With more than half of Vita Serena demolished, an attorney for the landmarked homes owners will request variances from the Town Council on Wednesday that would move reconstruction forward.

Removal of weak roof sections led to the collapse of the homes western wall in July. In September, the contractor working on the restoration project demolished the center, eastern portion of the Palladian-style home. Thats when the Landmarks Preservation Commission approved additional demolition because of structural problems caused by wood rot and termites.

Attorney Maura Ziska will ask the council for variances that would allow the home, at 105 Clarendon Ave., to be reconstructed to its original dimensions. Architect Marion Sims Wyeth designed Vita Serena in 1926.

When more than half of an existing homes material is removed, property owners have to follow current zoning codes related to height, property setbacks and other factors.

Todays building code requires the building be set back a minimum of 30 feet from the western property line. Ziska is asking to reduce that to 2.2 feet-13 feet. She also wants permission to install a sloped roof instead of a flat roof, to reduce another setback from a minimum of 35 feet to 19.8-29.4 feet and to build to a height of 26 feet instead of 25 feet.

In November, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted 5-2 to advise the council that approving the variances would not negatively impact the architecture of the landmark.

The commission approved the restoration and expansion project in late 2013. Progress has been bumpy, largely because of the condition of the 88-year-old structure.

In July, building officials visited the site after the homes primary western wall collapsed. Removing the second-floor roof, which had been approved, precipitated the collapse.

On Sept. 4, the town ordered work to stop after learning the 20-foot, easternmost block of the house had been demolished two days earlier without permission. On Sept. 17, the Landmarks board voted 6-1 to approve that demolition and the demolition of the rest of Vita Serena. Chairman William Cooley dissented.

At that meeting, structural engineer Albert Gargiulo detailed and showed evidence of extensive wood rot and termite damage.

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Owners seek construction variances for Vita Serena

LANSING, Mich. The Michigan House of Representatives has approved a state version of the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) despiteopposition from those who claim that the bill will give license to people of faith to discriminate.

HB 5958cleared the House Judiciary Committee 7-4 on Thursday, and then moved on to the full House, where it also passed 59-50. It now moves to the Senate for consideration, and if passed, will then be sent to the desk of Gov. Rick Snyder (R).

The bill essentially mirrors the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which was signed into law in 1993 by then-President Bill Clinton, However, as the law only applies on a federal level, the U.S. Supreme Court has urged states to enact their own RFRA to protect citizens.

The free exercise of religion is an inherent, fundamental,and unalienable right secured by Article 1 of the state Constitution of 1963 and the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, the proposed statute reads.

Itthen uses federal legal standards to mandate that laws cannot be used to substantially burden the religious beliefs of inhabitants, unless the law serves a compelling government interest and is only uses the least restrictive means to further that specific interest. The proposal also allows those who believe that a law violates their religious liberty to bring a legal challenge against it, such as did companies like Hobby Lobby.

I support individual liberty and I support religious freedom, House Speaker Jase Bolger (R) declared Thursday to the Judiciary Committee. I have been horrified as some have claimed that a persons faith should only be practiced while hiding in their home or in their church.

But Bolger has faced opposition from those who state that the billpromotes discrimination. Democratic members who spoke against the RFRA specifically cited their disagreement with allowing businesses to declinehomosexuals should their requestviolate the conscience of the owner, or allowing pharmacies to refuse to dispense abortifacients due to their religious beliefs.

This bill moves us in a new and uncharted direction. It requires me and others to practice the faith of our employers, grocers and pharmacists, Rep. Vicki Barnett (D-Farmington Hills) told those gathered. I should not be forced to follow the religion of my pharmacist.

But Bolger said that the bill is not new at all, since it is only modeled after federal law to also ensure protections on a state level.

Do you think that Bill Clinton and Ted Kennedy were extremists? he told MSNBC. We modeled [this bill] directly after what they did. Im baffled to hear that what were doing is out of line.

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Michigan House Approves Religious Freedom Restoration Act Despite Opposition

HEARTS maintained their 100 per cent home league record this season to stay top of the table following a 4-1 win against Queen of the South.

Striker James Keatings gave Hearts a half-time lead and although Iain Russell's early second-half penalty drew Queen of the South level, skipper Danny Wilson, Prince Buaben and Adam Eckersley all struck after the break to clinch an eighth straight home win.

Keatings was first to react to a loose ball in the penalty area and lashed a rising shot high into the net for his fifth goal of the season in the 19th minute.

Hearts spurned the chance to double their lead in the 24th minute after Callum Paterson had been fouled in the area when Buaben struck his subsequent spot-kick against a post.

The visitors equalised in the 56th minute from the penalty spot after Jamie Walker's foul on Ian McShane, with Russell firing his effort into the bottom corner.

But Hearts regained their lead 11 minutes later when Wilson climbed highest to head Keatings' corner into the top corner.

Buaben produced a moment of magic before firing a low shot into the bottom corner in the 74th minute and Eckersley sealed victory when he slammed home Billy King's cross five minutes later.

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Hearts 4 Queen of the South 1: Convincing win over Queens keeps Tynecastle side clear at the top

While some preservationists are concerned that one of the city's pioneer homes may soon be demolished, they're just as worried about the potential damage the work could cause to a centuries-old Indian mound underneath it.

The Historic Preservation Board has approved the demolition of the 1918 Rivermont House along the New River in Sailboat Bend. It sits atop the city's most significant remaining Tequesta Indian mound, which archaeologists say is teeming with artifacts.

Opponents of the decision are asking the City Commission to intervene because of the significant history at risk. The commission would have to vote to do so at its Dec. 17 meeting.

