Coldwell Banker hosted a broker-only open house, complete with new Maseratis, last spring for this $3,799,000 home in Franklin Lakes.

The setting: a luxurious home late last spring in Franklin Lakes, complete with a hand-chiseled granite facade, a high-end golf simulator in the basement, and the newest line of Maseratis displayed on the grounds, courtesy of a local dealer.

The goal: showcase the house to 170 brokers with deep-pocket clients who might be in the market for a home in Bergen County priced at $3.7 million.

One of the $25 million properties listed in Bergen County is the stately Gloria Crest Estate in Englewood.

An aerial view of a 29-room Franklin Lakes mansion, which is listed at $15 million.

The foyer of the Franklin Lakes home listed at $15 million features a domed center with hand-painted ceiling.

This 10,000 square-foot brick manor in Alpine features a two-story great room and is listed at $5.298 million.

A $13.9 million home in Saddle River offers indoor and outdoor pools, a tennis court, a 10-stall barn, a four-bedroom guesthouse and a six-car garage.

Events like this are among the marketing tools real estate agents in the luxury market use to get their homes in front of potential buyers, who have their pick of high-end locales and amenities.

Though the economic downturn has hurt the sales and prices of luxury homes like the rest of the market, economists and Bergen County Realtors say they are starting to see an uptick in some areas in the number of homes available, and in interest.

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Luxury-home market picks up

Rezoning, variances to be required for conversion of Dolce hotel to indoor water park; Great Wolf Lodge pitches increased tax income for PTC, Fayette

The nations largest chain of family-oriented, indoor water park resorts has its sights set on Peachtree City the very heart of Peachtree City. Great Wolf Lodge Family Resorts is proposing to expand the facilities on the 38-acre site currently occupied by the Dolce Atlanta-Peachtree Hotel and Resort on Aberdeen Parkway.

The proposal by Great Wolf Lodge of Georgia LLC requests the rezoning of the 38.4-acre property from GC (general commercial) to LUC (limited use commercial) to redevelop the property. In addition to the water park and hotel, the application states that the property will include specialty restaurants, arcades, spas, fitness rooms and childrens activity areas.

Great Wolf Lodge currently operates 13 family-oriented, all-suites water park resorts. The only facility in the Southeast is located in Charlotte, N.C. The Charlotte resort offers a variety of suites for 4-8 people and ranges in price from $199-400 per day.

Dolce Atlanta-Peachtree currently operates the facility that includes 236 rooms and 65 meeting rooms in 178,593 sq. ft. of convention center space along with swimming pools, restaurants and tennis courts.

Great Wolf is proposing to operate a family-oriented destination resort operating from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m. each day which would include 398 guest rooms and a total of 173,615 sq. ft. of entertainment, retail, restaurant, meeting and support space.

The property is located on Aberdeen Parkway approximately 900 feet from Ga. Highway 74 North.

Adjacent property includes GR (general residential) to the north, GC (general commercial) to the west which includes the Hilton Garden Inn, LUC-3 (limited use commercial) to the south with Riley Parkway and adjacent residences to the east.

City Manager Jim Pennington on Saturday said he believes the Dolce property has been on the market for at least the past two years. No city official has commented publicly on the proposed development or on its chances for approval by the City Council.

Beyond the existing hotel and conference center buildings spread throughout the 38-acre property, Great Wolf is proposing to add a 54,800 sq. ft. indoor water park connected to the current conference center, a three-story hotel on the north side of the site, increased parking, two additional stormwater ponds and a possible patio off one of the existing restaurants.

Excerpt from:
Amusement park to make big splash in heart of PTC?

MARTIN LUTHER KING

Dr. Martin Luther King Program. 6:30 p.m. Today. Dinner will be served after the program by the Willing Workers of St Mark Baptist Church. 545 Lakehurst Rd, Pemberton Twp. 609-893-6744

Volunteers for Martin Luther King Day of Service. 9 a.m.-noon. Mon. Volunteers of all ages and abilities may participate at the Dr. James Still Historic Site and Education Center for yard cleanup, gardening, painting and other activities aimed at maintaining and improving the historic facility. Followed by a pizza lunch. 109-111 Church Rd, Medford. Register, 609-975-8754, drstillcenter@gmail.com Information, medfordhistory.org

Cozies 4 Chemo MLK Day of Service. 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Jan 19. The nonprofit that provides hand-tied fleece blankets to cancer patients throughout the US and Canada and has donated 2,169 blankets since March 2012 is having the biggest blanket-making event of the year. Donations are welcomed. Ramblewood Country Club, 200 Country Club Pkwy, Mt Laurel. Must register, cozies4chemo.org

BLACK HISTORY MONTH

Celebrate African American Literary. 2 p.m. Feb 1. This "Read In Chain" includes members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority sharing their favorite readings from black authors; refreshments will be served. Willingboro Library,220 Willingboro Pkwy. Free. 609-877-6668. Willingboro.org

Dare to Be a Dreamer. 6:30 p.m. Feb 2. Motivational speakers and mentors. Ages 13-19. Willingboro Library, 220 Willingboro Pkwy. Free. 609-877-6668. willingboro.org

Journey On the Underground Railroad. 6:30 p.m. Feb 4. Experience the Underground Railroad in this interactive program presented by the Underground Railroad Museum of Burlington County. Willingboro Library, 220 Willingboro Pkwy. Free. 609-877-6668. willingboro.org

Black History Gala. 2 p.m. Feb 7. Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Zeta Delta Chapter and Willingboro Library will co-sponsor an afternoon of cultural activities. No registration required and light refreshments served. Willingboro Library, 220 Willingboro Pkwy. Free. 609-877-6668. willingboro.org

African Heritage Film Festival. 6:30 p.m. Feb 12. Willingboro Public Library and the Rancocas Valley Chapter of The Links, Inc. present a documentary film. Light refreshments served. Willingboro Library, 220 Willingboro Pkwy. Free. 609-877-6668. Willingboro.org

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Hometown News Calendar for Week of January 18, 2015

January 18, 2015 7:51 PM Share with others:

By Clarece Polke / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Just days after police charged McKeesport resident Ryan Williams with homicide for a fatal October fire, family members of the six victims organized a memorial service this evening to honor their loved ones.

