SAC CITY, Iowa | Family members of a Sac City, Iowa, man killed in 2009 are thankful a man suspected in his death has been arrested.

Mark Koster, 58, was found dead in his basement in November 2012. Authorities said Wednesday they believe his friend, John David Green, 54, killed him in 2009 and hid his body in the house.

Green was arrested Tuesday at a dog racetrack in Orange Park, Fla., on afelony charge of first-degree murder.

Were grateful, said Kosters sister Nancy Teasdale, of Edina, Minn., when contacted by the Journal.

State and local police began searching for Green after Kosters body was found hidden in the basement of his home in 2012.

Koster's family reported him missing from Sac City in 2010. He was believed to have left the Sac City area in 2009, and his family was concerned because they hadn't heard from him for several months.

He was declared legally dead in 2011. His house on North Fifth Street was sold in May 2012.

The new homeowner found Koster's remains while remodeling the basement in November 2012.

At the time of the discovery, officials believed they were looking for a friend of Koster's named Tom. Investigators later learned Tomwas an alias Green used, said Mitch Mortvedt, resident agent-in-charge for the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

The search for Green led investigators to Kansas City and, eventually, to the city of Orange Park, just south of Jacksonville, Fla. Policeagencies in North Carolina, Georgia and Florida also assisted with the search.

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Fla. man arrested in Sac City murder case

Q: What are some of the new trends in sustainable building?

A: Ductless heat pumps are continuing to gain in popularity. Not only do they not require ducts, they can be the most affordable heating solution up front and also offer the deepest energy savings over the long haul.

Another trend is insulation for the outside of the home. Outside insulation is installed behind the siding and under the roofing. Typical insulation is broken up by the wall studs and the roof rafters.

When you add even a moderate amount of continuous rigid insulation to the outside of your walls or your roof you have a fully insulated structure. This allows homeowners to save significantly on energy costs, and the rigid insulation is capable of lasting for 100 years or more.

Also gaining in popularity is rain-screen siding. Considered a best practice for climates where there is a lot of precipitation, this method involves installing siding on top of battens, which creates a ventilation space behind the siding.

In damp weather, siding will get wet on the front and back no matter how it is installed. In older buildings with no insulation, the furnace or fireplace would dry the siding when it got wet. But now that we insulate our buildings, the siding needs some airflow behind it in order to facilitate a good dry-out between rainy days.

Speaking of all that precipitation, consider creating a rain garden. Many homes have downspouts that pour onto splash plates, and roof rainwater simply flows into soggy yards all winter.

Rain gardens take water away from the house by distributing it safely into the ground. The added bonus, of course, is the beauty of the gardens vegetation.

It may be hard to believe with all the Northwests cloudy and rainy weather, but solar panels placed on south, east and west pitches does work. The region has an impressively long sun arc in summer, and there are plenty of photons bouncing around even on high-white-cloud days.

Fortunately, your home doesnt need a southern-facing roof pitch to take advantage of solar energy.

Read more here:
Sustainable building trends to consider | HomeWork

Madison, WI (PRWEB) March 20, 2014

With an updated design and fresh content, the owners of Tucker Family Construction recently unveiled a new website that harnesses the flexibility of responsive web design to offer a consistent customer experience across all devices from desktop to mobile. The sites content features an updated portfolio of completed construction projects and easier access to the company via social media.

We are excited to launch and share our new website, said owner Bill Tucker. Now I can point future clients to our website to show past projects and how weve helped many homeowners in the area create the home of their dreams. And they can easily see the photos on smartphones and tablets.

One of the main features throughout the site is the proud showcasing of the companys past projects amongst numerous photo galleries. Future customers can view detailed photos from many different types of home improvement and remodeling projects.

Better integration with social media also played a major role in the redesign. Updated profiles on Facebook, Google+, and Twitter make it easy for potential and current clients to interact with the companys owners.

Tucker Family Construction, LLC is a family-owned and operated company providing Madison, Wis., with bathroom remodeling, kitchen remodeling, basement finishing, and other home improvement services. Tucker has provided various construction services for over 20 years in Wisconsin and in California, where the business started.

In charge of the new website project was The Web Guys, an Indianapolis-based company providing Web design and search engine marketing solutions to businesses across the country. On-staff writers and professional designers worked alongside the Tuckers owners from start to finish.

About Tucker Family Construction, LLC

Tucker Family Construction, LLC serves Madison, Wis., with interior and exterior home improvement services. Homeowners interested in basement, bathroom, kitchen renovations, or exterior remodeling can visit the website or call the company at (608) 862-3641.

Excerpt from:
Tucker Family Construction Renovates Website, Goes Mobile

Provided by Networx.com

Basements. They can be dank, sour, horrible holes in the ground, grim utility areas, or...spacious, light-filled, beautiful spaces for lounging, watching movies, hosting guests, playing games, and more. I took at look at five beautiful DIY basement remodels on Hometalk, where people share projects and ideas with each other on an informative public forum.

