The Champaign-Urbana area will soon have the first construction and demolition recycling facility site of its kind in the Champaign area.

Henson Disposal, a construction and demolition recycling company based in Bloomington, Illinois, received approval for a special-use permit from Urbana on Oct. 6 to start working on the site. 

The company will soon begin construction on a 40,000 square foot building at 910 W. Saline Court, Urbana, said Tom Kirk, co-owner of Henson Disposal. The company currently owns the land and plans to share the property with Southwind RAS, LLC, a Barlett-based company that recycles asphalt shingles.

The city of Urbana approved a permit for Southwind RAS to build a recycling plant along West Saline Court in December of 2013. 

Kirk said it will use the north part of the property, while Henson Disposal will operate in the southern area.

Alderman Charlie Smyth, Ward 1, said north Lincoln Avenue in Urbana — where the facility is planned to be built — has a long history of recycling.

“The permit allows them to conduct the use of the construction and demolition recycling, and it also takes a close look at their site plan. So, it both allows the use and allows for approval of their site plan,” said Jeff Engstrom, interim planning manager for Urbana. 

Scott Tess, environmental sustainability manager for Urbana, said the recycling facility will benefit Champaign-Urbana community members who wish to properly dispose of construction and demolition debris. 

“They could have it trucked all the way to Bloomington, but probably the cheapest thing would have been to dispose of it in the land waste,” Tess said.

Henson Disposal was interested in the Champaign-Urbana location because the area does not currently have a construction and demolition recycler or a local landfill, Kirk said, and waste has to go to either Danville, Pontiac, or Clinton, Illinois to be placed in a landfill. 

For the time being, the company will haul back items it receives to Bloomington to be recycled, Kirk said. He added that the availability and convenience for local residents will allow Henson Disposal to be competitive in the market.

The company will be able to recycle wood, plastic, vinyl siding, fiber (paper, magazines, envelopes, cardboard), concrete, brick blocks (aggregate), metals (aluminum or steel) and roofing shingles, according to Kirk. The company may have opportunities to recycle drywall in the future, he added.

Smyth believes recycling construction and demolition debris will be a cheap alternative to taking the debris to a landfill. He said the city will also benefit from the development of north Lincoln Avenue in Urbana as a recycling facility, the creation of jobs and the property taxes the business will pay. 

He also said Henson Disposal will be “closing the loop” by recycling debris because people will be able take items to a recycler to have them remade for later use.

Henson Disposal and Southwind RAS started a relationship in Bloomington when Henson Disposal used Southwind RAS’ services to recycle its shingles, Kirk said. The two companies thought a partnership in the Urbana area would be beneficial for both companies. 

Henson Disposal plans to hire two or three full-time employees and possibly hire 20 employees within the coming years, depending on the market, Kirk said. 

“We’re thinking it’s going to be great,” Engstrom said. “It should make it cheaper for contractors to recycle materials instead of sending them to landfills, so it will be cheaper for our community and better for the environment.” 

Ali can be reached at [email protected].