The average house paint is linked to cancer, asthma and Sick Building Syndrome — not to mention multiple environmental issues. So why do people keep using it?
“They have no idea what’s in it,” says Michael Aiken. “At the end of the day, if it doesn’t smell too terrible, they think it’s probably OK.”
Aiken’s start-up, Romabio, has created an alternative to acrylics that don’t stir up health risks or additional problems for the planet. Its mineral paints and plasters are free of toxins. They’re odorless and mold-resistant. They’re even made from natural raw materials.
“When you hear something’s made with a synthetic chemical, you have to believe there’s a better solution in nature,” Aiken says.
He didn’t grow up planning to revolutionize the paint world. As an undergrad at Randolph-Macon College, Aiken loved science but “just did OK” in chemistry. Medical school didn’t pan out. “Since I’m a pretty big talker, people kept saying, ‘You should go into sales,’” Aiken recalls. He found his entrepreneurial spirit a good fit for the commercial real estate and finance industries.
Flash ahead to 2009. Married with three kids, Aiken was preparing to paint his Decatur, Georgia, house. A friend told him about an unusual, all-natural paint. It wasn’t sold at a big-box store but only available in a 1,000-square-foot shop tucked behind an architect’s office. Curious, Michael checked it out.
The store wasn’t impressive — there were only a few racks and a tint machine. But Aiken’s conversation with the owner, Chris Lewis, was. The two men talked acrylic paint and its devastating effect on the environment. Lewis explained how the nontoxic, solvent-free paint he sold had been created by an Italian chemist, Patrizio Betti, based on ancient methods that date back to the Etruscans.
Aiken left with enough natural paint to cover the interior of his home — and a gut instinct that more people needed to know about it.
He and Lewis went into business together. Over the next few years, they kept encouraging Betti to create more durable and even cleaner paint formulations. Then Aiken used his business acumen to introduce their products to the building trade.
This year, Romabio supplied interior paint for one of Google’s recent developments in Sunnyvale, California, and a skyscraper in Beijing. Cans of its products are sold in home-improvement stores across Europe, as well as Benjamin Moore dealers and Home Depots throughout the U.S.
In the meantime, Aiken’s mission is to go even greener. Romabio has plans to ship its products in biodegradable plastic buckets. Leftover paint may no longer need to be treated like hazardous waste but will instead biodegrade through a new technology the company has been working on for the past year.
Aiken is, after all, a big picture guy. The best part of his job? Being part of a venture that “drives humanity forward,” he says.
Tag: Home Renovation
Which Northern City is Selling Homes for $1?
A pack of gum. A candy bar. Something off of a fast-food menu. That’s about all you can purchase with a dollar.
And although it sounds absurd, in Buffalo, N.Y., you can now get a house for $1. (Yes, you read that right.)
It’s all part of the Urban Homestead program, which is dedicated to preserving houses in Buffalo. Across the city, old homes are being demolished, and this program is working to save them by selling them for a single. All the buyer has to do is prove they have the resources to repair the residence and promise to live in it for at least three years.
Currently, Buffalo has about 4,600 vacant homes and another 1,600 vacant lots. It costs $15,000 to tear down a home – valuable money that could be put back into the house for repairs. On average per year, eight to 10 homes are bought for a dollar, while hundreds remain on the demolition list.
Buffalo isn’t the only community with this type of initiative. Last year, Gary, Ind. launched their Dollar Home with the sale of six houses. In addition, other cities such as Philadelphia and Detroit have similar programs where people can buy homes for very little money.
The downside? Even though a house may only have a price tag of a dollar, the renovations can cost tens of thousands of dollars.
For Creighton Randall who bought a dollar home back in 2008, it’s been a struggle. He’s been working on it off and on for the past six years and doubts that it’s worth the investment he’s put in.
“If I had to do it again, I wouldn’t,” Randall tells Governing. “I should have just bought one of the houses on sale for $13,000 and saved myself a lot of time.”
However, for others, the investment has been worth the hassle. David Torke and Mike Puma have been leading this movement, and their work showcases the positives that arise from it.
Torke bought his first house back in 2006, and since then, has rejuvenated many homes. Where old, falling down homes used to stand on Coe Street, a freshly painted orange Queen Anne and a brown Victorian with a deck and garden have taken their place.
Similar sights can be found around the city where old homes in high crime areas are getting a second life thanks to some fresh paint, gardens and a few jungle gyms.
“We’re reintroducing new life into these properties,” Puma tells Governing. “Not only are you taking a stand against demolition, but you’re taking a stand on what happens in this city.”
And his neighbors can’t help but agree. Kevin Harris lives across the street from the house Puma is currently working on. For him, it’s a welcome sight.
“At one point, I thought they were going to tear that house down,” Harris says. “But they’re really working their butts off over there, and it’s a beautiful thing. I’d rather see that home than an empty lot any day.”
So, the next time you pull that dollar out of your wallet, pause for a moment. It can go a long way in the world. How will you spend it?
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This Veteran is Building Better Futures for Other Service Members
It takes someone special to have not only a vision, but be able to implement it, too. And that’s exactly what Patrick Clark has done.
When Clark retired from the Marines, he struggled for a while to determine what he would do for the rest of his life. He found his calling by starting a home renovation company — REIG Construction — in San Diego. Now that he’s found success in his civilian life, he wants to help other veterans through a program his company is launching called Operation: Renovation.
Clark told Bob Lawrence of ABC 10 that when he left the military in 2005, he wasn’t sure what to do next. “It’s the great unknown, [that question of] what are you going to do out there is looming. There were times when I contemplated going back to where I grew up.” He ended up staying in southern California and co-founding the construction company that buys dilapidated homes and renovates them. REIG Construction now employ 43 workers, including several other veterans. After just three years in business, Clark and the others in REIG are ready to give back.
Ryan Yahner, a Marine sergeant who served three tours of combat duty before receiving a Purple Heart and being medically discharged, volunteers with REIG and is overseeing Operation: Renovation. “It gives me a chance to help another Marine out, like I used to do for so many years. So it kind of gives me that pride back.”
REIG Construction is inviting active duty military and veterans to apply by July 31 for the chance to receive a complimentary home renovation, which will be completed by Veterans Day 2014. According to REIG’s website, “Our goal with Operation: Renovation is to celebrate, honor, and change the life of one local military family in need through a passionate and purposed home renovation.”
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