MASON

Track work on Kings Islands newest coaster, Orion, continues to move forward ahead of schedule.

The final delivery of steel was made (last) week, and we anticipate the circuit will be complete within the next couple weeks, said spokesman Chad Showalter. After that, the operational, electrical and mechanical work begins.

Kings Island will give its first public rides on the giga coaster April 11, when the park opens for the 2020 season. It will be the tallest, fastest, longest steel coaster at Kings Island. The opening date was among the announcements made Friday along with the Warren County amusement parks entire spring/summer operating calendar atwww.visitkingsisland.com/explore/calendar-and-hours.

MORE:Kings Islands new giga coaster uses rolling terrain to its advantage

Also taking place at the park this off-season is the expansion of the plaza at the rides entrance, an area formerly known as X-Base that has been renamed Area 72, Showalter said. The expansion to the area, which first opened as a sub-area of Coney Mall in 2007, includes adding a food stand and incorporating theming elements, he said.

Demolition teams are preparing the site of Vortex for demolition, Showalter said. Actual demolition of that roller coaster has not yet started, but it is planned to be completed before the 2020 season begins.

He said a lot happens in the offseason to ready the park for its spring opening, including general maintenance and repair that cannot be done during the season.

For Kings Islands maintenance crews and ride technicians, its the busiest time of their year, Showalter said. Ride vehicles are removed from their rides and transported to maintenance shops where each are stripped down to every last nut and bolt. Everything will be disassembled, examined and rebuilt before the season begins.

MORE:Hiring alert: Kings Island to hold job fair Saturday for 5,000 positions

The announcement of the new seasons scheduled arrived a day before the 364-acre parks first job fair of 2020 was held Saturday, when on-the-spot job offers will be made.

Job opportunities for more than 5,000 positions were available, and associates are needed in all areas of park operation, including admissions, call center, cash control, entertainment, finance, food and beverage, fire and safety, guest services, lifeguards, marketing internships, merchandise, rides, security, sweeps and warehouse.

Most of the parks seasonal positions are available to applicants who are 16 years and older. A limited number of jobs require a minimum age of 15 years. Adults looking to supplement their income and retirees may apply as well.

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Kings Island preparing for 2020: What to expect from the park this year - Dayton Daily News

Demolition began last week on two hangars at Skagit Regional Airport that were damaged during a storm last winter.

Of the five buildings damaged in last Januarys storm, three were deemed beyond repair and slated for demolition.

Demolition of Hangar B is complete, and demolition of Hangar C is set to finish this week, said Linda Tyler, spokesperson for the Port of Skagit, which operates the airport.

The third building, Hangar A, will stay in place until the spring, she said. It will be demolished to make way for a large hangar for a business.

Tyler said the port is moving forward with the demolition of the first two hangars due to safety concerns.

The port offered one year of free outdoor tie-down space for tenants who had to move their airplanes from the damaged hangars.

The port has leased land to two developers to build new hangars for general aviation at the airports second runway.

One developer, Mike Dyberg, said he plans to apply for permits within a month, and begin construction of the hangars in early spring.

He said there will be two buildings, each with 10 hangar spaces, and they will be available for rent.

More:
Demolition of damaged airport hangars underway - goskagit.com

Not since 2001 had the Reds managed five goals in an opening 45 minutes, while there was also a personal milestone for young Mason Greenwood

Manchester United scored five times in the first half of a competitive match for the first time in 19 years against Tranmere Rovers on Sunday.

With two wins from seven games in all competitions and just six goals scored in 2020, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hadbeen feeling the pressure ahead of the visit to Prenton Park.

United made light of a wretched playing surface, though, with a ruthless first 45 minutes putting them 5-0 ahead.

Article continues below

Harry Maguire scored his first goal for the club with a thumping strike from 25 yards, before Diogo Dalot and Jesse Lingard made it 3-0 after 16 minutes.

