CANTON − The Stock Pile, a not-for-profit store that sold new and reused building materials at discount prices since late 1998, will close Aug. 2, the organization said in a Facebook post on July 28.
The announcement made with “heavy hearts” said due to “shifting economic and operational challenges” the Stock Pile’s board had made “the difficult decision” to close the store at 1387 Clarendon Ave. SW.
“We are incredibly proud of the legacy we leave behind,” the statement said. “Together, we have successfully diverted over 5,200 tons of building materials away from landfills and provided affordable, low-cost supplies to more than 3,200 low-to-moderate-income, elderly and disabled families to help maintain and repair their homes. Every piece of flooring, every can of paint, and every appliance sold at a fraction of retail cost helped build a safe, stronger Stark County.”
The Stock Pile said it will have a final clearance sale from July 29 to Aug. 2.
Connections to RPC
While the Stock Pile is a separate not-for-profit with a volunteer board, it’s run by the leaders of the Stark County Regional Planning Commission. A person who manages the Stock Pile Facebook account in response to a Facebook message referred questions to Robert Nau, executive director of the Stark RPC. The person wrote that they loved their job and fellow co-workers and the “the customers who we all became friends with.”
A message seeking comment was left the evening of July 28 at the work phone of Nau.
A June 1998 article said Brenda Mahan, later Brenda Sarsany, then the community development director of the Stark County RPC, had come up with the idea of a non-profit store that would sell at a discount price donated building materials to people with low to moderate incomes.
The Stock Pile has been at its current Clarendon Avenue SW location since its launch later in 1998 with the help of a two-year $50,000 federal Community Development Block Grant. The Stark-Tuscarawas-Wayne Joint Solid Waste Management District provided $50,000 in matching funds. Since then, the store has sought to sell building materials at a third of its retail cost.
By 2019, the store had grown from 6,000 square feet to 17,000 square feet and had about 200,000 to 300,000 items in its inventory. The Stock Pile had 2,800 registered members. It offered free building and renovation materials to people transitioning from homelessness and sold its own line of recycled paint called Second Coat.
Reach Robert at robert.wang@cantonrep.com.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Donated building materials store The Stock Pile closes after 27 years
Reporting by Robert Wang, Canton Repository / The Repository
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Robert Wang, Canton Repository | USA TODAY Network
