Decon + Reuse event coming to Georgia in February

The 2024 Deconstruction + Reuse Conference, organized by the Pittsburgh-based Build Reuse association, has been scheduled for Feb. 12-14 at the Kehoe Ironworks complex in Savannah, Georgia.

The Kehoe Ironworks venue is located on a 6.3-acre former brownfield site that formerly housed an iron foundry and a gas company, with buildings dating from 1873 through 1902. According to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, “Thanks to the strong vision of a Savannah business leader, Charles Morris, and the culmination of four years of construction, today the complex features 8,000 square feet for events and gatherings and an outdoor plaza and amphitheater featuring a commanding view of the Savannah River.”

The three-day Decon + Reuse program features several presentations and panel discussions, with national and multinational contracting and architectural firms such as Turner Construction Co. and Gensler on the agenda.

Also on the program are representatives from smaller companies and community organizations with experience in building deconstruction and the reuse of salvageable materials.

Topics covered include policies to encourage deconstruction practices, case studies of past and current projects and overcoming potential barriers to deconstruction implementation.

Build Reuse bills the event as the only North American conference focused explicitly on reuse in the built environment.

“Decon + Reuse will focus conversations around the theme ‘Salvaging the Past, Building a Low Carbon Future,'" the group says. "With the building materials and construction sector contributing 11 percent of global greenhouse (GHG) emissions, how can deconstruction and building materials reuse lead to a low carbon future? How do we best salvage not only the building materials from our past, but the stories, our sense of place, our community connections that are embodied within them?”

More information on the event can be found here.