Phil Jones' towering header his first United goal since March 2014 made it 4-0 and Anthony Martial added a fifth shortly before the break.

The last time United scored five in the first half of a match was back in February 2001,when they destroyed Arsenal in a 6-1 Premier League victory at Old Trafford.

Solskjaer scored the fifth goal that day, which also featured a Dwight Yorke hat-trick and further strikes from Roy Keane and Teddy Sheringham.

The second half saw United take their foot off the accelerator somewhat, although they managed to further extend their lead over the hapless hosts.

After 56 minutes the Reds won a penalty when Tahith Chong was felled in the Tranmere area, and Mason Greenwood stepped up to convert their sixth goal of the afternoon.

Greenwood, 18, took his tally to 10 for the season in all competitions, while in hitting from the spot he also repeated a feat last managed by Wayne Rooney.

Not since December 2004 and Rooney's effort against Crystal Palace had a teenager taken a penalty for United, but if Greenwood was feeling the pressure he did not show it as he beat Tranmere No. 1 Davies with a calm, collected strike.

United's next outing, however, is likely to pose a rather sterner challenge.

On Wednesday Solskjaer's men visit the Etihad Stadium, with the daunting task of overturning a 3-1 aggregate deficit against Manchester City in order to book a place in the Carabao Cup final.

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Man Utd hit 19-year high with first-half FA Cup demolition of Tranmere - Goal.com

Date: Friday, January 24, 2020

Demolition will begin this weekend of the northbound FM 2499 bridge from Hwy 121 as the DFW Connector project work continues.

This project was originally scheduled for last weekend, but the work was postponed one week because of rain.

From 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 24 to 6 a.m. Monday, Jan. 27, NorthGate Constructors will begin the demolition project, which will allow crews to further advance work in the area, according to a news release from NorthGate. To get to FM 2499 from Hwy 121, drivers will have to take the frontage road to Grapevine Mills Boulevard, turn left and take that to FM 2499.

The following closures are needed to safely conduct the work:

Click here for a comprehensive detour map.

Drivers should plan accordingly during this work and add extra time to their commute, according to NorthGate. Visit dfwconnector.com to stay up-to-date on all major upcoming operations along the project.

The $371 million I-635/Hwy 121 Interchange project is supposed to increase capacity and connectivity between I-635, Hwy 121, Hwy 26 and FM 2499. The improvements were included in the original $1.6 billion DFW Connector project, but funds were not available at that time to deliver the entire scope. These improvements are now funded as part of the Texas Department of Transportations Texas Clear Lanes initiative, which aims at improving congested corridors across the state.

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FM 2499 bridge demolition this weekend - The Cross Timbers Gazette

PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) Philadelphia has issued a record 940 demolition permits this year. Officials say that's contributed to a large reduction in the number of buildings in the city that are classified as "imminently dangerous," but preservationists worry about what is being lost.

The city has cut the number of imminently dangerous buildings by more than half over the last four years from 240 at the beginning of the Kenney administration to, now, just over 100.

Department of Licenses and Inspections spokesperson Karen Guss says that's made the city safer.

"In a densely populated city like ours, having buildings in our communities that are threatening to come down at any time really is a public safety concern," Guss said.

Related: City Council leans toward funding preservation efforts for Philly's historic neighborhoods

She says the decrease is due to two factors.

One, L&I's budget for demolitions has grown so dangerous buildings can be taken down more quickly. And two, the building boom has increased the number of private demolitions.

"They can use that vacant lot that they create to put up new construction," she said.

But that creates a downside, according to Paul Steinke of the Preservation Alliance.

"In some cases, the buildings that are coming down could very well have been saved and repurposed but are giving way for new construction," Steinke said.

Steinke points to Jeweler's Row, part of which is under demolitiondespite being stable and historic.

The buildings never received the official local historic designation, which would have saved them. In fact, only a small fraction of the city's historic buildings have received official designation.

