RCMP have arrested five people for chaining themselves and destroying property at TMX construction sites near Kamloops.

RCMP said about 12:40 p.m. on Thursday they were called after demonstrators had gathered at a Trans Mountain (TMX) drill site on Mission Flats Road in Kamloops, and were blocking work trucks from driving through the facility gate.

Officials talked to the demonstrators but three refused to move away from the gate; a 69-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman and a 57-year-old woman who had tied her arm to the fence with a zap strap.

Officers read a B.C .Supreme Court injunction to the three individuals who remained at the gate and they were arrested for allegedly being in civil contempt of the court order issued on June 1, 2018.

A second group of demonstrators had gathered and were blocking an active work site on the south mountain slope, said RCMP.

A 43-year-old woman was arrested for allegedly breaching the court-ordered injunction after she refused to leave and attached herself to a bulldozer.

All four arrested were transported to Kamloops RCMP Detachment for processing and released on condition. They are scheduled to appear in court on January 20, 2021.

A fifth individual, a 32-year-old woman, was observed destroying survey stakes across the road from the drill site, and was subsequently arrested by Kamloops RCMP for Mischief. She was released without charges.

Trans Mountain said in June, a workforce of 30-50 people will be working in Kamloops and this will increase to approximately 600 people at peak construction in the late summer or early fall.

The company said construction spending in the Kamloops area is expected to be more than $450 million over the next two years with additional workforce spending of more than $40 million for goods and services at local businesses.

After expansion, Trans Mountains annual contribution to the city of Kamloops in taxes will increase by $1.2 million to $2.8 million.

The feds bought the Trans Mountain pipeline for $4.5 billion in May, 2018, after Kinder Morgan, pulled out because of political and environmental opposition.

In February, the Federal Court of Appeal dismissed the latest attempt by four B.C. indigenous groups to quash the Government of Canadas approval of the TMX clearing the way for the 1,150-km, 890,000 bbl/d line between Edmonton and Burnaby.

The cost to complete the project, from Alberta to the lower mainland, now stands at $12.6 billion.

Construction along the entire route should be complete in 2022.

The original Trans Mountain Pipeline was built in 1953and the expansion is essentially a twinning of this existing 1,150-kilometre route.

The system will go from approximately 300,000 barrels per day to 890,000 barrels per day.

A reminder that demonstrators have the right to peaceful, lawful and safe protest and companies have a lawful right to complete their mandated work. The RCMP is working hard to protect both of these rights and ensure all parties and public are kept safe, said Cpl. Madonna Saunderson.

Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standarddnaylor@westernstandardonline.comTWITTER:Twitter.com/nobby7694

Link:
Pass the collection plate: Church fined $14000 for causing COVID outbreak - Western Standard

By Phill Colomboofni.1602993279swen-1602993279rats@1602993279obmol1602993279oclli1602993279hp1602993279

Grace Memorial Episcopal Church Rector Martin Elferts vision for a parking lot west of church buildings at 1535 N.E. 17th Ave. in Sullivans Gulch had to answer the question: How can we be the best possible stewards of our resources to mutually benefit our church and our community?

On the job for five years now, Elfert said his vision was at first modest and simple but has since blossomed into the idea not without some risk of developing a space that will serve the poor, the developmentally disabled and the arts with equal dignity.

Engaging a coalition of long-time collaborators like Grace Art Camps and PHAME PDX, Elfert enlisted the talents of Northwest Housing Alternatives to develop a concept that will soon move into its fundraising stage.

Grace Art Camps provides creative arts experiences for over 1250 children annually and PHAME PDX creates performance opportunities for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The teams proposal will include the construction of nearly 100 units of affordable housing on the upper floors of a six-story building, with about 24,000 square feet of office, church and classroom space on the ground floor. The L-shaped structure will be completely accessible. The church building, built in 1927, will remain as is.

Jenny Stadler, executive director of PHAME PDX for the past three years, is an eager participant and avid cheerleader for the project.

PHAME is booming by leaps and bounds, and we need more space, she said. Im especially enthused about a new, accessible performance theater that will serve the entire arts community.

Stadler said there is a huge lack of accessible performance and rehearsal space in the city.

Weve found in the church, landlords who are friends and who understand the equity and inclusiveness of our community, she said. As we grow and thrive, our organization will reach out to others in the community to help with the fundraising.

Rector Elfert characterized the project as the right people descending from heaven on a cloud to move the concept out of fantasy mode.

After conversations with Walsh Construction, Carleton Hart Architecture and capital campaign consultants, the church selected Northwest Housing Alternatives as its developer for the project.

Destin Ferdun, Northwests director of real estate development, said the regional agency is super-thrilled to come aboard.

The development team is eyeing the fall of 2023 as a possible completion date for the project and has proposed to the city that a short portion of Northeast 16th Avenue between Weidler and Halsey streets be vacated. Tentative schedules call for Grace Arts Camps to be moved off-site for 16 months during construction.

The main task now is getting the capital campaign back on schedule, said Elfert.

