Habitat for Humanity Greater Ottawa to open third ReStore in Stittsville

Habitat for Humanity Greater Ottawa is opening a new 18,000-square-foot flagship ReStore – its largest retail outlet to date.

ReStores sell home renovation supplies and furniture donated by contractors, individuals or Habitat GO’s corporate sponsors, which include Home Depot, Lowe’s, Dulux Paints and local company Euro Tile and Stone.

Doors will open at the new outlet, located at 3 Iber Rd. in Stittsville, on Saturday, April 7 at 9 a.m.

Habitat GO has two other ReStore locations, located at 768 Belfast Rd. near the Train Yards and 7 Enterprise Ave. just off Merivale Road in Nepean.

Proceeds from the home renovation stores support Habitat GO initiatives, including its home-building projects. The local affiliate of the international non-profit is currently undertaking the biggest project in its history – a 16-unit community of townhomes in Orléans known as Leacross Landing.

“The ReStores help us to build more homes,” says Myrna Beattie, Habitat GO’s Director of Retail Operations.

Treasures in store

Because Habitat GO’s ReStores accept donations from a wide range of businesses and individuals, there are always treasures to be found in store.

“It’s like Christmas every day,” says Beattie. “We never know what’ll come through the door next. We get some pretty unique and wonderful things.”

The stores accept new and gently used furniture donations and frequently see solid wood furniture and one-of-a-kind chandeliers, among other things.

The ReStore locations also stock a wide selection of home renovation supplies, including paint, flooring and hardware. For those interested in donating, Habitat GO is able to pick up materials for a small fee.

Habitat GO’s ReStores serve a range of customers from throughout the city, including small contractors looking to save on project expenses and weekend DIY’ers searching for that special piece for their home.

Construction with a conscience 

Habitat GO works to help local families strength, stability and independence and independence through affordable homeownership. Qualifying families apply to become Habitat homeowners and the non-profit oversees the planning, permits and construction of the homes.

Homeowners pay an affordable, interest-free mortgage, and must complete 500 volunteer hours (350 hours for single-parent families) of “sweat equity,” whether it be working on the construction site of their home or at one of the ReStore locations. Projects are financed through in-kind contributions, financial donations and proceeds from ReStore sales.

To date, the organization has helped 72 families become homeowners. That number is set to increase, as construction continues on the Leacross Landing development in Orléans.

The keys to the first four homes from that build site are on track to be handed over to homeowners this spring.

In addition to helping put roofs over the heads of local families, many individuals also choose to shop at the organization’s ReStores as an eco-friendly alternative to big-box home reno stores.

Through its ReStore locations, Habitat GO diverts 1.7 million pounds of waste from local landfills each year. Contractors or homeowners often finish a job with surplus materials, and the ReStore gives renovation supplies and furniture a second chance at life, keeping them out of the garbage.

“It really is a win-win-win situation for our donors, our shoppers and our environment,” says Beattie.

For items it can’t sell, the ReStores recycle all cardboard and unusable metal, such as bent pipes or rusty hardware, which come in on otherwise sellable products.

The Belfast Road and – when it opens – the Iber Road locations also accept e-waste, such as old TVs, printers and computer monitors. Collected items are then recycled in Ontario through the Ontario Electronic Stewardship program, which is run by eCycle Solutions