14-06-2012 13:55 What is the difference? How can some people make a massive investment in a building and it still not be a home? We explore some different language for how to transition your house into the treasure of being a home!
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House vs Home by Arthur Burk - Video
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. As firefighters battle blazes in New Mexico and Colorado that have forced evacuations and destroyed hundreds of structures, the U.S. Forest Service chief is renewing his call to restore forests to a more natural state, where fire was a part of the landscape.
Experts say a combination of decades of vigorous fire suppression and the waning of the timber industry over environmental concerns has left many forests a tangled, overgrown mess, subject to the kind of super-fires that are now regularly consuming hundreds of homes and millions of acres.
The Forest Service is on a mission to set the clock back to zero and the urgency couldn't be greater, Tom Tidwell said. The plan calls for accelerating restoration programs everything from prescribed fire and mechanical thinning by 20 percent each year in key areas that are facing the greatest danger of a catastrophic fire.
This year's target: 4 million acres. The budget: About $1 billion.
"We need to understand the conditions we're facing today," Tidwell said. "They're different than what we used to deal with. We're seeing erratic fire behavior, more erratic weather."
In southern New Mexico, a lightning-sparked fire raced across more than 37,000 acres in recent days, damaging or destroying at least 224 homes and other structures in the mountains outside of the resort community of Ruidoso.
Officials say the Little Bear fire, which has scorched 58 square miles in the Sierra Blanca range, has been 40 percent contained and firefighters will continue building lines to contain the fire Thursday. But they note that sunny, dry weather will result in more active fire behavior and an increase in visible smoke.
Hundreds of residents have been evacuated but some have begun returning home.
The Colorado blaze, about 15 miles west of Fort Collins, was still spreading. It had burned 78 square miles by Thursday, destroyed more than 100 structures, including at least 31 homes, and forced hundreds of people from their homes.
More than 1,300 firefighters have been working around the clock to build containment lines and protect structures from the fire, which was 10 percent contained.
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As massive fires hit Colo., NM areas, Forest Service chief pushes urgency of restoration
By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - A combination of decades of vigorous fire suppression and the waning of the timber industry over environmental concerns has left many forests a tangled, overgrown mess, subject to the kind of super-fires that are now regularly consuming hundreds of homes and millions of acres.
As firefighters continue to battle massive blazes in New Mexico and Colorado, U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell is renewing his call to restore forests to a more natural state, in which fire was a part of the landscape and in many instances was far less destructive.
The Forest Service is on a mission to set the clock back to zero and the urgency couldn't be greater, Tidwell said. The plan calls for accelerating restoration programs - everything from prescribed fire and mechanical thinning - by 20 percent each year in key areas that are facing the greatest danger of a catastrophic fire.
This year's target: 4 million acres. The budget: About $1 billion.
"We need to understand the conditions we're facing today," Tidwell told The Associated Press in an interview. "They're different than what we used to deal with. We're seeing erratic fire behavior, more erratic weather."
In southern New Mexico, a lightning-sparked fire raced across more than 34,000 acres in a matter of three days, damaging or destroying at least 224 homes and other structures in the mountains outside of the resort community of Ruidoso. Hundreds of residents remained out of their homes Wednesday.
The Little Bear blaze has scorched 58 square miles in the Sierra Blanca range and containment stood at 35 percent after crews used a two-day break in the hot, windy weather to build miles of fire lines and conduct burnout operations.
To the north, smoke from a fire burning in Colorado was blowing into southeastern Wyoming and smudging the skies above Cheyenne on Wednesday. That blaze, about 15 miles west of Fort Collins, has burned 73 square miles, destroyed more than 100 structures and forced hundreds of people from their homes.
More than 600 firefighters labored to build containment lines as air tankers and helicopters focused on protecting buildings from the High Park fire.
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US wildfires fuel urgency for forest restoration
13 June 2012 Last updated at 04:42 ET
The former house of Cranford author Elizabeth Gaskell in Manchester is to be opened to the public after being awarded almost 2m for a restoration.
Gaskell moved to the villa on Plymouth Grove in 1850, three years before her novel Cranford was published.
Visitors will be able to see the house as it would have looked during her time there, restored with the 1.85m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
It was damaged last year when metal thieves ripped off most of the roof.
Gaskell's work enjoyed renewed popularity after Cranford was adapted for a BBC drama starring Dame Judi Dench, Dame Eileen Atkins and Michael Gambon in 2007.