For more information, visit http://www.grace-memorial.org, http://www.grace-institute.org, http://www.phamepdx.org and http://www.nwhousing.org.

Related

Follow this link:
Church vision drives affordable housing project in Sullivan's Gulch - Hollywood Star News

The countries in Central and Eastern Europe have faced a century of hardship. They have been oppressed by radical communism, horrendous crimes against humanity, and revolutionary, civil, and world wars.

Under communism, religion and religious practices were openly persecuted, and atheism was actively propagated and enforced.

Control of every aspect of life was taken over by totalitarian governments and the communist party, and civil society and the economy were deconstructed.

The Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, part of the diocesan International Combined Collection, funds projects in 28 countries to build the pastoral capacity of the Church and to rebuild and restore the Faith in these countries.

The funds raised in the Collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe are used to support the renewal of vital aspects of the Church life: seminaries, youth ministry, social service programs, pastoral centers, church construction and renovation, and Catholic communications projects.

Years after the fall of communism, though some countries are now a part of the European Union and serve as examples of positive changes, a majority of the countries are lagging behind and still struggling to overcome the legacy and destruction left by the communist system.

The Catholics of these regions continue to need our help.

As a member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishop's, USCCB, subcommittee on Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, Bishop Donald Hying visited two of these countries, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, in 2019.

Bishop Hying said he made this visit "to be supportive of the Church and see what projects we could support." The progress these countries are making, after the fall of communism over 25 years ago, is encouraging. Churches were confiscated or destroyed, yet their faith is strong as they rebuild.

"They are very strong in faith and dedicated to the Church and each other. For many years, they practiced their faith underground, living without priests and the sacraments," Bishop Hying commented. He was inspired by their commitment to their faith, commenting "their faith is the essence of their lives."

The International Combined Collection is held every October in parishes across the Diocese of Madison.

Questions on the collection can be directed to the office of Stewardship and Development at the Diocese of Madison at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 608-821-4577.

Jill McNally is the director of the Office of Stewardship and Development in the Diocese of Madison.

See the original post:
Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe - Catholic Herald

A stalled affordable housing project near the Ballston Metro station is poised to get a three-year extension.

The Ballston Station project, set to be built on the site of the Ballston Central United Methodist Church at 4201 Fairfax Drive, was previously approved by the County Board in 2017 and again in 2019. The latter approval upsized the project from 119 units, including 48 designated as affordable, to 144 units of 100% committed affordable housing.

The Board previously also allocated $3.1 million in affordable housing loan funds to the project.

The church and its development partner, the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing, are now going back before the Board this weekend, seeking to extend the now-closed window for beginning construction through October 2023.

The developers are also seeking a minor change to the affordability mix, switching six units from being affordable to those making up to 30% of the Area Median Income to 60% AMI, to make the project more fiscally sustainable.

The planned eight-story building will still include a daycare facility for up to 100 kids and a church space with up to 200 seats, as well as eight visitor parking space and 0.25 parking spaces per apartment.

County staff is recommending approval of the proposed site plan amendment, but there is some opposition from neighbors in the adjacentSummerwalk condo complex at 1020 N. Stafford Street.

The condo association is concerned about parking, noting that their own building has insufficient parking and condo residents who are barred from participating in the countys under-review Residential Permit Parking Program find parking on the street difficult as it is. The association is also concerned about their future neighbors making the area less desirable.

More from the county staff report:

In addition to the previously submitted concerns from the Summerwalk Condo Association, a new comment has been submitted regarding the project having changed in 2019 to a commitment of 100% affordable units on site. The Association notes that the previous proposal of a mixed income housing development would better serve the needs of the entire community and instill a greater sense of equality within the neighborhood. The Association also notes concerns that the project being 100% affordable will make the surrounding area less desirable.

In response, county staff assert that the parking ratio is in line with existing parking policies, while the project meets multiple affordable housing goals, including units in close proximity to transit. It alsoprovides an opportunity for a mixed-income neighborhood as most nearby developments are predominately market-rate, staff wrote.

Read more from the original source:
Ballston Church Seeking Three-Year Extension for Affordable Housing Project - ARLnow

Best Project & Project of the Year: Capitol Crossing Highway, Deck, Bridge, and Garage | 2020-10-15 | Engineering News-Record This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more. This Website Uses CookiesBy closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Learn MoreThis website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more.

The rest is here:
Best Project & Project of the Year: Capitol Crossing Highway, Deck, Bridge, and Garage - Engineering News-Record

Lyuba, a Buryat girl from the Chita Region, decided to live in harmony with nature and in early spring went into the taiga unclothed and three days later was found frozen to death. Ira Goldina refused treatment and died of advanced breast cancer. Kapitolina had cancer and treated it by starving herself and died of malnutrition. Nina Mikova killed herself under a portrait of Vissarion. Arkasha Drozdov died aged 15 months from a pathological condition that was treated too late.

This summary of tragic deaths is not a crime news round-up. It is just a small part of a list recreated from memory on social media forums by former followers of the Church of the Last Testament and its savior, Sergey Torop, known as Vissarion.

