Apartment Building Construction Archives - Page 77 of 147 - Home Builder Developer, Interior Renovation and Design Home Builder Developer, Interior Renovation and Design

BURLINGTON, Vt. -

At least 20 people have been left homeless after a fire in Burlington early Tuesday morning.

At 3 a.m., Barbara Adams woke to the sound of smoke detectors as her third-floor apartment filled with smoke.

"I ran on my porch and ran down the fire escape telling everybody to get out, get out now," said Adams.

Fire crews say the fire began on the second floor in the multi-unit apartment building at 238 College Street.

"It moved through the floor and up and through the walls, so it was a lot of work opening the walls up and finding hidden pockets of fire," said Joe Keenan, assistant fire marshal at the Burlington Fire Department.

"Seeing that fire, all that smoke coming out of these windows, and then my kitchen being lit up... that was too much, way too much," said Adams.

The 20 residents inside got out safely and waited for rescue crews to arrive.

"Everybody was saying, 'Get out, get out! Get out!' I just ran out in my boxers and then we started taking video when the fire trucks pulled up," said Jeff Abir, one of the displaced residents.

"Just looking at it, I'm like I can't believe its happening, number one and I'm like, I'm gonna be homeless, number two. I wanted to move, but not his way," said Pancho Trotman, one of the displaced residents.

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20 homeless after Burlington fire

Philadelphia, PA (PRWEB) June 24, 2014

PRG Real Estate, a leading multifamily real estate investment and management firm in conjunction with Richmond-based WVS Companies, announced today that they will be completing construction of South16, a contemporary apartment building in Roanoke, Virginia, located in the epicenter of the city's 110-acre riverfront redevelopment project.

South16 will be a 157-unit mid-rise apartment community with one, two and three bedroom units, along with a historic horse stable converted into modern restaurant and Starbucks. The property is situated on 22 acres with stunning views of the scenic Roanoke River and Blue Ridge Mountains. South16 is adjacent to the area's largest employers, the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine and Research Institute, and the 1,187 bed Carilion Clinic. South16 will offer area professionals luxurious waterfront living and easy access to work, all within the city's expanding cosmopolitan center.

The September 2013 initial development on the riverfront marked a new chapter in PRG's history, and the ribbon cutting's target date in late September will mark another. South 16 will mark PRG's first advance into ground up construction as well as the successive management of a new community's branding and lease-up effort. To that end, PRG Principal Steven Berger could hardly contain his exuberance, "For 30 years we've been bringing improvements and a higher standard of living than what was previously made available to our residents. Being able to approach a project from the ground up opens an entire new world of opportunity in terms of delivering the best service and creating the most value for our residents. To say we're very excited about it would be an understatement."

The standard of design, construction and management of South16 reflects PRG's focus to deliver the best product at a fair price with the highest possible value to both residents and investors alike.

About PRG Real Estate: Founded in 1985 by Steven Berger and Jon Goodman, PRG Real Estate is a Philadelphia based real estate firm that acquires and manages quality apartment communities throughout the eastern half of the United States. Since its founding PRG has acquired well over 50 communities and 13,000 apartment units. PRG also has been designated as an Accredited Management Organization by the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) and also holds membership in the National Apartment Association (NAA) as well as the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC).

For more information, please visit http://www.prgrealestate.com.

BUFFALO, N.Y. Maggie Sperrazza wakes up every morning to the hum and growl of construction outside her Buffalo apartment building, but it doesnt bother her a bit.

Its about time! the 86-year-old said as she zipped on a scooter near the foot of Main Street, where construction cranes loom over hard-hat zones. Weve been in the hole long enough.

From her vantage point, Sperrazza has been witness to a building boom unseen in Buffalo in more than 50 years, with more than $4.4 billion in public and private development announced since 2012.

Mayor Byron Brown and other city leaders say theyve shifted away from elusive silver bullet fixes for a stagnant economy toward more doable projects that together create momentum.

Much of the development is concentrated in the citys 120-acre hospital and research corridor, which is expected to add nearly 5,000 employees over the next four years.

A site that once housed Republic Steel will be transformed into a clean energy manufacturing complex anchored by Elon Musks SolarCity, which this past week announced plans for one of the worlds largest solar panel production plants with as many as 1,000 employees within two years.

Instead of the home run, why dont we get a couple singles? You get two singles, you have somebody in scoring position, and thats the whole attitude, said Robert Gioia, chairman of the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp., which has been coordinating waterfront improvements.

After decades of losses that have cut the population to 259,000, Brown predicts the 2020 census will show the first population gains for the city since the 1950s, helped by an influx of immigrants and refugees.

