Earle Kimel|Sarasota Herald-Tribune

VENICE The owners of a home built by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers in 1927 received the blessing of the Venice Architectural Review Board Thursday to demolish it and replace it with a newer structure.

Homeowner Jack Sullivan, who was present in City Council chambers as the city conducted its first hybrid in-person/online meeting, told the board that when he and his wife, Genice, bought the structure at 233 Pensacola Road from the Federal National Mortgage Association in January 2014, the intention was to restore it.

It would cost in excess of $300,000 to renovate this house, said Sullivan, who has already sunk money into a variety of improvements.

Major flaws now includea leaky roof that needs to be replaced and soft floors, indicating dry rot.

Its a bottomless pit, he later added. We bought it from the resolution trust because nobody wanted it.

Instead of speaking during the presentation by his contractor, Gregg Hassler, and attorney, Jackson Boone, Sullivan spoke during public comment, after several speakers urged the board to deny the request.

Curt and Tommye Whittaker, who own a home at 613 Venice Ave.that was built by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers in 1926, both said the home should be kept.

Curt Whittaker said that, at the least, Hassler should have provided estimates of the cost to rehabilitate the home instead of simply saying the house was beyond reasonable repair and that it was time to go.

Hasslernoted that he had participated in the restoration of other structures built when the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers commissioned John Nolen to design the city of Venice notably Lunas Restaurant on Nokomis AvenueNorthand the dental office of his son, Gregg Hassler Jr., on Milan Avenue.

In contrast, there were too many structural problems in the house at 233 Pensacola Road, he said.

Boone, who attended the hybrid meeting via Zoom, while his father, Jeff Boone, and Hassler were in council chambers, noted that there were other considerations, such as the fact that the structure's position on the property placed it roughly three feet from the alley.

While the home is one of the original ones built by the Brotherhood and it is listed as a contributing resource to the 2010 inclusion of the John Nolen Plan for Venice being listed as part of the National Register of Historic Places, it is not historic on its own merit.

Ultimately, the review board voted4-2 to approve of the structure's demolition.

It continued until Aug. 27 a public hearing on the Sullivans proposal to replace it with a two-story home similar to those built on the opposite side of Pensacola Road, in the Courtyards of Venice.

Hassler was the developer of that project.

Among other things, the applicant must produce revised elevations and a revised site plan, delineating how pool equipment will be screened from public view.

Overall, the hybrid meeting went smoothly, save for occasional dropouts from the microphones in council chambers.

The Venice Planning Commission will convene as part of a hybrid meeting on Aug. 18, and the Architectural Review Board will meet Aug 20 as part of a hybrid workshop, before the Venice City Council hostsa hybrid session Aug. 25.

Read the rest here:
Venice Architectural Advisory Board approves demolition of home built as city was founded - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

A request to demolish the Liberty theater building, a fixture in downtown Libertyville since 1937, has been denied by the village, but the owners plan to argue economic hardship as another way to get their wish.

Rhyan Holdings LLC, a family business that has owned the building at 708 N. Milwaukee Ave. for more than 50 years, contends the theater is not financially viable and the property would be more marketable with the building gone.

Rhyan has maintained that stance since it applied for permission to demolish the building a year ago. But no proposal for a replacement structure was offered, and having only an open lot to consider in a designated historic district was among the reasons the village rejected the demolition request.

As expected, the village board on Tuesday night upheld the recommendation to deny the request from the advisory historic preservation committee.

"I would like to see it preserved," said Trustee Rich Moras. "I also realize there would need to be a good economic reason to do so. The challenge I see with what's proposed here is we're only looking at half the equation."

After two public hearings last fall, the committee found that while the building isn't an architectural gem, it has enough historical and cultural significance that demolition would be detrimental to the public interest.

Building owners in a historic district need to secure a certificate of appropriateness to change or demolish a structure.

The village board decision to follow the recommendation sets the stage for the next act for the old movie house. Despite Tuesday's decision, the board agreed demolition can be considered later in the context of an application for a certificate of economic hardship.

"A certificate of economic hardship is justified," Rhyan's attorney David Meeks told the board. The green space would be a "temporary hold" while a buyer for the site is sought, he said.

"The property is in such condition my client feels it prudent from an economic and structural standpoint to take the building down while he works through the process of finding somebody to bring something that will be very enjoyable to the community," Meeks said.

The certificate of economic hardship would be reviewed by the historic preservation commission, which would issue another recommendation to the village board. Justification would include information such as real estate taxes, mortgage balance, appraisals, operating and maintenance expenses, and anything else needed to show whether the property can yield a reasonable return for current or future owners.