For almost 30 years the Torop-Vissarion commune has existed in the middle of the taiga as a quasi separate state - it has lived quietly according to its own customs and rules, having fenced itself off from the rest of the world behind a barrier gate, security guards and dense forests. Information about life inside the settlement was mainly brought to the outside world by people who left the commune after becoming disillusioned with the manufactured faith of former traffic cop Torop and wanted to return to society. But there are few such people. The taiga hermits have carefully guarded their self-isolation and tried not to make a fuss, even when they realized that things were not going right. Now their utopia has come to an end.

Incest, pedophilia, suicide, murder and other crimes have suddenly come to the surface. Outside, observers throw their hands in the air, perplexed: How is it that in the Russian Federation, in an area about two-thirds the size of Belgium, such a community could exist for such a length of time - and nobody intervened or even noticed?

After his dismissal from the traffic police, Sergey Torop became a regular at a Siberian UFO club and for some time was seeking contact in so-called anomalous zones. But looking for UFOs did not become his ide fixe. Torop turned his attention to methods of exerting psychological influence on people. He attended several courses in Moscow that were popular in the 1990s and delivered his first sermon on air from a small television studio in Siberia.

Sergey Torop

It was 1991 when the former metal worker, neighbourhood policeman and traffic cop underwent a spiritual awakening and proclaimed himself to be a reincarnation of Jesus Christ. Unless I become world famous I wont be able to live on this Earth, he said in one of his letters home at the age of 18. And popularity did seek him out. Against the background of economic collapse, the disintegration of the USSR, broken hopes and discredited values, the ideas of the 30-year-old Jesus about universal happiness in the remote taiga and the approaching end of the world found their audience. In his early sermons, he introduced revisions to the New Testament and told the true story of the First Coming.

In the following two years, he travelled around half of Russia, the Soviet republics and several European countries with money from donations, attracting a faithful flock and implausible rumors. Yelena Melnikova listened to all the sermons of Vissarion, but couldnt understand him. But her husband was hooked.

In particular, his manner of communicating his message drove me mad. Going round in circles and beating about the bush. As in Gypsy hypnosis, when they start touching you and making a lot of noise and you get confused. All his sermons were long-winded and incoherent. He tried to instill the idea in people that they should cut themselves off from the outside world and sever ties with family and relatives. And the more stressed a person was, the more susceptible he or she was to his influence. I realized straight away that my husband would go - with or without me, Yelena said. In May 1994, with two children and a third on the way, they sold their apartment in Novosibirsk and moved to the south of Krasnoyarsk Territory. There, near Lake Tiberkul and Mount Sukhaya, both of which he proclaimed to be sacred, Vissarion had set up a commune, while the Russian Ministry of Justice officially registered his Church of the Last Testament as a religious organization.

To my surprise, Vissarion seemed like a sensible person and didnt ask for anything. On the contrary, he advised me to shape my own destiny and, most importantly, not to do evil, recalls another former follower, Samara resident Mikhail Ilyin. And, true, Vissarion didnt ask for anything. At the time, about 5,000 people headed for the taiga to settle there and build Sun City on the sacred mountain. Like the Melnikov family, many sold their property and other assets and put their money in the common kitty. Apparently of their own accord. But very soon, Vissarion started imposing prohibitions.

The Church of the Last Testament could find a justification for any way of life and dogma. If only because it mixed together a whole assortment of world religions and religious practices - from Hinduism and Buddhism to apocalypticism and the atheistic teachings of Karl Marx. So when Vissarion handed down yet another prohibition, nobody doubted that his decision was correct.

Restrictions on what people could eat began in the commune almost immediately. Meat was prohibited, as was all animal protein - milk, eggs, etc. The followers believed that after an animal is slaughtered an aggressive energy remains in its cells. Vissarions chauffeur drove around the villages where followers lived and proclaimed: From August 1 sugar is poison. In September 1994, prohibitions were imposed on vegetable oil, tea, semolina and a number of grains. Then, it was the turn of leavened bread. Exceptions were only made for pregnant women. By 1995, people could only talk of food. The permitted diet included potatoes, honey, grains, vegetables, mushrooms and flatbreads. The Vissarionites suffered, but endured.

Vissarion himself did not appear in public frequently and when he did, it was in a specially-designated Place of Confluence - at a distance. He lived on the hill along with his closest followers or apostles. All newcomers to the commune were met and a decision was taken whether to accommodate them in the village, or on the outskirts if they did not receiveVissarions blessing. Salvation was his key idea. The trouble was that the savior predicted the end of the world, set specific dates and when the end did not come, he would literally throw his hands in the air uttering the words I didnt promise you anything and then predicted a new Apocalypse.

Violinist Dimitr Khetemov, 42, a follower of the Church of the Last Testament religious movement, with his wife Natalya, daughter Sofia, 6, and son Alexander, 9.

