New facility for RecycleForce will help more residents

A new facility for an Indianapolis social enterprise employer broke ground on the near east side this week.

RecycleForce’s new 100,000-square-foot building will allow the nonprofit to train, employ and connect services for more individuals, many who have been involved in the criminal justice system. 

RecycleForce President Gregg Keesling said providing more opportunity for more people is key.

“The people that we sometimes forget about in economic development,” Keesling said.

The location on seven acres in Sherman Park is the former home to RCA and General Electric plants. Near East Area Renewal Executive Director John Franklin Hay said the site has undergone years of cleanup.

“RecycleForce being here represents to us environmental justice and redemption of this wasted place,” Franklin Hay said.

The move may also help redevelopment in Sherman Park. District 12 City-County Councilor Jason Larrison (D) said the area lost 8,000 living wage jobs when GE left in the 1990s.

“When that happens, these neighborhoods that built up around our industries, they have to change along with it,” Larrison said.

The recycler will be able to double its capacity to process 12 million pounds of electronic waste annually.

The city of Indianapolis owns the land and helped the company with $13 million in New Markets Tax Credits.

Contact WFYI city government and policy reporter Jill Sheridan at jsheridan@wfyi.org. Follow on Twitter: @JillASheridan.