An alternate use for the property does not have to be presented, according to John Spoden, Libertyville's community development director. However, he noted, one of the reasons the commission recommended denying the demolition request was it didn't know what would replace the theater.

The theater had operated in recent years as the Liberty 1 & 2 Theaters but closed in late January. The building and 1.17-acre property is listed for $1.95 million.

Mayor Terry Weppler said a viable buyer was in hand but "backed away" at the last minute when the coronavirus pandemic struck.

Excerpt from:
Historic Libertyvlle theater to remain standing, but demolition push continues - Chicago Daily Herald

JAY The town has entered into the demolition process of the sewer conversion project.

Sewage started being sent July 29 from North Jay residences and business to the Livermore Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Selectmen voted 4-1 on Monday to approve a change order for $65,515 for partial demolition of the North Jay Wastewater Treatment Facility, full demolition of another building and other aspects of the project.

The town had a new pump station and force-main system installed to connect the North Jay sewer system to the gravity sewer collection system near Jay Plaza in Jay Village. All of Jays sewage that typically would be treated now is being done in Livermore Falls.

Jay voters approved the project in September 2018 with the end result of abandoning the North Jay plant because it is expected to be more cost efficient than continuing to upgrade the facility. The project is still under budget, according to Sewer Superintendent Mark Holt.

Of the $65,515 change order, $55,130 is for partial demolition of the package treatment unit, which includes removing the panel where the door is located and a wall panel to the right of it so that a garage door can be installed in a subsequent step. The walls are 16 inches thick and full of rebar, Holt told selectmen.

Five or six interior walls will also be cut out.

There is a good possibility that the remainder of the unit could become a compost facility for sludge from the Livermore Falls plant, Holt said. The University of Maine in Orono has shown interest in such a project. Holt has asked a representative if a feasibility study, cost estimated and preliminary design could be done, he said.

Other parts of the change order include removal for an 8-foot by 8-foot chlorination building, ductwork modification in the chemical room, and add vents to two manholes.

Selectperson Judy Diaz opposed the change order while Selectpersons Gary McGrane, Tom Goding, Vice Chairman Tim DeMillo and Chairman Terry Bergeron supported it.

Invalid username/password.

Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.

Previous

Next

Excerpt from:
Jay enters demolition process of the North Jay sewage treatment plant - The Bethel Citizen

MARYSVILLE Heritage conservationists on Wolfe Island are stepping up their calls for a delay in the planned demolition of one of Marysvilles oldest houses.

The house at 1208 Main St. is to be torn down by the end of September to make way for construction of a new ferry terminal.

But members of the islands historical society and their supporters, more than two dozen of whom gathered outside the house Friday morning, want the house preserved.

Wolfe Island Historical Society president Kimberly Thomas said the plans for the new ferry dock, including artist renderings, showed the house would remain in place.

A lot of people in the community thought the house would still be standing because of the photos, she said.

We want to stop the demolition and have a conversation. I dont know what the next step is. If the next step is that the house has to come down for the dock to proceed, I dont know how many of these people who showed up here today would look at it differently.

The group plans a rally at the house on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.

Thomas said she hopes the demolition can be delayed until the community has a chance to express to the Ministry of Transportation that there is interest in saving it.

The MTO is not in the business of keeping houses. They just dont have the staff or funds to finance it. I just dont think it was brought to their attention that there is community will to keep it, she said.

From what Ive been told by the professional architects and the engineers and the people who are appraisers, and these are people who are in the business, all the plans show is that they need some of the land but not the land the house sits on.

The ministry said a heritage impact assessment of the house was done about a year ago, and while it was deemed to have cultural heritage value of local significance or interest, it did not meet the requirements for designation as a provincial heritage property of provincial significance.

The architect we spoke to says it does because its significant to this community, its a very unusual house for this community, Thomas said.

The house is an American Foursquare design, which was popular between the late 1890s and the late 1930s. It was considered a reaction to ornate Victorian designs and, as such, was relatively plain in appearance.

Thomas said the house was built around the turn of the last century, and its design incorporates handcrafted woodwork inside that is considered to have improved on the original boxy design and features wood from Douglas Fir trees inside.

I think the house could stay, Hank Connell, one of the founding members of the historical society, said.It is significant.

See original here:
Wolfe Island residents rally to protect house from demolition - The Kingston Whig-Standard

Minneapolis officials will no longer require property owners to prepay the second half of their property taxes in order to start removing rubble from sites damaged in the May riots.

Mayor Jacob Frey announced the change Thursday after the Star Tribune reported on the controversy.