Other novels written by Gaskell while living at the house included North and South and Wives and Daughters.
Gaskell was visited in the house by great literary figures including Charles Dickens and Charlotte Bronte, and the author lived there until her death in 1865.
Sara Hillton, head of Heritage Lottery Fund North West, said: "This building is hugely important to Manchester - both because of its association with Elizabeth Gaskell and as a rare remaining example of a Victorian suburban villa.
"Alongside the preservation of the house itself, the creation of displays and exhibitions will enhance people's understanding of the Gaskells within the context of the local area and Manchester at the time."
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Gaskell home gets £2m restoration
NANUET, N.Y., June 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The disaster recovery experts at Total Environmental Restoration Services (TERS) brought immediate peace of mind to a Westchester County, NY family that suddenly found themselves in the midst of an environmental emergency. A routine oil delivery turned into a dangerous biohazard situation when 100 gallons of oil were accidentally spilled onto the New York residential property.
(Photo:http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120612/NY23198LOGO)
"Cleaning oil spills is one of our many industry-certified environmental services," said Gary (Gadi) Shaked, TERS Environmental Analyst, whose in-house team of remediation experts responded to the call immediately. For over 20 years TERS has provided exceptional environmental cleanup and restoration services to families, businesses, and government bodies throughout New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, including fire and smoke damage, asbestos and mold removal, water damage and flood cleanup, and sewage leak cleanup.
"We respond to each emergency with a set of core experts," explained Shaked, "Immediate action at an oil spill like this requires simultaneous assessment, containment, and protection of people." TERS remediation experts got to work immediately setting up special equipment to contain the oil spill, while engineers began assessing the outdoor and indoor air quality to ensure the family's safety.
While a cleanup of this magnitude takes time, involving proven experts like TERS enabled the family to safely remain in their home for the duration of the project. "We continuously monitor VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) before, during, and after cleanup. That hard and fast reporting allows us to ensure a family's safety without disrupting their daily lives or requiring them to leave the home."
Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is of utmost concern in many remediation projects including mold and asbestos abatement, smoke damage restoration, and duct cleaning. TERS employs state-of-the-art strategies to preserve safety long after the job is complete. Their uniquely green remediation strategies use only environmentally friendly cleansing products. No harmful chemicals are ever introduced to the property or the air during abatement, further preserving safety.
"We never treat hazards by bringing more hazards and we don't mask odors or air contamination," assured Shaked. "We are one hundred percent dedicated to the safest procedures, the cleanest results, and the restoration of properties and valuables." When disaster strikes TERS' swift action can help preserve and restore valuables including computer equipment, books, photographs, and even art.
TERS also handled all EPA requirements and paperwork for the family during the oil spill decontamination. They are uniquely positioned to assist with all aspects of a remediation project, including insurance company claims.
Visit http://www.TERS.com for a comprehensive look at their service before you have the need. Theirs is a number worth keeping handy, 877-777-3117. On call 24/7, TERS remediation experts are at the ready for business, government, school, hospital, and personal property emergencies.
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NY Oil Spill Cleanup Keeps Home And Family Safe
DEARBORN, Mich., June 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --
With the 50th anniversary of the Ford Mustang less than two years away, this summer is the time to begin restoring your classic pony car so that it can be ready for one of the most important milestones in American automotive history.
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120612/DE23107 )
"Working nights and weekends, and as your budget allows, it takes roughly two years to do a complete wheels-up classic car restoration," says Brian Martin, director of automotive restoration development at McPherson College in Kansas. McPherson is the only school in North America that offers a four-year bachelor's degree in automobile restoration.
Martin says with careful project planning and outsourcing of some specialized jobs such as painting and transmission rebuilding, a father and son following a detailed plan can easily restore a first-generation Mustang in a good-sized home garage. What's needed are basic hand tools, proper manuals, good mechanical skills and a realistic budget.
Restoring a classic Mustang is a great father and son project, and this Sunday, June 17, is Father's Day a great day to kick off a Mustang restoration with the goal of having the car ready for its 50th anniversary on April 17, 2014.
Jonathan Brand and his dad have restored three classic Mustangs in their home garage, a '65 coupe and two '69 models. It was an experience Brand says he will never forget.
"My dad and I weren't as close before we restored the Mustangs," says Brand, an artist who now lives in New Haven, Conn. "It definitely brought us closer together, all those hours working on the cars. He taught me a lot about cars, and we had a lot of fun."
