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Bemoaning the Waste of Unwanted Furniture
updated: Apr 30, 2012, 5:11 PM

By Jessie Altstatt

We took a beach walk at Haskell's this morning. While coming back to the car, we noticed workers at Bacara dismantling a great pile of armoires, shelving, and entertainment consoles and throwing them into a large Marborg bin. It seemed so wasteful that I had to ask a worker whether or not it would be possible to donate the furniture. It all looked to be in great shape; they could easily donate it the ReStore or something similar. They could even post it as "free" on Craigslist. He told me that some had already been donated but that the ReStore did not have enough room to take it all, and as the hotel wanted to be free of the liability, the rest had to go into the trash.

I am still troubled by the large amount of waste considering the state of our landfill, and the almost surety that there are those in this community who could use this furniture.

Do readers have any suggestions on how to change the system? There has got to be a better way than discarding perfectly usable products. Is there anyone working at the nonprofit, city, or county level to help businesses be more "green"?

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

CAPTAIN HALEY	2012-04-30 05:38 PM
It is terribly difficult to get rid of used furniture. It doesn't sell and it seems no one wants it for free either.
COMMENT 276060P	2012-04-30 06:07 PM
Flat screen TVs and iPods have made most entertainment consoles obsolete. Not saying they couldn't have shelving or a closet pole installed...or turned into chicken coops.
COMMENT 276061	2012-04-30 06:26 PM
Perhaps an enterprising soul with furniture refinishing skills could take this, clean/fix it up, and sell it to boutique hotels in the area in need of new furniture? I agree sometimes hotel furniture like TV/clothing combo armoires are not practical in usual family homes. But there have to be hotels out there "on a budget" who would appreciate refinished stuff. And that refinisher would have a job...
COMMENT 276062	2012-04-30 07:01 PM
I agree that many of these items likely wouldn't be of practical use in a private home, but I think a homeless or battered women's shelter could have made good use of some of this furniture...and the Bacara could have enjoyed some good local publicity for a change...
COMMENT 276065	2012-04-30 07:09 PM
It would cost the business too much to spend time trying to find a place for it. They did say that some was donated. We have put furniture on Craigslist and it is gone in minutes. There is a liability for a business though. Someone always wants to sue.
COMMENT 276067	2012-04-30 07:30 PM
Be the first ...start your own biz
COMMENT 276087P	2012-04-30 09:54 PM
At the recycle usually lots of furniture and belonging are dumped there. I think the employees get to take lots of it home. Otherwise they should be having the thrift stores take it to sell it. I think with the new thrift stores and Alpha expanding they would take allthe furniture to resell. Many people with mall spaces usually fix it up and sell it at the many malls. I have seen so many family writing free on signs and by the morning things are gone. Free is free. Many people can't afford anything, not even food.
COMMENT 276097	2012-05-01 06:46 AM
When I worked at a community independent living program for people with mental illness we would have loved to have gotten that furniture.
COMMENT 276166	2012-05-01 09:40 AM
Bah-Humbug Baccara! I have always wanted to see a "free and usable" section at local dumps- If something is usable, it could be set aside at a given spot, and folks could take it home- maybe make a donation of some kind. (which could maybe fund the insurance no doubt required!) We are SUCH a wasteful society, it saddens me. I shop pretty much exclusively at thrift stores, rummage and garage sales, and I have lovely and unique clothing, bedding, furniture, art and dishes. Plus it's a lot more fun! And I very much disagree that people "Dont want free stuff"- Just put out something usable with a free sign and watch it disappear! I got a wonderful old adirondack chair free just yesterday- I look forward to fixing it up and making it beautiful...
COMMENT 276169	2012-05-01 09:46 AM
I agree that if you feel so strongly about it you should be acting in accordance to your beliefs. We get enough of others telling us how to act in accordance to their beliefs that no one is minding their own business anymore. I commend you for taking a stand but feel you should be more pro-active instead of being another reactionary making a stink about something/someone you don't approve of. Talk to Bacara management about taking the stuff off their hands. It saves them the labour cost of having to bust it up as well as dumping fees and you walk away with some decent stuff you can redistribute or refurbish and sell. That way instead of being a thorn you become a good neighbour.
