By Lauren Otis, Business Editor
”I’m disoriented, but it’s so nice,” said a shopper as she wove among the expanded product aisles of the Whole Earth Center at 360 Nassau St. last week.
Her comment sums up feelings by staff and patrons alike, now that a nearly 14-month-long renovation and expansion of Whole Earth — annexing an adjacent space which formerly housed Judy’s Flower Shop — is drawing to a conclusion.
All areas of the now 8,000-square-foot nonprofit natural foods store are currently open, except the new café with its expansive view out over Nassau Street. Once a final certificate of occupancy is issued, the café should also be in business within the week, said Wayne Pietrini, project manager with Baxter Construction, the general contractor for the renovation.
”I’m happy to see the space opened up the way it is,” Mr. Pietrini said. “The reaction of the normal customers, they are all very excited. That’s nice to watch, and they are all happy we are drawing the construction process to a close, and we are too,” he said.
The Whole Earth Center upgrade and expansion was not conducted like any old renovation, however.
In keeping with the philosophy that has guided Whole Earth since its inception on the original Earth Day in 1970 — emphasizing recycling, reuse, organic foods, local products and business partners — the center’s board of trustees pledged to divert as much of the project’s byproducts from landfills as possible, recycling them, as well as reusing a variety of fixtures and materials in the renovation itself.
Solar panels were installed so the store would be energy self-sufficient. Low environmental impact materials, such as low-volatile organic-compound paint and efficient fluorescent lights, were used. Whole Earth contracted with Baxter Construction, and project architect Ronald Berlin, both based in Princeton, because of their interest in helping Whole Earth accomplish the expansion and renovation in as environmentally sensitive a fashion as possible.
The concepts of sustainability and green building practices have gained currency as energy costs have skyrocketed, and businesses and individuals alike seek ways to minimize their impact on the environment. Whole Earth’s goal in executing a truly green building project is to “provide a place that showcases what everyone is talking about,” said Fran McManus, Whole Earth’s director of marketing. One part of the café will be given over to an information center on the practices Whole Earth has employed and hopes others will emulate, she said.
Mr. Pietrini said that as the project draws to a close, it appears that a total of 89 percent of demolition and construction byproducts will have been recycled or reused, one way or another (saving some 61,000 pounds of waste from the landfill, according to Whole Earth). To accomplish this, Baxter Construction hired a Philadelphia firm, Construction Waste Management, to recycle everything from drywall processed into a soil amendment used by farmers, to clean wood recycled as mulch or processed into boiler fuel, to the donation of old fixtures to low-income families.
Pointing to wood-topped tables (the bases are recycled from old Whole Earth café tables) that will reside in the café, Ms. McManus noted “this is all locally harvested wood” which has been recycled and reused by local tree service operator Kit Raymond for Whole Earth. “People can come and visit their trees,” she said of the tables, capped in cherry, maple, oak, elm and other woods from Princeton yards.
Rather than scrapping the old glass from Judy’s Flower Shop’s windows, Rob Scherbik of Norman’s Glass re-cut as many panes as possible for reuse in the bank of insulated double-glazed windows which were installed, according to Ms. McManus.
Although Whole Earth will not receive its final Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification by the U.S. Green Building council for a month or more, “we are hoping for silver (LEED certification),” said Baxter Construction owner Jim Baxter.
There are four progressive levels of LEED certification: certified, silver, gold and the highest, platinum. For new construction, the highest levels of certification are attainable, but for a renovation of an older, existing space such as Whole Earth’s a silver certification is a considerable accomplishment, Mr. Baxter said.
”It’s neat, it came out really nice,” Mr. Baxter said as he surveyed the warm-toned, bright café space. The project taught Baxter Construction valuable lessons in environmentally sound demolition and building practices, Mr. Baxter said. “The whole thing was a learning experience. We learned stuff for us to continue to apply on future projects,” he said.
Just about every area of the store has been expanded.
Deli manager Alex Levine said the menu of all-vegetarian deli offerings will increase significantly, both pre-made and made-to-order food. Giving a tour of the redone kitchen, he pointed out the expanded equipment, service and cooking space, and even a picture window looking out over Nassau Street, which will let staff do their jobs bathed in natural light.
Mike Atkinson, Whole Earth’s produce manager, said he intends to increase the variety of organic produce with the new space he has to work with.
”We are able to carry different things, more exotic fruits and vegetables, berries we couldn’t carry before, and bagged fruits” in bulk at a cost savings, Mr. Atkinson said. “We are excited about the changes.”
Immediately opposite the new store entrance, customers face a wall of bulk food products. Bulk goods of all kinds — from dried beans, grains, granola and cereal, to honey and peanut butter — for patrons who fill up containers they bring themselves, has been a signature offering of Whole Earth since it opened, back then offering no more than five or six bulk items, said Ms. McManus. “We’ve expanded our selection since then,” she noted with a smile, surveying the many current offerings.
The prominence of the bulk goods at the entrance is “to make a statement,” according to Ms. McManus. It is a reminder of the values that Whole Earth was founded on and still abides by, she said: “eating really well in an inexpensive way and in a way that is environmentally sound.”
In its new incarnation, Whole Earth hopes to bring this message to ever more shoppers.
Whole Earth Center is currently open for business at 360 Nassau St. A grand opening ceremony for its newly expanded and renovated space will be held 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 19. For questions, call Whole Earth at 609-924-7429.