Minneapolis property owners have complained that the policy was slowing the recovery and turning piles of debris into safety hazards. The situation is different in St. Paul, which has been issuing demolition permits without requiring the prepayment of the second half of 2020 property taxes, which are due in October.

Frey said the city will begin issuing permits and waiving demolition fees for any properties damaged in the riots irrespective of whether taxes have been paid. The new policy went into effect Thursday.

I recently learned about the predicament and took quick action to fix it, Frey said in an interview. For the sake of our businesses, we need to be removing every last possible barrier to recovery and reopening.

Minneapolis property owners applauded the move, but they also complained about a continued lack of support from city and county officials. They hope that officials will expedite approvals going forward and help them by lowering the assessments on their heavily damaged properties.

It is refreshing to see them doing the right thing, said Steve Krause, owner of Minnehaha Lake Wine & Spirits, which was destroyed in the rioting. But the taxes are outrageous. They are based on improved real estate, and obviously the real estate is no longer improved. It is devastated.

Krause had to pay $17,116 in taxes on his property to get a demolition permit because his building is still valued at $363,400, according to county property records.

This will remove one small roadblock, but I am not sure how much it will actually speed up the entire rebuilding process, said Don Blyly, owner of Uncle Hugos and Uncle Edgars bookstores in Minneapolis, which were destroyed in the riots. You are still going to have the problem of a whole lot of demolition permits being handled by people who are working at home because of COVID-19.

Blyly, who hired a contractor to remove the rubble from his lot a month ago, still doesnt have his demolition permit, even though he paid his taxes last week.

Minneapolis City Council Member Andrew Johnson said he will introduce legislation at Fridays council meeting that would require city officials to expedite the approval process for riot-damaged properties and waive all administrative fees.

We should be processing their applications first, in front of everyone elses, and they shouldnt be subject to any unnecessary steps that are slowing stuff down, Johnson said. We need to bend over backward and do everything possible to help them with rebuilding.

In a statement, Frey said he consulted with Johnson before deciding to waive the collection of property taxes as part of the debris removal process. Johnson has been lobbying city and county officials on the issue since June.

Though Hennepin County officials said they told city officials to leave them out of the permitting process weeks ago, the county was still pressuring property owners to pay their property taxes as recently as last month.

In a July 28 e-mail to property owner Marc Snover, the countys property tax department warned him that the full years taxes need to be paid in order for us to sign off on a wrecking permit. Snover subsequently paid more than $42,000 in taxes so he could clear his lot of debris left from the destruction of a Family Dollar store and an OReilly Auto Parts shop.

They were sending me demand letters saying I had to get the debris off my lot, Snover said. I didnt want to get in trouble. But my building is worth zero right now, so it feels like they are kind of taking advantage of the situation.

Snover said the county should refund his property tax payment.

Carolyn Marinan, a spokeswoman for Hennepin County, said property owners who paid the taxes to get a permit can apply for a refund. We would make a decision on a case-by-case basis, she said.

Finger-pointing is not helpful, Marinan said in an e-mail. Everyone wants to make this right.

Though Minneapolis officials will no longer force property owners to pay their taxes for a demolition permit, a spokeswoman for the city said that individuals who clear their lots without first paying their taxes will be guilty of a gross misdemeanor.

However, city and county officials told the Star Tribune that they would not enforce that law and will not be citing any property owners or contractors who go ahead with demolition work without first paying the taxes.

Due to the unrest and the mass destruction, properties that have been determined to be an unsafe and health risk are being encouraged to remove the debris, Minneapolis spokeswoman Sarah McKenzie said in a written response to questions. We are going to be handling this appropriately in the best interest for the citizens of Minneapolis effective today.

City officials said they will continue to seek additional property tax relief from the Legislature, which has not moved forward with any bills related to rebuilding efforts in the Twin Cities. Democrats have proposed legislation that would require the reassessment of all riot-damaged property and provide abatements worth up to 100% of a propertys 2020 tax bill. The size of the abatement would depend on the amount of damage.

Read this article:
Minneapolis removes tax demand that was blocking rebuilding of riot-torn areas - Minneapolis Star Tribune

Youre not going anywhere!

Hard to imagine someone telling you that, right? Now imagine those words coming from your own child.

Well, thats what Whitney Thornton faced when her five-year-old son jumped in her truck and demanded she stay home.

Thornton is a truck driver and, after years of being on the road, her kid had had enough. But as a mother, she did what she thought was necessary to provide for him. He was young, and I dont think he understood, said Thornton.

Things were tough for Thornton; she was a single mother and had to leave little Myles with loved ones when she was away. She could be gone a few weeks or 6 months. And although her employer was based in Michigan, Thornton would often steer her freightliner as far as Texas.