While Steinke agrees public safety comes first, he'd like to see some demolitions delayed so buildings could be evaluated for historic importance.

"This is a city that has 300 years of American architecture. It's an asset that many other cities don't have and we should not take that lightly," he added.

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Philly sets record for demolition permits this year - KYW Newsradio 1060

Standing beneath the smoke-drenched skies outside the Francis Drake Hotel on Christmas morning, Dominique Howell began to feel overwhelmed with fear and uncertainty.

Two days earlier, Howell, 32, learned that she was pregnant, and now the apartment that took her months to find was ablaze with flames shooting out the windows. No one could tell her when or if she could return to the building to grab her few belongings; or how she would find a new place with a poor credit score amid a severe shortage of affordable rental units.

I feel like a refugee, said Howell, who was busy sweeping the floors of a crowded room at Bethlehem Baptist Church in downtown Minneapolis on Thursday. She and more than 100 others evacuated from the hotel slept there Christmas night. Its hard to wrap my head around the fact that Ive lost everything and there is no plan for a better living situation.

Even before the flames ignited the Drake Hotel in a Christmas Day blaze, there was a state of crisis for people struggling to find affordable housing.

The countys population of homeless adults has surged 40% in the past year, and the housing crisis had grown so dire that Gov. Tim Walz had just announced a new public-private sector partnership to secure millions of dollars to expand the states emergency shelter capacity.

And then came the fire, destroying an aging building that served as the countys only overflow shelter for families with children experiencing homelessness.

Fire crews finally vanquished the blaze at 416 S. 10th St. midday Thursday, but not before the city of Minneapolis used its emergency authority to order the demolition of part of the hotel, which opened in 1926.

Overnight, a crisis worsens

Overnight, a vital piece of the emergency shelter system a facility that, at its peak, housed 133 families who might otherwise be sleeping in the streets was gone, and city and county officials were scrambling to find new transitional housing within an already overstretched system.

The 111 people who evacuated from the Drake spent the night on cots in the assembly hall at Bethlehem Baptist Church. Half were children.

The Red Cross spoke with two other facilities that offered to help people in the longer-term and was working Thursday to determine which one would be the best fit, said regional CEO Phil Hansen.

It is still unclear, however, how the county will find new transitional housing to replace the Drake, which was considered the shelter of last resort for parents with children experiencing homelessness.

Most of the large shelters in the Twin Cities metro area, such as the Higher Ground Shelter and Salvation Armys Harbor Light Center, accommodate single adults and do not accept families.

About noon Thursday, children at the shelter were still running around in their pajamas, filled with nervous energy.

This persistent homelessness and the issue of housing becomes starkly real here, Walz said after walking amid the cots and talking to displaced residents at the church. We knew it was out there. Its always around us. But a lot of times, without these tragedies, it may not come home to people the same way.

Mike Herzing, who oversees safety and stability issues for Hennepin County Human Services, said staff had already begun assessing peoples needs.

In the short term, theyll try to work within the countys family shelter system.

The Drake served as the overflow, he said. As our family shelters filled up, the Drake was there to accept people who had no other places to go.

People at the church have been asking when they can return to the Drake Hotel to get their belongings.

But the eastern half is too dangerous to leave standing, according to the city.

Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development Director David Frank said he was on the site with others from the city and made the determination for a partial demolition based on what they could see from the outside.

The eastern roof of the three-story building collapsed during the fire, and then the third floor collapsed onto the second.

The second floor filled with water and debris, causing the walls to bow out with bricks being pushed loose from the wall.

Given the danger to the public who will soon be walking and driving past the right thing is to take down that portion of the building, Frank said.

After contractors begin their work, he said, theyll know more about whether the remainder of it should be demolished.

The Drake Hotel is owned by Leamington Co. Brian Short, the companys CEO, said Thursday afternoon that he hadnt yet been allowed inside but thought it looks like the correct decisions are being made.

