Sustainability Open House Tour – Sat. May 5th

April 13, 2018

 

What are our local businesses doing to help the environment?   Lots!  On Saturday May 5th, several local businesses will be participating in a self-guided Sustainability Open House Tour, sponsored by The Chamber of the Northern Poconos and SEEDS (Sustainable Energy Education & Development Support). This tour will be free and open to the general public, who can visit any of the participating businesses during the hours posted below.  Learn about local green business practices and see renewable energy systems, zero-waste practices,    recycling/composting measures and high energy efficiency equipment. Come see and support these businesses. This event was created to demonstrate the growing trend of earth-friendly business practices, and to encourage more. Treat yourself to this unique self-guided Sustainability Open House tour!


Participating businesses include:
Green Outlet – 45 Brown Street in Honesdale, near Honesdale Agway.  Green Outlet is a 5,000 sq.ft. retail store in Honesdale, dedicated to a Reuse-Recycle-Re purpose concept, buying and selling NEW and USED home furnishings, appliances, kitchen cabinetry, lighting and much more. They are devoted to providing the community with an affordable alternative for all home items, while reducing waste and the negative impact on our planet. Need a door or a window? Come see their large selection and save hundreds of dollars! Green Outlet is also a U-Haul dealer, making it very convenient to get your purchases home.

Green Outlet is open Sat May 5 from 10 am – 5 pm.

Nature’s Grace947 Main Street, Honesdale.   Nature’s Grace is a health food and wellness store dedicated to our planet’s and our personal sustainability. The store generates electricity from a roof mounted solar system. You can see the meter in the shop that displays the electricity generation.  Nature’s Grace uses high efficiency lighting, occupancy sensors, and LED lights in their freezers and coolers.  There is a great selection of nutritional supplements, organics and environmentally friendly cleaning products. The deli counter uses compostable and recyclable paper and plastic. Drop in for lunch and drop off your batteries to be recycled (for a nominal fee). YES, you can buy milk and eggs on Main Street.

Nature’s Grace is open Saturday May 5 from 10 am – 5 pm.

Here and Now Brewing Company – 645 Main Street, Honesdale. Saving money, being environmentally conscious, and creating jobs help new businesses serve their community and our planet. Here and Now Brewing Company wanted to be as energy efficient as possible right from the start to ensure their own sustainability. They looked back to look forward, converting a historic, 160-year-old building on Main Street in Honesdale into a bustling bar and restaurant. Materials throughout the building were removed, restored, re-used or repurposed. On the operations side of the things, Here & New worked with PPL’s Act 129 rebates to purchase the most energy efficient equipment available. A custom rebate program enabled the brewery to purchase a glycol chiller that helps cool the beer and the kitchen goods. The brewery also re-uses its wastewater for cleaning and composts fruits, vegetables and grain born of the brewing process. Altogether, Here & Now pays 60% less in energy costs than the previous retail tenant. Hard to believe when you visit one of the most lauded, dynamic breweries in the state. Pop in to taste what all the fuss is about! Here & Now is open for beer and eats Thursday-Saturday. Check hereandnowbrewingcompany.com for hours and menus. Even if you’re not a beer lover, there is plenty for all. Literary lovers – you must join their mailing list! You’ll see!

Here and Now opens Saturday May 5 at 1 pm.

Wayne County Recycling Center – 66 Volunteer Drive, (off Route 652 near Beach Lake) Honesdale. Wayne County offers a source-separated Recycling Center and county-wide drop-off program for area residents. Materials accepted include; clear, green & brown glass bottles, #1 & #2 plastic bottles, metal & aluminum cans, newspaper, magazines, office paper, junk mail, cardboard, chipboard, scrap metal and appliances. You can also bring tires (for a small fee) and clothing and other textiles to donate to needy families. Source-separated recycling offers an efficient and more environmentally friendly alternative to landfilling, and it provides the County with a source of revenue. The Wayne County Recycling Center is also helping the community by accepting eye glasses for the Honesdale Lion’s Club’s Recycle for Sight program, and cell phones (plus batteries an charger) to give to Honesdale’s Victims Intervention Program. Your old cell phone can help a victim of domestic abuse when they need it most. So drop by to see the Wayne County Recycling Center operations, and meet some of the volunteers. There is also a Back Yard Composting Display, a joint effort with The Master Gardener Program, Penn State Cooperative Extension. Once you have seen the place, we hope you’ll start bringing them your recyclables!