In August 1999, he gave the sermon he called: I want to show you how to love in a beautiful way. And he asserted that a man can have as many wives as he wants for the sake of the submissiveness of women. From that moment, love triangles began to appear in the commune and men were allowed to change their wives. Some families could not bear this kind of psychological onslaught and fell apart. Then, Vissarion himself parted from his wife and took a new wife - a 16-year-old.

All this became intertwined with the established procedure of not seeking medical assistance and not permitting children to attend the village school. I clearly remember this precept - it was No. 37 - which stated that all our ailments stem from spiritual disharmony. That is why the non-believer need not be treated yet and a believer need not be treated any longer, Yelena says. With education it was the same logic - believers did not need much learning.

It wasnt like this indefinitely, however. Vissarion knew that the times were changing, people were becoming different and the commune needed to change, too. Even in the taiga.

The Church of the Last Testament was already close to being banned once - at the turn of the century - when all sorts of nasty stuff began. Local doctors and teachers were behind a series of demands for a judicial investigation. But a prosecutors office probe into one such complaint was abruptly halted. Photographer Yury Kozyrev, who has been a regular visitor to the commune over the years, believes that the law enforcement authorities were seriously concerned at the time that any detentions could result in mass suicides: Vissarion also grasped everything clearly: After this, the sect transformed itself into the Tiberkul eco-settlement and the matter was closed. So vegans live there - let them.

In reality, however, the commune never stopped being the object of scrutiny. According to Vadim Redkin, one of Visssarions first followers - he is responsible for public relations and for the communes official Facebook page - the church was assigned a case manager from the FSBs district directorate from the very beginning. In actual fact, this never presented any serious nuisance for cult followers. Businesslike relations evolved with the FSB, he says. In all these years, there has been a very large number of different case managers. Ive been here since 1992, says Redkin.

The local authorities had almost no concerns, either. This was aided by the fact that since the early 2000s, the communes rules began to be relaxed. Vissarion allowed mobile phones, TV-sets, satellite dishes and visits to the doctor. The commune opened its own schools for children, as well as inaugurating musical ensembles, recording studios and football and ice hockey teams. Slowly, it all began to look more like an eco-settlement than a sect.

Furthermore, the make-up of the Vissarionites became less homogenous with the passing years: Fewer and fewer followers believed in the end of the world and more and more simply liked living in a commune with its own rules and laws - in an ecological settlement where everyone is family. Even those who were extremely sceptical of Vissarion stayed on in the commune. He told us to shun money, but he himself would travel to Israel or to Taiwan for medical treatment. Why should Christ require medical treatment?! said one of the disillusioned residents of the commune, Tatyana Kholyavko.

Outsiders began to be allowed into Sun City, something that would not have happened before, and Vissarionites began to actively infiltrate the local authorities and integrate with the local elite - they could supply premier felled timber for the construction of excellent and fine houses and people with money liked to hire them. Vissarion himself started addressing his flock not once a month, but once every four and he always said roughly the same thing - that the world would come to an end, but his followers would be saved.

Vyachelav Osipov, head of one of the rural settlements in the Kuraginsky District, says he sees no problem with the commune. Quite the contrary, people were pleased to have them there: The Vissarionites worked a lot, they farmed, they provided a boost to the economy; thanks to them, the adjacent villages have not died out, land values have risen and the population has increased.

All upsides.

In the past two years, however, law enforcement bodies have started paying close attention to them.

It is all believed to have begun with the deaths through negligence of two infants in the families of cult followers. In summer 2018, investigators called on the Nazemtsev family to conduct a house search after the death of their 10-month-old son. The Karmanov family was also investigated at the same time after their child had died of pneumonia. Subsequently, a report on the federal channel REN TV also said that the discovery of the body of an infant was the reason why the commune was being probed.

A whole string of investigations ensued. According to Redkin, the commune found itself under overt pressure. All lines of inquiry were pursued: from psychological abuse, property fraud, ritual sex with minors and home births to illegal land use and the felling of stone pines. More than 300 followers were questioned in the year since the first searches.

In 2019, when it all kicked off, investigators would turn up and say: Thats it. Your cover has gone up in smoke. They were referring to our protection. And all the top people will be arrested in the autumn. That is what the FSB inspectors were telling the forestry people. The forestry people just repeated it to us, Redkin recalls. The Novaya Gazeta publication also refers to the protection the commune may previously have enjoyed: The recent resignation and arrest in Krasnoyarsk of regional forestry minister Dmitry Maslodudov may be linked to the searches and detentions in Sun City.

But, there are also several other theories to explain why Sun City has become the object of scrutiny only now. In the course of so many years, the area has become the center of premier timber felling in Russia and the Vissarionites now believe they are being squeezed out of business. Another factor may have been a protest by local residents against tree felling and the construction of a road through neighboring localities previously untouched by civilization, in order to provide access to gold-mining areas.

In mid-September 2020, teams of FSB special forces arrived in the Krasnoyarsk taiga in helicopters and sealed off Sun City. Torop, Redkin and another organizer of the commune, Vladimir Vedernikov, were placed under arrest and the public prosecutors office demanded that the Church of the Last Testament religious organization - which has a membership of around 4,500 at the last count - should be banned. It is now up to the courts to rule on the matter.