Im very grateful that there was apparently no loss of life, but incredibly sad that people who live in the margins of society lost everything, Short said.

Its unclear what caused the fire. Investigators from the city and the State Fire Marshals office finished their on-scene work just before 1 p.m. Thursday. Minneapolis Fire Chief John Frue- tel said he expects investigators to release a formal report in a few days.

Inspection history

Under state law, the State Fire Marshal Division is required to inspect the hotel every three years.

The most recent inspection, on Nov. 9, 2018, found eight code violations, state records show.

The inspector ordered the building owner to remove obstructions blocking exits, display evacuation diagrams in guest rooms, ensure sprinkler systems were installed correctly in required areas and repair electrical hazards.

When the inspector returned for a follow-up in June, all of those violations had been fixed, said Jen Long-aecker, spokeswoman for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.

Many people displaced by the fire expressed their frustration and bitterness over conditions at the Drake Hotel.

Howell said she and her boyfriend moved into the Drake a year and a half ago because they were told it was affordable and safe.

She said there were cockroaches in the bedroom, mice that scratched and scurried in the walls at night, and water that ran brown from the faucets. The roof of the lobby leaked.

Even so, Howell said, she paid a monthly rent of $860, which is most of what she earns as a cook at a local restaurant.

That place was so rundown it should have been condemned years ago, she said. It was not fit for human habitation.

Short said that his company has leased the building to Drake Hotel Properties for roughly 20 years and that upkeep is really their responsibility, though his company does inspect the building periodically.

David Anderson, an attorney for Drake Hotel Properties, said he did not have information about any complaints like what Howell reported, but that the CEO, Tim Treiber, worked diligently to fix anything that was flagged during inspections by the required dates. In September, a city inspector noted mouse droppings.

Anderson described the fire as a triple tragedy. Many of the employees also lived on-site and are now homeless, too, he said.

Moving into the future, hopefully there will be a home for them, he said.

Staff writer Andy Mannix contributed to this report.

Read more:
Uprooted by fire, dozens of homeless families face an uncertain future amid housing crisis - Minneapolis Star Tribune

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Demolition project intended to spur sale of former victims shelter in Tarentum - TribLIVE

By Adam AtkinsonNorth Country This Week

CANTON The planned rebuild of the Canton Dairy Queen is moving forward with the stage being set to raze the ruins of the restaurant gutted by fire a year and a half ago to make way for new construction.

The owners, Gail Crabtree and John Putman (Audrey Guthrie, Inc. d/b/a Dairy Queen), filed a notice to demolish the burned out restaurant at 51 Gouverneur St. with the states Asbestos Control Bureau on Dec. 12.

Murray said the owners have just started the process of obtaining a demolition permit with his office.

According to the notice received by the state, the project start date is listed as Dec. 31, 2019 with a completion date of Dec. 31, 2020.

The demolition work will be done by Burke Excavation Demolition Inc. of Massena.

Atlantic Testing Laboratories of Canton is to monitor the air for asbestos during the work. JEDA Environmental of Massena will be hauling the demolition waste from the site to the Franklin County Landfill in Constable, the notice said.

The restaurant at 51 Gouverneur St., built in 1950, was destroyed following a break-in and arson in August 2018. The structure was declared a total loss. The owners plan to rebuild the restaurant and reopen. The total project is estimated to cost $972,964.

The village has secured a $195,000 Community Development Block Grant from the state Office of Community Renewal for the project. The money is dedicated to reimburse the owners for new equipment costs for the rebuild.

See more here:
Demolition of Dairy Queen in Canton expected to begin soon - North Country Now

The city has been razing the annex behind city hall for about two weeks. But during these last few days of the year, the demolition has become more visible to drivers and passersby.

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City hall annex demolition to finish in two weeks - Galveston County Daily News

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Consumers Energy in process of selecting new contractor for demolition of Weadock plant - WNEM Saginaw