Here’s one of our weekly features from the Center for the Urban Environment (CUE). This week’s interiew is with Movers, Not Shakers! owner Mark Ehrhardt. CUE was introduced to him through the Sustainable Business Network NYC, which is a network of businesses dedicated to building a local living economy in New York City.

Q: Where are you from originally?

A: Baltimore, MD. I moved to New York on Halloween in 1988.

Q: Sounds like there might be an interesting story in there… How’s Baltimore different from New York from a small business perspective?

A: Trust me… I came to New York to be a rock star and wound up a business owner. Huh? The key difference is New York’s population density. As a start-up, you’ve got a large, savvy audience who will give you the benefit of the doubt, but from there it’s up to you.

Q: What lead you to the moving business?

A: Before starting Movers, Not Shakers! in 2002, I was somewhat of a mover and a shaker as a stockbroker since 1995. Brokering led to a hedge fund in 1998. That in turn sprouted a dot-com that we grew from 4 to 40 people in 18 months. After being involved in the highs and lows of the times, I wanted to start something that was a solid base hit, as opposed to another home run gamble.

Q: I think sustainable business practices are here to stay. Do you agree?

A: Yes. The corner has finally been turned. Due to the needs of the future, sustainable practices and products are here to stay. While it’s great for all of us that the issue is now in vogue, I feel compelled to ask what took so long?

Q: How did you choose the location of your business?

A: The first location was our apartment! My wife, Liz, tolerated a neat stack of moving blankets in the corner of our bedroom for the first year-and-a-half. Our family and the business have been gravitating towards Red Hook ever since.

Q: What do you like best about your neighborhood/customer base/community?

A: Neighborhood – The people. The views. Not necessarily the people’s views. Customer Base – They get us. Community – Brooklyn truly seems to be a place where people have an understanding of the challenges of our times – climate change, overpopulation, etc., and choose to be a part of the solution. The Green movement dates back decades, but its strength, locally, is due to the level of community and concern that is unique to Brooklyn.

Q: What do you think accounts for Brooklyn’s forward-thinking disposition?

A: I think recent events have been a wake-up call to lots of people who may have been aware before, but not active. People who live in urban environments and feel a connection to nature will opt for a less harmful alternative product or service, even paying a premium, if given the choice.

Q: If you got together with other small business owners in your community—-what would the hot topics be?

A: Yankees / Mets, what a cruel joke Atlantic Yards is becoming, the real estate market in general.

Q What’s the overall impact that the real estate market has on small businesses in your neighborhood?

A: My business serves all of NYC and beyond, but our neighborhood is Red Hook. The small businesses here are doing very well overall.

Q What are the salient challenges that face your business?

A: The biggest challenge is overcoming the reputation of the industry in general. Not all moving companies are unscrupulous. Our company runs on biodiesel, uses reusable plastic bins (GothamBoxes) instead of cardboard and packing tape wherever possible, and donates to Prospect Park! Our biggest challenge is just getting the word out.

Q: There are not a lot of green moving companies—what gave you the idea?

A: A friend of mine converted a 1985 Mercedes-Benz engine to biodiesel and dropped it into an old panel truck about 4 years ago. He drove it to my house, from California! That was the first time I thought about trying to convert the trucks, the rest followed from there.

Q: What are its greatest rewards?

A: Sometimes people are forced to move due to unpleasant circumstances. When we take care of those customers, it’s a very rewarding feeling.

Q: If you could pass a law tomorrow that would help small businesses locally, what would it look like?

A: It would let trucks make deliveries without being ticketed. There’s a difference between double-parking and making a delivery. New York runs on trucks, as we know. There’s not a lot of sympathy out there for them when they’re on the job.

Q: Have you seen the Department of Transportation’s ambitious 68-page plan to transform the city’s streetscape? It speaks to some of your concerns.

A: Yes the plan does try to address the concerns of truckers. I especially like the attempts to prevent people from cruising to find a spot to park which I believe the plan says accounts for 40% of the congestion in Midtown.

Interview conducted by Rebeccah Welch, Associate Director of Public Affairs at the Center for the Urban Environment. As an educational guide to a greener New York City, the Center is dedicated to educating individuals about the built and natural environments.