If using any of Russia Beyond's content, partly or in full, always provide an active hyperlink to the original material.

') }, error: function() { $email.val(''); alert('An unknown error occurred. Try later.'); } }); } }); }; initFormSubmit(); $completeButton.on('click', function (evt) { evt.preventDefault(); evt.window.location.reload(); }); }());

Continued here:
The man behind the notorious Siberian cult The Church of the Last Testament - Russia Beyond

The Priest Theatre, a mainstay of downtown High Springs since around 1910, will soon close another victim of both the changing habits of moviegoers and the coronavirus pandemic.

Alan and Janet Alligood, who since 2011 have operated the business her parents bought 36 years ago, said they expect to complete the sale of it to Living Covenant Church before Oct. 30.

Known for its vintage Coca-Cola decor and classic ticket booth, the Priest Theatre has suffered like many movie houses old and new alike during the pandemic, Janet Alligood said.

Alachua County placed temporary restrictions on seating capacity and movie companies werent releasing as many box-office hits. Within a three to four-week period, only two new films might be available, with most others offered only in markets deemed the most profitable, she said.

The Priests last movie showing was of Onward on March 14.

The Alligoods said they didnt want to cry out again to the community for help to stay open.

Its a heavy burden on our entire family, Alan Alligood, a new city building inspector, told the High Springs City Commission earlier this month. But its a move weve got to make.

He told WUFT News: Weve done everything in our power to make this work. Weve done everything physically and financially to keep it going. Our hearts would love to see it continue as it is, but there comes a time when you have to cut ties.

The theater was on the market from about a year ago until the Alligoods removed it due to the pandemic. When their real estate agent, Mark Gajda, asked potential buyers about their intentions, he wanted to ensure they would match the communitys needs or interests.

The last thing we wanted to do was take an icon and have it never come back again, Gajda said.

High Springs itself considered buying the theater, as David Sutton, the citys community redevelopment agency coordinator, and Damon Messina, the parks and recreation director, were developing a business plan. That ended when it became clear the church would be the buyer.

W.J. Priest, who owned the Ford dealership in High Springs, built the theater as a place for vaudeville shows before it started showing silent films and then movies with sound. Everyone knew the longtime owners Bobby and Janice Sheffield. Whether it was tearing tickets, running concessions or starting the projector, they did it all with help from their children for 28 years.

Sutton, 44, remembers going to the Priest as a boy, particularly $1 Monday movie nights, and seeing Janice Sheffield walking up and down the aisles to make sure children were behaving.

Mrs. Sheffield patrolled the aisles like police would patrol the streets, he said.

The family cared about the community and focused on keeping everyone safe.

I have great memories at the Priest Theatre, Sutton said, and for that, I am forever grateful.

The Sheffields put it on the market in 2011, until the Alligoods assumed most of the business tasks. That was with Alan Alligood working as a Alachua County Fire Rescue lieutenant, and the couple running their construction company, and caring for the Sheffields and their own family.

In 2012, when it became difficult to receive distributed film reels, the Alligoods developed a Kickstarter project to fundraise toward transitioning to digital. They raised $87,472 in 60 days.

The theater gave everyone who donated a T-shirt, nameplate on a theater chair, free popcorn, drinks, dinner and a movie or posters. All of their names were listed on the back of the shirts and shown on screen before the movies started. The Priests first digital film: The Butler in 2014.

Many in the community are melancholy to see the Priest close.

Its a piece of history, said Chris Moebus, a co-owner of the High Springs Brewery, across Northwest First Street from the theater. Its one of the arteries to this community.

William Cody Sconyers, executive chef at the nearby Great Outdoors Restaurant, also has fond memories of going to the theater as a child, when families went together or teenagers were dropped off by their parents. In recent years, Sconyers said, most people came to town for the springs, but some also for dinner, the antique stores, the local ice cream shop and the theater.

Its definitely iconic to this area, he said. To see it go or change into something else would be sad.

Living Covenant Church is renting a property on Northwest 147th Drive in Alachua City. Attempts to reach a representative for comment were unsuccessful.

The Alligoods said they hoped the church would host community events and perhaps show movies and sell concessions, with funds raised returning somehow to the community.

Theyre not looking at something as a profit, Alan Alligood said. Theyre wanting to give back.

Saying the church has people with good hearts, Janet Alligood said, The building and God will speak to them.

Go here to read the rest:
It's a Move We've Got to Make: Priest Theatre In High Springs About To Be Sold - WUFT

To the editor:

Hingham is once again facing a potential sale and development of the historic Old Ship Church Parish House property. The historic single-family property, located in the Bachelors Row Local Historic District and the federally created Lincoln National Register Historic District, was listed for sale for several years. Despite being located in a single-family zoned neighborhood, it was marketed primarily to developers in order to facilitate construction of a new parish house across the street next to the historic Old Ship Church Meeting House. In October of 2019, the congregation expressed its desire to abandon the sale and voted 44-23 to take the property off the market and focus on renovation and maintenance. However, the Board of Trustees continued their efforts to sell the property, disregarding the will of its parishioners, conducting business at the expense of preserving the historic Parish House, and excluding from the decision process dissenting or questioning views from within the parish.