Visit the Wayne County Recycling Center from 9 am – 12 pm on Sat. May 5.

Hamlin Beer Distributors – 590 Hamlin Highway, Hamlin, PA 18427. Hamlin Beer Distributors is your beer and malt beverage headquarters, offering an excellent selection of domestic, craft and imported beers. But did you know they generate much of their electricity from solar? Come see the large ground-mount solar system behind their building, and learn about their high efficiency air exchanger by FreeAire, that uses outside cool air to keep beer cold.  Hamlin Distributors also offers one of the area’s best selections of home brew and wine making supplies.  Home brewing reduces waste and packaging, and can be lots of fun. To help get you started, they have experts and a home brewer on staff.

Hamlin Distributors is open Sat May 5 from 9 am – 8 pm.


Himalayan Institute – 952 Bethany Turnpike, Honesdale, PA 18431. The mission of the Himalayan Institute is to inspire and empower all those who wish to reach their full potential. Their headquarters, residential & guest facilities, along with 22 additional buildings, including the PureRejuv Wellness Center, are situated on 400 acres nestled in the heart of the Pocono Mountains, just outside Honesdale, PA. The PureRejuv Wellness Center offers integrative health services and therapeutic treatments designed for accelerated healing, disease prevention, and long-lasting vitality. For over 45 years, the Himalayan Institute has been a pioneer of yoga in the West and a world leader in yoga lifestyle programs. Come see the campus and enjoy a tour of their facilities and an overview of their services.  Come see their large commercial solar thermal system. But here is something we want everyone to know about the Himalayan Institute. They are leading a trend in northeast PA with their Zero-Waste goal, encouraging others to do the same.  The Institute recycles everything they can. Their Zero Waste hallway has collection bins for white paper, mixed paper, commingled items, cardboard, plastic, and styrofoam. They partner with local businesses to carry away most of these items, avoiding additional landfill waste. The nearby Anthill Farm hauls away 300 pounds weekly of food scraps for composting and the Wayne County Recycle Center takes their paper and cardboard. Their Mother Divine Boutique – a recycling closet where people may donate and/or take clothes, electronics, household items, books, etc.- in the spirit of “need a penny, take a penny” is something businesses everywhere can replicate for their employees. The Seventh Day Adventist Church picks up items bi-weekly from the Boutique and resells in their church’s donation-only boutique. Already the Himalayan Institute has seen the financial benefit of our recycling efforts, saving $12,000 annually.

Join them Sat. May 5th for the Sustainability Open House Tour between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.  Refreshments will be served.

 

Suggested route to see all on Sat May 5 & drop off your recyclables and pick up lunch!

9:00 am –           Himalayan Institute – 952 Bethany Turnpike, Honesdale; Refreshments served.

10:15 am –         Nature’s Grace – 947 Main Street, Honesdale. Grab a few groceries!

10:45 am–         Green Outlet – 45 Brown Street, near Honesdale Agway.  Pick up a rug, lamp, vase!

11:15 am   –        Wayne County Recycling Center -66 Volunteer Drive (off Rt 652; Beach Lake) Honesdale.

12:00 pm –        Hamlin Beer Distributor –  590 Hamlin Highway, Hamlin. Get your weekend beverages!

1:00 pm –           Here and Now Brewery  – 645 Main Street, Honesdale. Enjoy lunch after your tour!

Use this map to help:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1nMsuzxpAvgxn-hPcnSEtXFW1Pe6yaHtN&usp=sharing

We want to hear from you. What can be done to encourage more green business practices in our area? Do you know of other great examples? Contact SEEDS (570) 245 – 1256 or email jocelyn@seedsgroup.net.