If you're thinking of remodeling your basement, these might give you some ideas. Need extra incentive? Basement remodels add to home value, which is important if you're thinking of selling. Furthermore, of course, they create more usable space in the home, a critical value for those of you who might be adding to the family or wanting to increase your ability to entertain.

This sleek white basement with recessed lighting features a built-in made from IKEA shelving, a couch with comfortable slip covers, and lots of nice accents like baskets, ornaments, and gorgeous rugs to go with its flooring and panel walls. It's a great lounge area, and the idea could be built upon, too -- a convertible couch, for example, could turn it into a guest room!

Beth Bryan bills this as a "man cave," but it would be great for any gender. It features DIY construction of elements like cabinetry, molding, and more, with tons of great decor -- including a light made from an old electricity meter that really works! And yes, those home theater seats are vintage. Of course, it helps to have a contractor in the family for projects like this, but lots of the skills needed can be learned as you go.

Color! This basement remodel puts paid to the idea that basements are dark, dank, and grim. It's quirky, fun, and chaotic, but note how all the patterns and colors really do tie together, creating a lush, layered look. I love details like the old steamer trunk and the poppy theme (repeated on another wall painted in a poppy design).

By contrast, this basement family room is done in rich coffee and cream tones, for a simple but still comfortable look. The patterned rug adds a splash of fun so the room doesn't feel too formal, and those stuffed ottomans look like a comfortable place to put up your feet!

Whether it's a new bedroom or a guestroom, a basement can be used as a great space for resting weary heads. The use of open shelving as a room divider helps to prevent a cramped feeling while offering privacy; a space like this could be an office/guest room or similarly combined space.

If all this has you thinking about changing the basement, hooray! Consider how you want to use the space in the future, and start sketching out plans before you talk to contractors, Austin flooring experts, and others to develop your dream basement. One thing you may want to think about is how your use of the space could shift. In the guestroom/office example above, an open plan allows the homeowner to move shelving and other elements around to reconfigure the space as needed, and she's not locked into a floorplan that won't always work for her.

Katie Marks writes for Networx.com.

More:
5 hot basement remodels

Key issue in Middle Smithfield Township: Was it always a bar?

March 15, 2014

A recently opened basement go-go bar its purpose, history, ownership, reconstruction and ultimately, its legality was the subject of a court hearing Friday attended by a dozen past and present Middle Smithfield Township officials.

At issue is whether former township supervisor Bob Spano Sr. had the right to open "Go Go Danny's" last month on his Werry's Motel complex, even as Spano and two New Jersey developers try to win final approval for a strip club on the same property.

Monroe County Judge Arthur Zulick granted a temporary injunction last week that closed the basement bar pending outcome of the case.

He heard competing assertions from township attorney Michael Gaul and defense attorney Marshall Anders about whether the room had always been a bar not requiring a new township permit or was a converted storage area that never received required township approvals.

Zoning Officer Shawn McGlynn said he found a 2008 certificate of non-comformance issued before passage of the current zoning ordinance that would allow Spano's companies to continue to operate facilities in place then. But the certificate made no provision for a second Werry's bar in the basement, he testified.

Related site plans didn't provide for additional parking required for a another bar, he added.

"There is one pub there," McGlynn said. "There is not a second bar or bar area."

Said Anders: "He doesn't know how that came about. He was not the zoning officer at that time."

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Go Go Danny's goes to court

Bathroom, Kitchen Basement Remodeling- Towson Hunt Valley Maryland
Bathroom, Kitchen Basement Remodeling- Towson Hunt Valley Maryland.

By: brian pollard

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Bathroom, Kitchen & Basement Remodeling- Towson & Hunt Valley Maryland - Video

Imagine paying $1 million or more for a home -- and then destroying it.

That's what's happening in some upscale Bay Area communities as homeowners and wealthy buyers have no interest in upgrading aging houses but instead want to start from scratch and build all-new custom homes stocked with the latest features.

While the demolition and rebuilding trend is heaviest on the Peninsula and the most affluent parts of Santa Clara County, it extends to East Bay communities as well -- anywhere it makes more sense financially to tear down the existing structure and start fresh. That includes sought-after neighborhoods with no vacant lots, where prices of small, aging 1950s-era houses have soared.

Interviews with architects, contractors and homeowners make clear that tear-downs are becoming more common.

"We're wrecking 3,000-square-foot houses and erecting 14,000-foot houses," said Hal Nelson of O. Nelson & Son excavating and demolition company in Woodside. He said he has 20 tear-downs scheduled in Los Altos, Palo Alto, Menlo Park and Atherton. Business was up 20 percent last year, and up 15 percent in 2012, he said.

