expected:

[jwazzz 15]

I like it - have to do a drive by soon to check it out.