Stuffed animals, toys, glass candles and rocks painted with the names of the victims covered the front steps and much of the lawn of the charred home at 310 Express Alley. More than 50 people gathered as several family members spoke out against the "act of hate" that killed Ronald Egenlauf, 55; Hope Jordan Egenlauf, 27; and children, Dominic Jordan, 7; Autumn Jordan, 6; Serenity Jakub, 3; and Victoria Jordan, 2.

"May the coward who chose to steal so much from so many people get the justice he deserves," said Emma Ackerman, aunt of Keith Egenlauf, who survived the fire but was critically injured.

Keith's mother, Laverne Egenlauf, said, months later, her family is still coping with the repercussions of the fire. Her son is still undergoing treatment for some of his burns, she said, and the family has struggled to find relief to cover his medical bills.

"At least we've got some kind of relief knowing that man is behind bars, but it still hurts," she said. "Every day, it hurts. Keith has nothing to come home to."

Family friend Kasey Cavanaugh, who lived just two blocks away from the Egenlaufs, said much of the small McKeesport neighborhood turned out to pay respects.

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McKeesport family gathers to honor victims of fire

Orlando Comas, Landscape Architect
2014 Award of Honor Video shown during the awards ceremony at the American Society of Landscape Architects Convention.

By: Orlando Comas, ASLA

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Orlando Comas, Landscape Architect - Video

Part 1 of 2

Before the start of every high school football season, Stacy Robinson goes through a familiar routine.

The head coach at Union High School for the past 18 seasons, Robinson makes it a point to keep an eye on fellow African-Americans trying to break into the head coaching ranks, those going through the same things he did nearly two decades ago.

Robinson believes it's his responsibility to reach out to these coaches coming along and help them in any small way he can.

Though it's something he continues to do, the regimen often has a familiar ending, with very few African-Americans getting hired in what can be a bleak landscape for coaches of their race.

"It's not a surprise to me that this has been going on," Robinson said.

In a city where the most high-profile coaching figure is an African-American -- Mike Tomlin of the Steelers -- and in a region that gave birth to the Rooney Rule -- which requires NFL teams to interview at least one minority candidate for a head-coaching vacancy -- the local pool of high school football coaches is thin on diversity.

In the 2014 season, only 9 of 130 area high schools employed a head coach who is a racial minority (6.9 percent), a number that is significantly lower than in other cities in the region.

It's a figure former Gateway head coach and current Penn State cornerbacks coach Terry Smith called "embarrassing." Dr. Richard Lapchick, a University of Central Florida academic who is considered a leading voice for racial issues in sports, said this lack of coaching diversity in high school football is a national problem, but referred to the numbers in Pittsburgh as "stunningly low" and "almost off-the-charts bad."

Though few consider that overall lack of representation intentional, it nonetheless exists, impacting the lives of the men who find a calling in the sport they love.

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Western Pennsylvania coaching pool thin on diversity

Be it the Ahmedabad Metro, land for Gujarat Bhavan in New Delhi or funds for projects, Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel mostly bypasses the usual ministry route to directly write to prime minister Narendra Modi to expedite approvals. And the prime minister, it appears, obliges by taking a personal interest in clearing projects for Gujarat, documents available with dna suggest.

Be it the Ahmedabad Metro, land for Gujarat Bhavan in New Delhi or funds for projects, Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel mostly bypasses the usual ministry route to directly write to prime minister Narendra Modi to expedite approvals. And the prime minister, it appears, obliges by taking a personal interest in clearing projects for Gujarat, documents available with dna suggest.

Unlike other chief ministers who communicate with the ministry concerned for their projects, Patel prefers to deal directly with the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to cut the red tape.

In response to a Right to Information (RTI) application filed by dna, the urban development ministry revealed that Patel wrote to PMO in June complaining that the ministry had been idling on the Ahmedabad Metro project since April. The prime minister, who was Gujarat chief minister before Patel, intervened and the project got a final go-ahead in August.

Acquisition of land for Gujarat Bhavan in the national capital was also made possible with Modi's intervention. According to the documents, the PMO made a reference to Patel's complaints and got land allotted to the state government in July this year.

Patel and PMO walked the same path to get funds for projects sanctioned under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).

The RTI reply from various departments within the ministry reveals that the Gujarat government has made the most number of requests to the PMO.

The only other chief minister to write to the prime minister has been former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa for construction of phase II of Chennai Metro.

"When it comes to Gujarat, the PMO not just writes to the urban development ministry an official from PMO closely monitors issues pertaining to his home state," said a ministry official.

Clearly, the prime minister's heart still beats for Gujarat.

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Anandiben Patel-PMO hotline speeds up approvals for Gujarat

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Living Room Design and Decor Tips and Ideas - Video

Crystal Windham, Chief interior designer for Chevy passenger cars on Driving the Nation
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Stephanie Pratt, Spencer Pratt, Heidi Montag, Kari Whitman
Patti is thrilled to get a call from Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag to set up Spencer #39;s sister Stephanie. Kari Whitman is a one-time Playmate turned interior...

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Stephanie Pratt, Spencer Pratt, Heidi Montag, Kari Whitman - Video