Extremely green makeover begins
Reality show will give home's salvaged supplies new life in neighborhood
The Powell family is getting a new home from "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" — and Buffalo ReUse is getting most of their old home.
Under blue skies and bright sunshine Sunday, an army of worker-bee volunteers in white hard hats and blue T-shirts began taking apart the Powells' Massachusetts Avenue home one piece at a time.
Sections of flooring, doors and window frames were salvaged for reuse, one of many ways organizers say the reality TV project is giving Buffalo a boost.
"We're going to use some of them targeted for projects in the community this very week," said David Stapleton, president of David Homes, the "Extreme Makeover" builder.
This "green" demolition — a first for the show — marked the beginning of seven hectic days of construction at 228 Massachusetts Ave.
Publicity, coupled with Sunday's beautiful weather, brought out large crowds who wanted to meet an "Extreme Makeover" designer or just see the many volunteers at work.
"It shows you the real heart and soul of the City of Buffalo," said Brian Kurtz, an Allentown resident who brought his fiancee, Becky Fresch, of Pittsburgh.
Video: Green Deconstruction Begins
With so many people volunteering on the project, crews are taking the opportunity to rebuild other parts of this West Side neighborhood.
Many grateful neighbors will receive new porches, roofs, gutters and other improvements, and the show will help community gardens sprout in nearby vacant lots.
"I watch the program on TV all the time. I'm excited they're here. It's going to improve the neighborhood," said Herminia Gonzalez, who has lived on the street for more than 20 years.
Work on the site began Sunday morning, when a crew organized by Buffalo ReUse and Western New York AmeriCorps began ripping apart the house where Delores Powell and her four children live.
By 1 p.m., all of the windows on the house had been pulled out and a steady stream of volunteers was walking into the house and coming out with armfuls of wood.
More volunteers worked at tables set up in the street, pulling or hammering nails out of the wood so that it can be reused on other construction projects.
At one point, Buffalo ReUse's Michael Gainer tried to fire up the volunteers by yelling "Extreme Green" and urging them to applaud themselves.
The Buffalo ReUsers are old hands at taking apart homes but this project — with so many volunteers and a tight deadline — was tricky, Gainer said.
The Buffalo ReUse demolition work was supposed to wrap up by midnight, when the rest of the excavation and site preparation will begin in time for construction to kick off today.
"It's a really good challenge for us," Gainer said.
The volunteers who worked to take apart the house are just some of the more than 4,500 people who signed up to help — far more than other "Extreme Makeover" cities have had.
Not all of the volunteers will be working on the Powells' new home, but the people who came to help said they're just happy to pitch in however they can.
Andrea Przybyszewski, 22, was ripping nails out of floorboards Sunday afternoon.
"It's a little tedious, but I could do it all day," the Cheektowaga resident said, adding, "I'm just so happy to be part of it."
Many volunteers will be put to work on other projects in the neighborhood, which has its share of abandoned homes and vacant lots, but also a network of concerned homeowners.
Gonzalez, who lives across the street from the Powells, welcomes "Extreme Makeover" to the West Side.
Someone involved in the project told her she will get a new porch, siding and windows, and she believes the show will build a small park or garden on the lot next door.
"If they do, I told them we'll keep it clean," Gonzalez said.
Police have shut down several blocks around this stretch of Massachusetts Avenue to vehicle traffic.
Dyary Agha, a manager at the convenience store at Massachusetts and Normal avenues, said having the show here is good, especially if it will do even more for the area.
But Michelle Giomundo, owner of the nearby Tango's Pet Store, chafed at the traffic hassles.
As of 1:30 p.m., no customers had visited her store Sunday.
"I'm happy for the people getting it done. But as a business owner, it's hurting. Big time," Giomundo said.
The traffic controls didn't stop hundreds of people from coming by throughout the day to check out the scene, take pictures and try to catch a glimpse of host Ty Pennington.
"I think they're going to do a lot for the city," said Elaine Urban, a Black Rock resident. "I think it's going to be a good plug for the city."
The episode is expected to air in early 2010.
The site is open to the public from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, though visitors are kept across the street behind barriers.
People who want to stop by are asked to go to the parking lot of the Colonel Ward Pumping Station, 2 Porter Ave. in LaSalle Park, where they can sign in for a site visit.
A shuttle bus will take them to and from the work site.
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