Kitsap County Public Works and Leadership Kitsap are teaming up with Nike and the National Recycling Coalition to bring the innovative “Reuse-A-Shoe” program to Kitsap County. Over twenty businesses located throughout the county are collecting athletic shoes of all brands, which will be sent back to Nike, ground up, and remanufactured into basketball and tennis courts, athletic fields, running tracks, and/or playground surfaces.

“Our goal,” says Melissa Tippets of Leadership Kitsap, “is to collect at least 5,000 pairs of old shoes for Nike to process then install a Nike Grind play surface in a Kitsap County park.”

“The Nike ‘producer take-back’ program has been in place for 12 years and is an example of how manufacturers are stepping up to the plate to take responsibility for the waste that results when products come to the end of their intended life,” says Terri Washburn of Kitsap County Public Works. “Cities and counties across the nation are supporting Nike’s effort to close the recycling loop. It takes 3,000 pairs of athletic shoes to make a surface for a basketball court and 100,000 pairs for an outdoor track.”

“The support for this project by the local business community has been overwhelming,” reports Washburn. “Within days of mailing participation letters to fitness centers, gyms, retailers, and sports centers calls started coming in to set up collection bins. In addition, local charitable organizations are able to divert hundreds of unusable shoes from the landfill thereby reducing their disposal costs through this project.”

Bring old, tired, used-up athletic shoes to any of the public collection points. Schools will collect shoes from their students’ families beginning in March. All brands of athletic shoes are accepted. Shoes with cleats, spikes, or blinking lights cannot be accepted. Volunteers will remove metal parts, such as eyelets, untie shoelaces, and remove shoes from plastic bags. The project will culminate under the big top in the Kitsap Mall parking lot on April 22 through 24, with local volunteers on hand to collect shoes and prepare them for shipment.

For a complete list of drop-off sites and additional information on Reuse-A-Shoe, visit www.kitsapreuseashoe.org. For information about Nike Grind and the Nike program, visit www.nikereuseashoe.com.

The public collection sites are:

Bayview Fitness, Bremerton Tennis & Athletic Club, Curves for Women (Bainbridge Island, Belfair, Bremerton, Port Orchard, Silverdale), DONOBi, Island Fitness, JC Penney, Kingston Fitness, Kitsap County Public Works Annex, Kitsap Family Y.M.C.A., Kitsap Pavilion at the Fairgrounds, Kitsap Sports Shop, Mervyn’s, Navy Exchange Bangor, Olympic Soccer & Sports Center (Pendergast Park), Olympic View Transfer Station, Payless Shoe Source (Bremerton and Port Orchard), Poulsbo Athletic Club, Silverdale Fitness, Sport Haus, Sportsman’s Warehouse, Town & Country Market , and Wal-Mart – Bremerton.

Members of the Leadership Kitsap Group working with Kitsap County Public Works are: Melissa Tippets, DONOBi; Cameron Teller, Parametrix, Inc.; Randy Crenshaw, PSNS; John Hudson, NUWC, Keyport; Diane Jennings - NUWC, Keyport; and Terri Washburn, Kitsap Community Resources.