Last week, Nelson supervised the destruction of a 2,600-square-foot suburban rancher in Menlo Park as owners James and Teresa Bergeron and their four children watched from across the street.

As an excavator's demolition claw bit into the roof, the Bergeron kids cheered. In the new house, they'll each have their own bedroom.

"It started as a remodel," Teresa Bergeron said. "We were going to add one more bedroom."

They lived in the house for two years trying to make it work. But after finding major termite damage even after a $5,000 tenting, problems with heating and plumbing, and a persistent tobacco smell from a previous owner, they decided to tear it down.

A full-blown remodeling job with a second story would have been just over $1 million, and it wouldn't have been their dream home. Their new 3,551-square-foot home will have four bedrooms and a 1,884-square-foot basement. James Bergeron declined to say how much it will cost.

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In the Bay Area, million-dollar homes are torn down to start fresh

Seattles Porch.com isfacing all sorts of established competitors in the online home-improvement space butthe companysfounder isnttoo worried about its position.

Just fivemonths after launching its service for exploring, sharing and referring home-improvement services,Porch.com is on a tear, hiring as fast as it can to fill a huge new office and build up its platform.

Really over the last five months weve gotten over that inflection point where the business is going to work, said Matt Erlichman, the companys 34-year-old founder and chief executive.

Erlichman confers with colleagues in the new offices of Porch.com. Photo by John Lok, Times staff photographer.

Now that the team believes the business will fly, its really about execution, its about staying focused and every day trying to go faster and do it better than its been done before, in every part of the business, he said.

A breakthroughwas a deal with Lowes announced in January. It putPorch.com in stores and on the devices carried by Lowes employees, who direct customers to the site when theyre looking for professional help with home-improvement projects.

Erlichman wouldnt share sales but said theyve accelerated since the Lowes deals. Its services are now highlighted in 139 stores, mostly in the South, but will be extended nationally later this year.

Also boosting growth is new backing from investors, in addition to the $6.25 million Erlichman raised initially from angel investors after starting the company in 2012.

The company has raised more since. Weve not announced details of that yet, he said. I would say that the company is exceptionally well capitalized at this point so right now were not raising more money at this point in time.

Hell probably need every penny for its battle with Palo Alto, Calif.-based Houzz, a similar home-improvement site that has raised around $50 million since 2010. Another well-financed competitor isZillow, which launched a home-improvement channel called Digs last year.

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Porch.com remodels, eyes big expansion | Brier Dudley

By Staff Monday, March 3, 2014

Let the countdown begin! There are only five more days to go until the debut of the 39th Annual HBA Home Improvement & Remodeling Expo. Last week I gave a sneak peak of the vendors and this week its all about the Expo Extras.

SEMINARS:With over 90 different vendors displaying their products, you may need a place to stop and rest your feet as you fill out your honey-do list for 2014. What better way to do so than at one of our many seminars offered throughout the event.

On Friday we have our Certified Aging in Place Specialist, Tile Meister giving a presentation about how you can make your home assessable and safe. Tri River Area Extension Office will give you all the information you need on what steps to take to get your lawn and garden ready for spring.

Throughout the three days we also have informative presentations by:

The Brickyard: From a DIY retaining wall and installing a paver patio to tasting the difference between a pellet grill and a propane grill. You will get all the ideas you need to make your living space extend to the outdoor space of your dreams regardless of your budget.

Energywise Consultants: Want to learn more about heating your home and your water with solar energy? Thinking about building a new home and wanting to learn more about the benefits of building a more comfortable home that is safer and energy efficient? These are the sessions for you.

Atlasta Solar: Whether you are purchasing a new home, remodeling your current home, or wanting to cut costs at your business, learn how to capture all of this Colorado sun and reduce your overhead. Foundation Repair of Western Colorado: Think you are having foundation failure or want to learn how to avoid it? Join them as they give you the tools you need to protect your homes foundation, and what to do if it is already failing. G.J. Gardner Homes: Thinking about building a new home and want to learn more about the process? Join this session to get all of your questions answered including financing and 2-10 Home Buyers Warranty.

FUN FOR THE KIDS: On Saturday you will hear the tapping of hammers and sounds of laughter as kids are able to build a wooden birdhouse with the folks from Lowes! On Sunday, join the volunteers from the John McConnell Math & Science Center as they show you how fun Science can be.

All Seminars and kids events are included in your expo admission.

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2014 Home Improvement & Remodeling Expo Extras

House Remodeling Services Baltimore - 443-341-9570
In valuing any property, the primary objective is location. However, next comes truism -- "clean and nice command the best price." http://handymaninbaltimore...

By: HOC

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House Remodeling Services Baltimore - 443-341-9570 - Video