COMMENT 276183	2012-05-01 10:29 AM
There are many homes in Santa Barbara and Goleta and Carpinteria that could use furniture. A long time ago, we donated our dining table to a home for unwed mothers. It was large (fit our 10 member family) and was perfect for their use. Don't throw it away. This announcement is perfect to let people know it is available. Now where is it available?
COMMENT 276188	2012-05-01 10:45 AM
Jessie Alstatt is a girl
EARO65	2012-05-01 10:54 AM
In our neighborhood, one only need put a free sign on it, and it is gone within a couple of hours. Love it!!!
RLMCDON	2012-05-01 12:10 PM
Craigslist has a free section Freecycle (google it, there are local groups everywhere but all are handled differently) Put it on the street with a "free" sign. As a business, I agree that they are most likely more concerned with the liability issues than anything (which is silly IMHO but a whole other thread). Wish they had spent a bit more time and energy finding a different solution.
LILAC	2012-05-01 03:13 PM
My daughter and her family lived in Fairbanks, Alaska for 10 years where there is a large platform next to the dump where any usable items are put and people just help themselves. I have long hoped we could do that here since I too hate to see all that waste. How can we make that happen?
COMMENT 276353	2012-05-01 05:57 PM
Repurpose as homeless shelters? Replacement for Tijuana's cardboard shanties? Beach bonfires?
COMMENT 276366	2012-05-01 06:32 PM
Its very possible some or all of the items have bed bugs! Bed bugs kill your hotels rating...
COMMENT 276370	2012-05-01 06:42 PM
No wonder Bacara charges so much. New furniture every year, perhaps?
COMMENT 276400P	2012-05-01 08:40 PM
Years ago the Biltmore had a parking lot sale of furniture they were replacing and it all got snapped up quickly. There were some beautiful armoires and desks, mini refrigerators, chairs, etc. and those were better financial times. If it were publicized now that free stuff would be gone in a moment.
COMMENT 276425	2012-05-02 07:40 AM
If you want to donate a few pieces of gently used furninture to a thrift store, they will be greatful. If you want to donate ahundred pieces, they have no way to moveit and no place to put it. If you want to give it away using Craig's list, you need to employ people to recieve calls give directions help load negotiate with insurance carriers for the additional liability, and be ready to referee fights between people who both want the same item. A 1-day "garage sale" might be better, but these days there is so much used commercial furniture out there that my company cannot sell it except to scrap dealers (if its metal) and has a hard time giving it away even with a number of concientious employees who work without pay to find recipients and provide free delivery
COMMENT 276592	2012-05-02 11:59 AM
The stuff isn't made to last anymore. Either that or people just don't care to keep it long enough. Its a constant obsession with needing to change to something new.
SCEPTIC	2012-12-09 09:21 PM
How many dollars is "too much" for Bacara to spend trying to get rid of this furniture? - a phone call to local thrift stores & shelters couldn't take much more than an hour, I think. I'm more upset about Mayor Schneider contracting with Marborg to pick up the "furniture, appliances and trash that “just appear overnight” on sidewalks and park strips, at our expense, depriving many of us of useful items we can't afford, increasing our cost for trash pickup, and increasing solid waste dumped at the landfill, also at our expense. Nothing "just appears" overnight, people intentionally and traditionally leave useful stuff at the curb, knowing that it will be taken by those who need it. We're a city (SB) with more people living below federal poverty guidelines than either SLO or Ventura, more than double Ventura County's %. Median income doesn't mean anything when a small number of people earn 10 times as much as others (plenty of government employees and non-profit officers in this range). The mode (the value that represents the most people in the population) of SB county income in the most recent census data posted (2009) was $10,000-$20.000/year, median income for families with 1 earner was $35,884, and for the state of California $47,234. (SBPD starting pay in 2012 is less than double the 2009 median income, $69,149, but I think the bene's make it > double). http://www.city-data.com/income/income-Santa-Barbara-California.html 425: Hotels, motels, property management companies do this frequently, it's not too much hassle for a lot of businesses.

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