Hingham has always been proud of its history as one of the oldest towns in Massachusetts, with numerous carefully preserved and maintained antique homes, buildings, and green spaces. Hingham's Historic Districts Commission was created and has worked diligently and faithfully for many decades to serve the wishes of Hingham's citizens and voters, by the virtually unanimous vote of Town Meeting, by encouraging the preservation of priceless architectural resources located in the ten local historic districts throughout our community. It is no coincidence that Hingham has one of the country's largest inventories of surviving antique homes and properties.

Two of these historic properties are owned by Old Ship Church: the Parish House and the Meeting House. The Church's priority has always been the historic Meeting House. Because of its landmark status, the parish has received many national, state, and local grants to fund its preservation, in addition to donations from the residents of Hingham. The Parish House, however, does not qualify for the same level of public funding for its upkeep. Its maintenance is largely the responsibility of the parish, and despite the will of the majority of the congregation to create a plan for its renovation and maintenance, the Board of Trustees continues to maintain that they are unable to manage the fundraising related to the care of the property. Why is the only solution to sell this historic property to a developer, despite the wishes of the congregation?

The Old Ship congregation clearly expressed its wish to continue its stewardship of the beloved historic Parish House property, rejecting the need for a brand new parish house next to the Meeting House. Efforts by parishioners to engage with the planning process for renovation and maintenance have been met with resistance. A general lack of transparency during the investigative process for renovation, leading up to the introduction of the anonymous developer and his proposal for the Parish House and Meeting House properties, has characterized the course taken by the Board of Trustees over the past year.

There are many available resources to fund the renovation and preservation of the Parish House. Why won't the Board work with the members of their parish, their historic district, and their neighbors to develop a plan to renovate and preserve the Parish House property? Selling the property to Atlantic Development, with its history of litigation against both respected land preservation charities and civic-focused charitable organizations, is questionable and seems inconsistent with the tenets of the Old Ship Church. Changing the zoning of this single-family neighborhood in a local and federal historic district to accommodate the development of two historic properties would create a negative precedent for the destruction of Hingham's historic districts. Resources for renovation and preservation funding include, but are not limited to, the neighborhood community, Hingham's Community Preservation Committee, a capital campaign, in-kind donations, as well as private donors who have expressed interest in donating significant funding to save the existing Parish House. Neighbors of the Parish House remain committed and willing to partner with the Old Ship Church community to do the work and raise the funds to restore and maintain the existing Parish House so that it may continue to serve the needs of the parishioners and community while preserving its historic integrity and architectural beauty within the historic neighborhood.

Our hope is that the Church's pledge of stewardship and the democratic process based in conscience will prevail. We ask the Board of Trustees to engage in transparent, productive dialogue with parishioners, neighbors, and community members. We hope that the Church will decide to access the many resources available to preserve the Parish House and the integrity of its historic property and neighborhood. We ask this in the spirit of openness and fellowship within our historic district.

Marisa and Terrence Ronan

Whitney and Stephen Jiranek

Foster Aborn and Sara Holbrook

Ellen Mitchell and Charles Byrne

Jennifer Hunt

Written on behalf of ProHingham

More here:
Letter: our collective responsibility to preserve the Old Ship Church Parish House - Wicked Local Hingham

Letters to the Editor: October 8 14, 2020

F.C. City Must Push Through With The Downtown Project

Editor,

No matter what decision the Falls Church City Council makes about the Broad and Washington development, there will be people who are unhappy.

Some people will never support the project, no matter what accommodations are made.

A Yes decision on the Broad and Washington development will provide the following to everyone in Falls Church:

We support moving forward with the Broad and Washington project and all the benefits it will provide the City, its residents, and the surrounding communities that visit, work in, and regularly patronize businesses in the Falls Church City.

Gina Caceci, Martha Meserve, Michael Diener, Mark Werblood, Rich and Elizabeth Meade, Nicole Johnston, David Ortiz, Nicholas Benton, Laura Connors Hull, Andrea Robles, PhD, Solon Simmons, PhD, Rob Donovan, Jeff Thiebert, Becky Manicone, Andres Jordan, Sharon Van Duizend.

Falls Church

Quote In School Name Change Story Not Accurate

Editor,

Since I feel that my words stated in the past weeks article were taken out of context, I wish to state for the record what my stance is. The new high school being built in Falls Church should have a new name. One that inspires humanity and decency, as well as one that denounces the sins of the past and crimes against humanity. The problem with honoring the Southern Founding Fathers and the Founder of the Confederacy is that they both viciously and brutally denied African Americans their humanity. Creating a false narrative as to why they should do so and justifying their actions and torturous tactics.

We must not continue to honor a past that we now recognize is not true to our better nature. The history of slavery and the lessons learned from the Confederacy are not who we say we are. If we say we are, the land of the free and the home of the brave. And if we also say that we have, liberty and justice for all, we cannot honor those who would deny humanity to someone based on the color of their skin or the race, sexual orientation or religion they belong to.

