Hometown Hero: Emergent Structures

SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) - It's dirty work, but also noble work being done at the corner of MLK and Anderson in Savannah, where conservationists are preserving buildings by taking them down.

The non-profit group Emergent Structures has a hands-on stake in two historic homes that recently came down, hand deconstructing one and picking through the debris of its neighbor that was destroyed in Hurricane Irma. The group will repurpose all the salvaged material, selling some to contractors for use in other homes.

"This is actually more preservation, not less," said Scott Crotzer, executive director of Emergent Structures. "Because when a building cannot be saved, then the parts are saved. And the story goes with the parts."

Some of the woods go to craftsmen, who can help preserve a part of Savannah history.

"When people are sitting at a dining room table made of this lumber," said Crotzer, "then the story of the house kind of goes with it."

About 20 volunteers have contributed during the four weeks the project has been going on.

But Emergent Structures hopes to create a lasting impact on the local economy by creating jobs for anybody who can make crafts and memorabilia from the salvaged material.

"We focus on training the unemployable, the minority groups, people dealing with addiction and people being released from prison," said Crotzer. "But then, also we get these craftsmen, one-of-a-kind items that are going home in the hands of the visitors here."

And these WTOC Hometown Heroes hope to take preservation to a new level here, one handful of repurposed material at a time.

"Our mission," said Croter, "is to make it an ordinance like it is in other parts of the country where you absolutely cannot destroy something historic by crushing it and throwing it in a dumpster."

Copyright 2018 WTOC. All rights reserved.