Brand's advice: Have patience, manage the budget and use Ford-licensed restoration parts, especially for the sheet metal repairs.
"We tried using panels from junkyards, but when you consider the time it takes to get them off and then to get them to fit properly on your car, it just isn't worth it. We found the new parts fit really well," Brand says.
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Father's Day Is the Perfect Time to Kick off Restoration of America's Favorite Classic, the 1964-66 Ford Mustang
By FELICIA DECHTER Contributor June 12, 2012 11:36AM
Ernest Hemingway's boyhood home in Oak Park is for sale, listing at $525,000.
storyidforme: 31987641 tmspicid: 9481366 fileheaderid: 4315754
Updated: June 12, 2012 7:55PM
A piece of local history was sold today with the closing of Ernest Hemingways boyhood home in Oak Park.
The 4,100-square-foot house at 600 N. Kenilworth was sold by the Ernest Hemingway Foundation to an Oak Park family, Kurt and Mary Jane Neumann, for $525,000.
The house has great bones, and our goal is uncover many of its original features, said Mary Jane Neumann. We plan to use the Hemingways floor plans as a guide to the restoration.
The first step is to reopen the master stairway between the first and second floors and then repair the exterior. Overall, we see this as a multi-year project and a labor of love.
I have sold many fantastic homes, EE Roberts, Spencer, Frankies (Frank Lloyd Wright), but in the past 13 years this has been one of the most interesting and rewarding, said Steve Scheuring, the selling agent with the Oak Park-based Baird & Warner.
The home garnered international attention after news that it was on the market went viral on Feb. 21. By March 8, it was under contract for its asking price, Scheuring said. The showing schedule became so intense that Scheuring had to create mandated time slots which were, booked solid and then some. He had inquiries from as far away as Japan and even had a couple fly in from Canada to take a look.
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Hemingway home sold to Oak Park couple; restoration planned
Developer Clive Berghofers 52-block housing estate on the corner of Tarlington and Ramsay Sts in Middle Ridge is set to hit the market in the next fortnight.
DAVE NOONAN
TOOWOOMBA has been riding in the fast lane of Australia's two-speed economy, with home building approvals up 75% year-on-year in the three months to April.
Housing Industry Association Queensland executive director Warwick Temby said the figures were directly linked to the city's proximity to major resource developments in the Surat Basin.
He said the boost represented a return to health for the housing industry after "very depressed levels of last year for the state as a whole".
"Home building approvals are up 75% in Toowoomba, 83% in Rockhampton and 84% in Gladstone on the same period in 2011," he said.
"This is a direct result of the massive investment that is taking place in the resources sector."
Developer Clive Berghofer warned land sales had slowed in recent months.
Of the 65 new Highfields housing blocks he put on the market in January, 58 were sold before the State Government's $10,000 building boost grant expired on April 30.
"Inquiries have come to a stop since then," he said.
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Home building approvals up 75%
BIRD, ROBERT P., Scranton, Wednesday, 10 a.m., Semian Funeral Home, 704 Union St., Taylor, by the Rev. Wayne Shontz. Interment, Fairview Memorial Park, Elmhurst. Calling hours today, 5 to 8 p.m. Contributions: Greater Pennsylvania Chapter, Alzheimer's Association, 57 N. Franklin St., Wilkes-Barre, PA 18701.
BRIZINSKI, CATHERINE J., Dickson City, Wednesday, 9:30 a.m., Frank T. Mazur Funeral Home Inc., 601 Dundaff St., Dickson City. Mass, 10, St. Mary's Visitation Church, Dickson City. Interment, Our Mother of Sorrows Cemetery, Finch Hill. Calling hours Wednesday, 8:30 to 9:30. Condolences: http://www.mazur funeralhome.com.
BURNETT, THE REV. KENNETH AARON "DUKE," Wilkes-Barre, Wednesday, noon, Kniffen-O'Malley Funeral Home Inc., 465 S. Main St., Wilkes-Barre, by the Rev. Eric Brown. Calling hours today, 5 to 8 p.m., and Wednesday, 11 a.m. to service. Donations: Bethel AME Church Building Fund, 611 Hepburn Street, Williamsport, PA. Condolences: BestLifeTributes.com.