That, along with a $1 billion pledge by Gov. Andrew Cuomo intended to leverage additional investment, has brought new optimism complete with its own buzzword, Buffalove.

Buffalos challenges remain: Its 30 percent poverty rate places it among the nations poorest cities, and its school system graduates just 54 percent of its students. Abandoned homes and storefronts blight poor neighborhoods, while the citys tallest building, the 38-story One Seneca Tower, stands 94 percent vacant downtown after the pullout of two of its largest tenants last year.

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Building boom comes to long-suffering Buffalo, NY

Question: My apartment building is about 10 feet from a small, nine-unit complex. That building's homeowners association undertook reconstruction work involving significant re-landscaping, iron railing repairs, brick masonry, patios and common walkways. All this work faces our building's front doors.

I had incorrectly reasoned the homeowners association would be a considerate neighbor during this time. But when I returned home, I noticed six large trees had been removed and my kitchen and living room were covered with a thick layer of dirt, dust and wood debris that had been pushed through window sills and under my apartment door, covering my floors, rugs and walls.

I wrote to the homeowners association president and politely requested that she provide 24-hours notice of any further exterior renovation so I could take precautions. I also asked when the work would be completed. She apologized, then referred me to the homeowners association manager, who said they ran into unforeseen circumstances that created small but unavoidable impacts. He then said that not only could he not tell me when the work would be completed but that he didn't owe me any further response.

On a daily basis, I continue to suffer from mounds of dirt, dust and wood debris stuck to my sliding doors and windows and lodged throughout my unit and on my personal belongings. This is a time-consuming mess to clean up every day and has also exacerbated my allergies. Since the president and manager are dismissive of my concerns and requests for good neighborliness, what recourse do I have?

Answer: It may not be neighborly, but depending on your local ordinances this manager may be correct that no notice is required. But being potentially correct about a notice requirement won't prevent the homeowners association from being part of a lawsuit and subject to damages.

It may also be possible that notice was given to your landlord or the owner of your building but not to you directly. Most construction cannot be performed without the appropriate city permits. With a little bit of time spent at City Hall, you might find information related to the extent of the homeowners association's reconstruction plans.

Regardless of issues pertaining to notice and dissemination of scheduling information, the association cannot damage your property. It must take reasonable steps to reduce the effect of its construction and repairs on your unit. The intrusion of dirt, dust and debris is a nuisance and/or interference with the quiet enjoyment of your residence and may also constitute a physical trespass onto your property.

Even where the effects of construction are not invading your property, an action for a private nuisance may allow you to recover for the inconvenience and interference you have suffered. You should be diligent in recording and documenting your damages, which include time and money spent cleaning or taking time off work for illness or doctor appointments as well as other physical ailments or lack of sleep you may suffer. Keep the manager and association updated with your growing damages and repeatedly demand, in writing (return-receipt requested), compensation for the same. You may want to copy your landlord on that correspondence and request the landlord's assistance with your efforts.

Depending on the extent and urgency of the damages, you may also consider pursuing claims in civil or Small Claims Court for the association's failure to take adequate precautions with regard to its construction project. Clearly, the association has a duty to act reasonably with respect to its construction efforts and refrain from negligently taking actions, or from failing to take reasonable actions, that result in damage to you and your property.

Although Small Claims Court may be an expedient option for you to recover a monetary award, a restraining order or injunction in civil court may be necessary to preserve your health and quiet enjoyment.

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Debris from reconstruction work creates mess in neighboring building

Dispute: The Meriton building site at Moore Park. Photo: James Brickwood

One of Australias largest developers has spent six months building a series of inner Sydney apartment towers it is accused of not having full approval to build.

Meriton and the City of Sydney are now facing off in a courtroom, after the council sought an urgent injunction when it claimed the company refused to stop work.

The NSW Land and Environment Court will decide next week whether to force more than 300 workers to down tools at the Waterloo site, where billionaire Harry Triguboff is building 355 apartments across five towers soaring up to 25 storeys high.

Council said the serious and significant breach was uncovered during inspections by its staff about two weeks ago.

Excavation work, construction of basement car parking and building work up to 10 storeys on a number of buildings has been completed without the necessary approvals being obtained, a spokesman said. The City will not tolerate developers who fail to respect these requirements.

The property giant was granted development consent for the project last year, as well as approval for some preliminary work, but not the construction certificate that is required before building could actually begin.

According to affidavits read out at Fridays hearing, it was the sites senior project manager, Shener Dursun, who failed to lock in this disputed approval.

The court was told Mr Dursun attempted to resolve the problem without telling anyone at the company for fear of losing his job.

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Six months building with 'no approval'