This past fall, ReBUILD’s Deconstruction Crew traveled the highways of Vermont to deconstruct three rest areas off I-89 and 91. Each structure was essentially the same; small front lobby, two bathrooms, and a mechanical room spanning the back of the building. Each bathroom was lined with hollow ceramic block tile, which was also used to build stall dividers and over 50 percent of the tile was cleaned and salvaged and resold. After stripping trim and removing material and debris, the interior gutting took 10 days to complete. The structures had intricate roof framing, yielding thousands of feet of dimensional lumber, including Douglas Fir ridge beams. The front of each rest area consisted of mortared granite block or fieldstone. Each wall was chiseled apart by hand, which took the better part of a day. The crew also salvaged lots of dimensional lumber, tin roofing, 5 cast iron sinks, 5 doors, duct work, industrial lights, and much more.
Vermont’s Interstate 89 was completed in 1970, allowing motorists to travel all the way from the New Hampshire border at White River Junction to Canada on this federally-funded four lane highway. In 1981, Interstate 89 was named the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway.
To see a complete archive of ReBUILD's Vermont Rest Area deconstruction job, please click on the following: Randolph Rest Area | Hartford Rest Area