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Village Green Renewal Philosophy

Our philosophy is that we live on earth as guests, and the next guests should be glad we were here.

Our mission is to act as a community hub for residents, craftspeople and merchants who choose restoration over replacement.

Our promise is to serve the community through honest, skilled and prompt work at a fair price, and to be there when our neighbors need us.

About Seth Barrett, Owner of Village Green Renewal

Seth's fascination with repair began in his youth. He was raised in a Brookline home that was filled to the gills with interesting items of all sorts... from antique furniture to buckets of salvaged electronics, from industrial machinery to carefully displayed Egyptian jewelry.

Seth's mother, (an inventor and passionate antique collector), and father, (a mechanical engineer and jack-of-all-trades), were always delighted when Seth showed interest in experimentation.

Seth was given hand tools at an early age, and eventually the right to tinker with discarded projects in a basement room which was dedicated to salvage.

Telephones, lock sets, televisions, lamps, cameras and hundreds of other items waiting to be stripped for parts became his childhood toys and eventually his bedroom became a lab where he set up a bench and began experiments of his own.

As a teenager, Seth took a job with a demolition crew, and over the years moved through the ranks in construction until he was a lead carpenter. Not yet satisfied, Seth informally apprenticed in several other trades until finally he was hired by Creative Building Associates as a 'job closer', a position that could employ all of his skills and attention to detail. Seth's working relationship with C.B.A. continues to date, and he is still involved in the building trades.

In 2008, in response to the green wave that is sweeping across Brookline, Seth, by then an experienced handyman, founded Village Green Renewal, a traditional repair shop dedicated to conservation and community involvement. Seth brings with him a lifetime of collected treasures, a font of knowledge and strong neighborhood ties. Come visit him at his work bench, and bring something that you need fixed... you'll be glad you stopped in.