Habitat for Humanity ReStore - West Roxbury, MAWest Roxbury, MA Boston-based architectural, engineering, construction and real estate advisory firms will help Habitat for Humanity to nearly double the size of retail operations at their ReStore location, as construction crews are applying the finishing touches to prepare the new facility for this month’s opening.
Nauset Construction, engineering firm Wozny/Barbar & Associates (WB&A), The Architectural Team (TAT) and commercial real estate tenant advisory firm McCall & Almy all provided services on a pro bono basis (or at a steeply discounted rate) that will facilitate Habitat Boston’s relocation to a new 22,000 s/f ReStore facility from their current 12,000 s/f location. ReStores, which accepts donated items such as furniture, major appliances, cabinets and other household items and resells them to the public at discounted prices, uses the funds from the sales to help Habitat achieve their core mission – helping low-to-moderate income families achieve homeownership.
Last year, the West Roxbury location alone generated a net profit of approximately $150,000, which was enough to build another home in the community. There are currently 10 ReStore locations in Mass. and Southern N.H., and over 860 nationwide.
“Expanding into any new retail space is a daunting task, and most people are going to have to spend tons of money on professional help to get that done,” said Lark Palermo, CEO of Habitat Greater Boston. “So without the help of these firms, we would not have been able to do this.”
Three of the firms have close ties with the nonprofit, as Anthony Papantonis, president of Nauset, and Michael Liu, design principal at TAT, sit on the board of directors, while Sam Cole of McCall & Almy is a member of the Family Selection Committee for Habitat Boston (which recommends families for homeownership). Cole assisted Habitat in their search for a new space, examining multiple locations in surrounding towns before it was decided to remain in the same building in a larger space, which TAT, WB&A, and Nauset then fit out. The new location required new fire safety and lighting systems, new duct work for air distribution, and new flooring. Two new offices and a break room were constructed and two bathrooms were renovated to bring them into compliance with ADA guidelines.
“People think of Habitat as an organization where people volunteer – which is very true, we rely heavily on volunteers – but what they imagine is people running out to a construction site and hammering nails to frame a house,” said Palermo. “But there are all these other people that contribute to us by volunteering in so many other ways, and this is a really good example of how that works.”