This was not the life she wanted for her family.

That would all change as the City of Detroit accelerated the demolition of vacant homes across the city over the last several years.

With that acceleration, however, some small and minority companies were locked out of the process as the City was prevented from targeting certain businesses because of federal guidelines.

More recently, the City has made some adjustments that have opened the doors to smaller companies and specifically Black contractors, said Damion Ellis, Director of Operations at Gayanga Co.

Gayanga, a Detroit-based, Black-owned business, is a full-service construction and civil engineering company with a focus on demolition, renovation, and utility installation.

According to Ellis, in the past, there was a false narrative that Black contractors lacked the capacity and experience to do the work. And unfortunately, that narrative excluded some companies from participating in local projects.

But as opportunities increase for Detroit-based companies due to new guidelines, so do the opportunities for Detroiters to receive those jobs. In fact, 85% of Gayangas employees are Detroit residents, and 95% are minorities.

Ellis says that in order for the city to get the most benefit from construction projects, Detroit-based companies must be intentional about hiring Detroiters. In fact, the message on Gayangas website is this: When Gayanga Co. wins a contract, the Community wins a contract.

You have the Black contractor getting more contracts, and the Black employee getting the opportunity for a livable wage. So that impact is going to increase the number of financially stable households in the city of Detroit, said Ellis. You can work in a demolition program as a construction worker, as a truck driver, and on average you can make $50,000 a year.

Remember Whitney Thornton, our single mom who spent much of her time on the road? Well, shes now a truck driver for Gayanga.

I kept telling Myles I was home for good, but it didnt click with him at first, said Thornton.

Shes of course delighted to be home, but thats not all shes happy about. It just really touches me because I work for a Black-owned company, in the city, making the money I want. It all feels so good to me.

Ellis says that Thornton is hard-working and tough as nails. And although she didnt check all the boxes for the experience Gayanga was looking for at the time, Thornton impressed them with her professionalism and willingness to learn.

Construction is one of the lowest barriers to entry industries. Anyone who wants a job and is committed to putting in the work can have a career in the construction industry, said Ellis.

So, not only can demolition and construction change the landscape of the environment, it can also change the narrative of someones future

I am very happy. My son can grow up with me now.

View post:
The Life-Changing Effects of Demolition - The Neighborhoods

Monday, 10 August 2020 07:42Last Updated: Monday, 10 August 2020 07:46Published: Monday, 10 August 2020 07:42 Joanne WallensteinHits: 195

This is a letter from Lee Road resident Lisa McIver to Village Planner Greg Cutler about the demolition of a house next door to her home:

Hello Greg: After waiting 6 months for the house (at 112 Lee Road) to be demolished they did it this Saturday - the day we left on vacation. Our neighbor luckily heard what was happening. The house was taken down with no water to hold the dust down AND worse the structure fell onto our property. It took down a row of 5-6 large arborvitae trees and broke the Belgium blocks lining our driveway.

Our houses are tight. This builder needs to be careful of our property. Today they piled the dumpster up and did not wet down the debris. Huge clouds of dust were over our property. We are away until Saturday so we havent seen it but I am so angry about the blatant disregard for our property and the unskilled workers.

Here is a photo of the dust coming from the demo one worker and no water to hold down the dust. Our neighbor said our backyard looks awful with tons of dust covering our furniture, house and patio.

Who cleans this up? Will the town test it for asbestos? We come home Saturday and shouldnt be returning to such a mess. Our house and windows will need to be power washed and cleaned. Trees will need to be replanted and the driveway repaired.

We will file a police report when we return. They need us to be home. Would you please check the scene tomorrow? The photos below show the workers on our property with the pieces of their demolition spilling over on our property.

Please help. Our neighborhood cannot handle such blatant disregard for our well-being and our property.

We look forward to quick action.

Thank you,

Lisa Lovisolo McIver109 Lee Road

Visit link:
Neighbors Home Covered in Dust After Home Demolition on Lee Road - Scarsdale10583.com

Got a bit of stress these days?

Welcome to the club. Or, rather, youre welcome to destroy this club. Meet Endorphin Factory.

The 6,000-square-foot business opened in Grand Prairie at the end of May and features a demolition room, where you can pay $35 and clobber everything in your path.

And during COVID-19, that seems to be something a lot of people want to do, according to co-owner Darryl Williams.

Absolutely, business has been good, Williams said. The crazy thing is, people come in a little timid.

They get over it quickly, he added.