CIULLO, ROCCO N., West Scranton and Gino Merli Veterans Center, today, Patrick F. Guido Funeral Home, 120 S. Main Ave., Scranton. Mass, 9:30 a.m., St. Lucy's Church, 949 Scranton St., Scranton. Interment with military honors, Cathedral Cemetery. Contributions: St. Lucy's Church Restoration Fund, 949 Scranton St., Scranton, PA 18504. Condolences: patrickguidofuneralhome.com.
CUNNINGHAM, JESSICA FAITH McDONALD, Scranton, today, 9:45 a.m., Kearney Funeral Home Inc., 125 N. Main Ave., Scranton. Mass, 10:30, Holy Rosary Church, 316 William St., Scranton, by the Rev. Cyril Edwards, pastor. Interment, Cathedral Cemetery. Calling hours today, 9 to service. Contributions: Mary, Mother of God, Parish, 316 William St., Scranton, PA 18508. Condolences: KearneyFuneral Home.com.
DUBAS, ROBERT M., Dickson City, today, 10 a.m., Louis M. Margotta Funeral Home, 511 Church St., Jessup. Interment, St. Adalbert's Cemetery, Dickson City. Condolences: margottafuneral homes.com.
FRENAK, MARGARET M. "MARGIE," Jessup, today, 9:30 a.m., Arthur A. Albini Funeral Home, 1003 Church St., Jessup. Divine Liturgy, 10, Holy Ghost Byzantine Catholic Church, First Avenue, Jessup. Interment, St. Michael's Cemetery, Jessup. Contributions: Holy Ghost Byzantine Catholic Church, 313 First Ave., Jessup, PA 18434.
HANNOCK, MARY PIJAR, formerly of Olyphant, Monday, Mass, St. Patrick's Church, Olyphant, by the Rev. Raj A. Nalazala, assistant pastor of Holy Cross Parish, Olyphant. Pallbearers: attorney Edward and Kevin Krowiak; Gregory and Richard Pijar; Robert Brophy and Bernie Rutkowski, nephews. Interment, St. Michael the Archangel Cemetery, Olyphant.
HOLMES, ALICE, Clarks Green, Wednesday, Mass, 10 a.m., Church of St. Gregory, 330 N. Abington Road, Clarks Green, by the Rev. John M. Lapera, pastor, and Monsignor John H. Louis, pastor emeritus. Interment, Our Mother of Sorrows Cemetery, Finch Hill. Visitation, today, 4 to 7 p.m. Donations: Friends of the Poor, 2300 Adams Ave., Scranton, PA 18509. Arrangements: Jennings-Calvey Funeral and Cremation Services Inc., 111 Colburn Avenue, Clarks Summit, PA 18411. Condolences: jenningscalvey.com.
JEZIERSKI, JOHN A., Dickson City, Monday, Frank T. Mazur Funeral Home Inc., Dickson City, Mass, St. Mary's Visitation Church, Dickson City, by Monsignor Patrick Pratico. Pallbearers: Thomas and George Novak; and Chester Jr. and Robert Jezierski. Interment, St. Mary's Cemetery, Dickson City.
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funeral notices
The State Controlling Board has released $396,859 to put a new basement under the historic Bimeler House Museum, which has been closed to the public since it was damaged by a flood in 2005.
The Controlling Board approved $661,319 on Monday to the Ohio Historical Society, which owns the Bimeler House, to make repairs and maintain historical sites throughout the state.
We want to get the building on a firm foundation so there is no more damage to it, said George Kane, director of historic sites and facilities for the historical society.
Other projects being funded out of the $661,319 include replacement of the furnace at the Zoar Bakery and Dairy and repairs to the foundation and front porch of the Zoar Number One House.
The Bimeler House, built in 1868, sustained some of the worst damage during flooding that hit the village in January 2005.
Floodwaters caused part of the buildings foundation to cave in, which led to the cracks in the house that could be seen from the exterior. It no longer was safe to allow visitors inside the building. All the artifacts inside were removed.
During a second flood in the spring of 2008, the Bimeler House had 7 feet of water in its basement.
Kane estimated that it will cost about $750,000 to get the structure into a condition in which it once again can receive visitors. Grants and insurance will pay some of that cost, but the society still needs to raise about $225,000 to complete the restoration.
The society hopes to raise the rest of the money within a year, he said.
Because the building has been unheated for so many years, it needs extensive interior work, including fixing cracked plaster, redoing interior finishes, replacing the furnace and the electrical panel and eliminating mold.
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Zoar Bimeler House restoration in ‘home stretch’