One of the best parts of living in Santa Cruz County is a plethora of resources for living a healthy and sustainable lifestyle. Locals can shop at abundant farmers’ markets on almost any day of the week, while community-minded organizations like Transition Santa Cruz are working to rethink oil dependency and build a more resilient community. A "green" movement has surely been budding here in town, and Greenspace in Santa Cruz is a valuable and welcoming hub for all things green. 

Opening its doors back in 2006, Greenspace sells green products and eco-renovation materials, while also functioning as a resource center for the community to learn about how we can lessen our footprint on the earth. The products, which range from compact stainless steel lunch boxes (a good plastic bag, plastic Tupperware alternative that is durable to last a very long time), to flooring materials and non-toxic paint. 

“There’s a lot of research going into what we buy for the store,” says owner Lydia Corser. Not only are products pre-screened to ensure “greenness,” they are purchased from vendors in a fairly tight radius around Santa Cruz. Of the 36 different vendors, all are from Northern California if not from Santa Cruz County.

Some of the factors that make a product “green” are if it is nontoxic, made from recycled content, locally sourced, reduces energy and water consumption, biodegradable, of sufficient quality and sustainably harvested.

David Subocz, a Green Building Designer locally for many years, made himself available to field questions about green projects in Greenspace’s “Ask an Expert” Saturdays, which occur once or twice a month.

“People tend to do their projects in the summer, so we try to catch them while they are still in the planning process,” says Subocz, who places indoor air quality and building maintenance as his top priorities in designing green spaces. He is also a good source to talk to for ideas on how to make the actual building process greener. 

“The largest source of waste in the landfill is construction waste,” says Subocz. 

Aside from building materials and household gadgets, Greenspace also features a slew of local artists to feast your eyes on, like paintings by Bruce Harman, the artist who also painted all those beautiful underwater scenes on the utility boxes in Capitola.

Greenspace is at 1122 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz. 831-423-7200. Open seven days a week. To contact David Subocz for tips on green design projects, e-mail: wdestudios@pacbell.net.