Change the names so that we can find names that inspire and advocate an honorable future.

Edwin Henderson

Falls Church

Letters to the Editor may be submitted toletters@fcnp.comor via ouronline form here.Letters should be limited to 350 words and may be edited for content, clarity and length. To view the FCNPs letter and submission policy, please clickhere.

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn

Read this article:
Letters to the Editor: F.C. City Must Push Through With The Downtown Project - Falls Church News Press

Vladimir. Cathedral of the Dormition, southwest view. May 26, 1997

The fortified settlement of Vladimir was established in 1108 on the high left bank of the Klyazma River by Vladimir Monomakh, who ruled as Grand Prince in Kiev from 1113 to 1125. With his guidance, Vladimir and the surrounding settlements became a center of political and economic power in the lands of the eastern Slavs. In the second half of the 12th century, Monomakhs descendants Andrey Bogoliubovo and Vsevolod III supported a surge in church construction with a form of limestone known as white stone, quarried down the Volga River in the territory of the Bulgars.

Vladimir panorama. View north from right bank of Klyazma River. Center left (in circle): Red brick City Council Building (partially visible). Upper right: Dormition Cathedral. Summer 1911

In Summer 1911, the Russian chemist and photographer Sergei Prokudin-Gorsky visited Vladimir as part of his work to chronicle the diversity of the Russian Empire in the beginning of the 20th century. My own photographic work in Vladimir spanned a period from 1972 to 2009, almost a century later.

Prokudin-Gorskys several photographs of Vladimir include two remarkable panoramic views with a steep hill crowned by the golden-domed 12th-century Dormition Cathedral, symbol of religious and political authority in the ancient Russian heartland. Both photographs were taken from the opposite (right) bank of the Klyazma River, a triburary of the Oka River, which in turn flows into the Volga.

Vladimir City Council (duma) building. July 28, 2009

The foreground of the closer view shows a quiet inlet that served as a beach and includes what appears to be a wooden bathing shed on the right side. Today, this quiet refuge is completely overgrownand the quality of the Klyazma water is perhaps less conducive to bathing. On the far side of the river, the tree-covered ascent to the left in Prokudin-Gorskys photograph was dotted with houses, as it is today.

At the top of the ridge (known as studenaia gora, or cold hill), there is a partially obscured red brick building with two turrets. This former building of the town council (duma) was constructed in 1906-07 in a Russian Revival style that imitated 17th-century decorative details. In the early 1930s, a two-story addition was attached to the south side, and the structure was adapted for use as a Palace of Pioneers (the Soviet equivalent of Scouts). Since 2008, the building has been designated House of Friendship, which organizes events for visiting delegations.

Bell tower & Dormition Cathedral. Northwest view from Kozlov Rampart across ravine. May 28, 1998

The dominant feature of the photograph, however, is the peak of the hill with the Dormition Cathedral sitting atop it like a crown. It should be noted from the outset that this part of Prokudin-Gorskys view is now blocked by a high arched concrete highway bridge across the river. The hulking multi-story wooden house perched on the crest also has long since been removed, thus preserving the pristine ambience of the UNESCO-listed cathedral.

This sublime monument is one of the most important shrines in all Russia and served as the model for the Cathedral of the Dormition at the center of the Moscow Kremlin (1470s). Construction of the cathedral was intiated in 1158 by Grand Prince Andrey Bogoliubsky, ruler of a vast expanse of northeast Rus, as the territory of the Eastern Slavs was called.

Cathedral of the Dormition, main portal, carved stone arches. July 18, 2009

The plan of the Dormition Cathedral involves an elongated dome-centered form, typical of large churches in Kiev and Novgorod during this period. The source of its skilled masonry work remains unclear. The Laurentian chronicle mentions the bringing of masters from "all lands," and there are later references to Nemtsi, or "Germans"a term broadly used for foreigners. It has been proposed that the artisans were sent to Andrey Bogoliubsky by Frederick Barbarossa.

Left: Cathedral of the Dormition. West facade, carved console block. October 7, 1979. Right: Cathedral of the Dormition. West facade, carved console block. July 18, 2009

If certain features of the Dormition Cathedralsuch as the perspective portals and decorative stoneworksuggest Romanesque influence from the Catholic West, the basic plan remained in the tradition of Byzantine dome-centered church architecture as adapted in early medieval Rus.

After a fire in 1185 that destroyed much of Vladimir and severely damaged the cathedral, Andreys half-brother, Vsevolod III, commanded its reconstruction in a greatly expanded, more complex form. The rebuilding took place in the relatively short period of 1185-90.

Dormition Cathedral. Northeast view with apse. Summer 1911

Vsevolod's master builders dismantled attached galleries, but retained the walls of the orginal structure, weakened by fire, as the core of the new cathedral. The plan was increased by an aisle added to the north, west and south sides. The new exterior walls reached two stories, but not the full height of the original structure. The relation between the old and the new was thus ingeniously preserved in the rebuilt structure.

