Green Bexley, a branch of the city’s Environmental Sustainability Advisory Committee, has been awarded a $22,750 grant from The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio to replace disposable to-go containers with reusable stainless steel ones at local restaurants with the intention of spreading the initiative throughout Central Ohio.
Grant recipients were publicly announced on SWACO’s website in March. Project managers Lisa Goldsand and Rhys Gruebel were awarded the grant in December, Gruebel said.
“January is when we really started to hit the pavement and get things off the ground,” he explained.
Gruebel added the unofficial program name is Bexley Reuse.
“The goal of the Bexley Reuse is to shift consumer behavior such that asking for a single use to-go container feels uncomfortable.” Gruebel said.
Green Scope founder and CEO Dominique Hadad, who is helping with the implementation process of the pilot program, explained Bexley Reuse supplies local restaurants with metal containers for customers’ leftovers. The containers can then be returned, she said.
Kitties Cakes, ZenCha Cafe & Tea, Peking Dynasty, Harvest Pizzeria, Moshi Sushi Bar and Khaab Indian Kitchen & Bar are participating, Goldsand said.
“The people that we have approached have been really open to hearing about the project,” she added.
Gruebel said he thinks the pilot program will be beneficial for businesses, as it will increase restaurant traffic.
The containers will be available in participating restaurants starting in June.
Goldsand said a final goal for the project is for it to become widespread across Central Ohio. She hopes to eventually work with additional organizations to maximize the impact, she said.
Goldsand added she is hoping to see a tangible impact on the local environment.
“It falls to concerned, educated humans to make local changes,” she said. “Every human should look around them and say, what can I do to make the world a better place?”
Published and digitized May 2026.