The space is the only one of its kind in the country, say the owners, to feature demolition rooms, axe throwing and archery under one roof, and it is the only such Black-owned business in the state.

Williams and his partner, his uncle Roy Rucker, planned to open the space in April. Statewide shutdowns pushed its debut to the end of May. Since then, business has grown at a healthy pace.

Rucker, the majority owner of Endorphin Factory, has an extensive background as business owner. The 30-year Army combat veteran owns a government services IT company in Rockwall and is a minority owner of another Black-owned business in Grand Prairie, ITSO Vegan restaurant.

Thanks to Ruckers military experience, he said, hes equipped to monitor any customers in case their anger gets away from them. Each participant is given an exit interview to assess any potential mental needs and get them outside counseling or attention, if needed. So far, he said that hasnt happened.

Ninety-five percent are under a lot of stress when they come in, Rucker said. After 20 minutes, they are stress-free.

There is no typical customer at Endorphin Factory We see so many different types of people, Williams said but the one thing they seem to share is a need to take a mental break from it all.

Right now, Williams said he is thrilled with the frenetic feedback: The support all around has been amazing. Its been better than ever expected during a pandemic.

See the article here:
Destroy a demolition room at this new Grand Prairie business - The Dallas Morning News

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) The potential demolition of a former southeast-side elementary school has been put pause as a group of neighbors work to save the building. Ward Elementary School, owned by Fort Wayne Community Schools, has become a discussion point between the neighbors, school system and ARCH.

Ward Elementary School, later named L.C. Ward Education Center was built near the intersection of Oxford Street and Warsaw Street in the early 1930s, opening in 1931, according to ARCH Executive Director Connie Haas Zuber. 90 years later, the building sits empty.

This building has a place in our community, Donita Mudd told WANE 15. You got to have something unique and Ward can be our unique catalyst, our spark to economic development.

A group of neighbors gathered at the school building Friday afternoon after Mudd, who once served as a substitute teacher in the building, noticed a request for demolition bids in a newspaper.

I just see the possibility when you use those historic buildings or those older buildings, what it can be and the character thats there thats typically enhanced when the developers the construction people go in, Mudd added. Its like a totally different building, but the bones are still there, the outside is there and that uniqueness and the character is still there.

Mudd said she hopes Fort Wayne Community Schools will transfer ownership to ARCH and take half or less of the demolition money and give it to ARCH to maintain the building while a developer search happens.

This is a lovely building, Haas Zuber said. Yes, to reuse it, money will be spent on it, but it is not an undoable project. The stewardship of this building has been good. Its sound. Its been well cared for. This is a good candidate for reuse.

WANE 15 reached out Fort Wayne Community Schools leaders for a response to Fridays protest.

Fort Wayne Community Schools closed Ward Education Center in 2017. The building required millions of dollars in repairs and renovations to remain an adequate learning space, and FWCS had a newer facility in much better condition that could be used to house the Districts alternative learning program (the former Nebraska Elementary, now the Center for Academic Success at Nebraska). After sitting vacant for three years, FWCS investigated demolishing Ward. As concerns and interest have been raised about the building, those plans are currently on hold. FWCS officials will meet with community leaders, elected officials and ARCH to discuss the building later this month.

ARCH has gone through this for months now, with the deepest respect for Fort Wayne Community Schools its concerns are crucial the neighborhoods concerns are crucial, Haas Zuber added. We hope that ARCHs interest in this building is also seen as important. If we can find a way to make all three of those things work together, we will have a win-win-win for all of us.

Read the original post:
Neighbors gather to save Ward Elementary School from demolition - WANE

On Thursday, July 23 the iconic Roxbury Love Mural was demolished by Cruz Companies with little warning to the community that had cherished it for years. In its place will be built condos well out of the price range of current residents. As outrage spread at this brazen act of gentrification, the Boston branch of the Party for Socialism and Liberation called a speak-out at the site where the mural once stood on July 26. Over 200 people gathered at 6:30pm on an extremely hot day to display their frustrations with the deeply red-lined and rapidly gentrifying state of the city.

Boston is the third most gentrified city in the country, according to a recent report by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. About 20 percent of city neighborhoods were gentrified in the period from 2013-2017. Roxbury is a key battleground in the struggle against gentrification, as a historically Black and Brown neighborhood neglected by the city government, lacking social services and public infrastructure. The neighborhood has been experiencing skyrocketing real estate prices as developers continue to move in.

Residents and organizers have been fighting against this looming displacement by forcing amendments to city plans for rezoning, educating themselves and organizing protests and disruptions.

View original post here:
Outrage at demolition of mural in Bostons Roxbury neighborhood - Liberation