Dormition Cathedral, apse, northeast view. Right: East wall of Church of St. George. June 19, 1994

The new facades were marked at mid-level by an arcade frieze with accents of carved ornament visible in my detail photographs. Some of the decorative stonework on the north and south walls was transferred from the original cathedral walls. The cathedral reached its grand culmination with a main dome flanked by four secondary domes on the diagonals.

Dormition Cathedral, apse, northeast view. Right: East wall of Church of St. George. June 19, 1994

Prokudin-Gorsky also took a view of the cathedrals east side, which is defined by a three-part apse rebuilt by Vsevolod with expanded dimensions. As usual in Russian Orthodox tradition, the central part of the apse contained the main altar.

Less than a half-century after the completion of the Dormition Cathedral, the Vladimir principality was overwhelmed by the Mongol invasion of Rus. Despite these cataclysmic events, the superbly engineered Dormition Cathedral survived.

Vladimir panorama. View east down right bank of Klyazma River. Upper left: Dormition Cathedral (partially obscured). Center: Church of Women bearing Myrrh (demolished) & Church of the Dormition (in circle). Summer 1911

Vladimir was sacked again by a large Tatar raid in 1408, during which the cathedral was ransacked and its roof damaged. Two renowned painters, Andrei Rublev and Daniil Chorny, were brought to redo the interior. Fragments of Rublevs frescoes have survived in the west part of the cathedral and depict the Last Judgement.

During a visit to Vladimir in 1767, Empress Catherine the Great was taken by the Dormition Cathedral, and personally supported its renovation. Although well-intentioned, changes effected in this and subsequent decades disfigured the cathedrals appearance.

In 1810, a large bell tower was erected just to the north, and in 1862, a church dedicated to St. George was designed by Nicholas Artleben in a Gothic Revival style to fill the space between the bell tower and cathedrals north faade. These additions created a new perspective on the ensemble from the north, facing the towns main street (Moscow Street).

Comprehensive, informed restoration work in the 1880s eliminated most of the distortions made during the preceding century and uncovered a major part of Andrei Rublevs frescoes. Another prolonged restoration phase concluded in the early 1980s.

Church of the Dormition, northeast view. March 6, 1972

In 1992, the Dormition Cathedral was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. Responsibility for this defining cultural and historical monument is now shared between the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum Preserve and the Diocese of Vladimir, for which it serves as the main cathedral.

Vladimir panorama. View east from water tower near Dormition Cathdral. Center left: Church of Women Bearing Myrrh (demolished), Church of the Dormition (in circle). Right (in circle): Distillery. Summer 1911

The cathedral figures in yet another of Prokudin-Gorskys dramatic panoramas, a sweeping east view taken from the very edge of the Klyazma a bit farther upriver from the preceding panorama. Here the medieval shrine is partially obscured by the large wooden building (demolished), and the entire vista is now obscured by the highway bridge mentioned earlier.

With so many changes, this photograph is particularly important as a historical record. For example, the slender church with bell tower at the base of the hill in the center was built in 1776 and consecrated to the Women Bearing Myrrh (who discovered the empty tomb of Christs resurrection). In 1929, this church, located near the main railway station, was demolished. Its site is now marked by a simple brick chapel.

Distillery. July 18, 2009

Barely visible in the east distance, however, are the domes of yet another church, dedicated to the Dormition. Now used by a parish of Orthodox dissenters known as Old Believers, this festive structure was built in 1644-49 and is Vladimirs best example of an ornamental style that flourished in the mid-17th century. My photograph, taken in a winter sunset, conveys the poetry of this distinctively Russian decorative display.

In the early 20th century the Russian photographer Sergei Prokudin-Gorsky devised a complex process for color photography. Between 1903 and 1916 he traveled through the Russian Empire and took over 2,000 photographs with the process, which involved three exposures on a glass plate. In August 1918, he left Russia and ultimately resettled in France where he was reunited with a large part of his collection of glass negatives, as well as 13 albums of contact prints. After his death in Paris in 1944, his heirs sold the collection to the Library of Congress. In the early 21st century the Library digitized the Prokudin-Gorsky Collection and made it freely available to the global public. A few Russian websites now have versions of the collection. In 1986 the architectural historian and photographer William Brumfield organized the first exhibit of Prokudin-Gorsky photographs at the Library of Congress. Over a period of work in Russia beginning in 1970, Brumfield has photographed most of the sites visited by Prokudin-Gorsky.This series of articles juxtaposes Prokudin-Gorskys views of architectural monuments with photographs taken by Brumfield decades later.

If using any of Russia Beyond's content, partly or in full, always provide an active hyperlink to the original material.

') }, error: function() { $email.val(''); alert('An unknown error occurred. Try later.'); } }); } }); }; initFormSubmit(); $completeButton.on('click', function (evt) { evt.preventDefault(); evt.window.location.reload(); }); }());

Read this article:
The resplendent cathedal of Vladimir on the Klyazma River - Russia Beyond