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Century-old site is home to modern recycling center
Listen to this articleOperations on a six-acre property in downtown Allentown date to the Industrial Revolution – when it was a junkyard.
Today, the property is Liberty Recycling Inc., a modern recycling center whose scorecard for success is pride in service, a good reputation and being a good neighbor in the urban environment.
The business on North Third Street began in the late 1800s as Jacob Max, a junkyard. It operated under various other names, including Jacob Max Estate and Jacob Max Inc., before becoming Liberty Recycling in 1979.
“The Jacob Max name didn’t say what the business was,” said David Keshl, co-owner/operator of Liberty Recycling.
Keshl and his daughter Coral Connell are business partners. Keshl said he has begun transitioning the business to Connell.
Three buildings on the site accommodate operations to process paper products and cardboard, magazines and newspaper, aluminum and aluminum cans, brass and copper, iron, steel and Styrofoam, Keshl said.
Draining and disposing of CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) coolant, used in refrigerators, freezers and air conditioning units, are services also offered by Liberty.
In addition to contract recycling, the center is open to the public.
Liberty offers cash to those who bring in recycling items, keeping waste products out of landfills while sending the items back into consumer markets as useful goods.
“I have people who spend more on gas than they get when they drop off, but they are passionate about recycling,” Keshl said.