"The site and the house should be preserved if we, as a city, are the least bit interested in historic preservation," Steve Glassman, president of the Broward Trust for Historic Preservation, said in his request for commission action. He said both the Rivermont House and the site are eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places.

But consultants for the owner of the property at 1016 Waverly Road said any historic value to the home has long been lost because of numerous alterations over the years and the building's ongoing deterioration. All that's left from the original structure is a "basement and a floor," they said.

Owner Michelle Grosman has agreed to take steps during demolition to protect any further damage to the mound, which is part of a larger complex of Indian mounds and ridges. The mounds, known as middens, run parallel to the river and contain scraps from earlier civilizations that relied on the river for survival.

"In a sense, we're digging in a garbage pit, but it's a fascinating garbage pit," said Robert Carr of Archaeological and Historical Conservancy Inc., hired by Grosman to survey the site. "This is how archaeologists reconstruct what was going on in any particular location."

Early results from 21, 3-foot-deep, 20-inch-square holes Carr's firm has dug and sifted through erased any doubts about the site.

"We are finding evidence of prehistoric Tequesta culture going back by our estimate at this point at least 700, possibly 1,000 years, and even earlier," Carr said. "We've found literally thousands of objects, mostly pieces, small pieces of animal bone, lots of shell oysters, things that would be typical of a habitation site."

They also found a human tooth a remain that required state and county officials to be notified.

Excerpt from:
Pioneer home's demolition could damage historic Indian mound

Published on December 04, 2014 Sackville's only National Historic site home to university president, vice-chancellor

SACKVILLE, NB Mount Allison University has announced a $1.5-million gift dedicated to preserving and reviving an important part of campus and Canadian history.

Submitted

Mount Allison University graduates Robert and Sue Winsor recently donated the funds ($1.5M) that made the restoration of Hammond House possible.

Montreal residents and Mount Allison alumni Robert and Susan Winsor donated the funds that made the restoration of Hammond House possible. The house is Sackvilles only registered National Historic Site and the former residence of famed painter John Hammond. It is once again the official residence of the university president and vice-chancellor.

We are pleased to be able to restore Hammond House, one of only a handful of National Historic Sites in New Brunswick, said Robert Inglis, Mount Allisons vice-president, finance and administration. The project helps preserve a significant home for the University, and the wider community. We thank the Winsors for their generous gift to Mount Allison.

Susan Winsor said Hammond House is an important part of Mount Allisons history.

The presidents house is a busy intellectual and social venue at a school like Mount Allison and we are pleased to support this project and see the house become a hub of activity on campus once again, she said.

University president and vice-chancellor Dr. Robert Campbell and his family host an average of 60 public events each year, welcoming students, faculty, staff, alumni, authors, artists, and athletes to Hammond House. These kinds of opportunities provide the unique learning experiences and connections for students for which Mount Allison is known.

In recognition of the gift, the double parlour on the main floor of Hammond House will be named Winsor Lounge. This area is the main venue for events and gatherings hosted by the president and his family throughout the year.

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Mount Allison alumni give $1.5 million to Hammond House

Restoration work on the Washington Monument in Baltimore's Mount Vernon Square was nerve-wracking and painstaking, but well worth the wait.

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The Washington Monument is the spot to which Baltimore turns every holiday season for a spectacular light display, but it is also a place of national significance. When the cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1815, it became the first public memorial to honor George Washington.

But sometimes even a masterpiece needs a touchup. There are thousands of pieces of marble on the structure, and most had some kind of damage from age or deterioration or constant use. Ultimately, the restoration team has had to replace only about three of the stones.

"Every time they lift one of the 1,000-pound pieces of stone, it's just a little nerve-wracking," said Lance Humphries, the historian leading a $5.5 million monument restoration project for the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy.

Since work began in January, Humphries has been standing by as crews lift and reposition nearly every piece of marble all the way up to the statue of George Washington.

"It just shows that we care about these things which are important to the city," Humphries said. "This is a symbol of our city."

The team has also shored up and repointed the entire structure, replacing thousands of rusted-out iron support brackets, the staples holding it all together, with stainless steel. The crews have installed new electrical systems, including power for the holiday lights, and finally fixed the roof, which had been leaking since the 1840s.

Last week, crews were in the home stretch of their battle against 200 years of water damage and delayed maintenance. The bulk of the work that remains is on the inside. The historic stucco and plaster finishes in the public space have been hiding private messages from the past for the last two centuries.

"One of our earliest discoveries were the signatures in the basement from 1819 to 1829, probably just tourists who came here," Humphries said.

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Restoration work shores up Washington Monument

Thomas Ondrey, Plain Dealer

MEDINA, Ohio - Ohio's attorney general sued anow-closedMedina roofing company, accusing it of violating state consumer laws by taking money without doing the promised work.

Attorney General Mike DeWine sued Joseph Allen, of Fairlawn, and his Medina-based business, A Ki Restoration, for violations of state consumer protection laws.

The office said it knew of 24 consumer complaints. It estimated consumer losses at approximately $100,000.

The company's phone number has been disconnected.

In announcing the suit, which was filed in Summit County Common Pleas Court, the attorney general warned Ohio homeowners to check the Better Business Bureau records of home repair companies before they hire. The office also urged people to pay no more than a third of a home-repair contract in advance.

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State sues Medina-based A Ki Restoration over unfinished home roofing jobs

CARMEL, Ind. (WISH) The terms fixer-upper and flipping a house have become part of the vocabulary for people who do the fixing.

Once in awhile, that work is done on local landmarks. Theres one you may have seen on a suburban drive in Carmel over the years. It had deteriorated enough that demolition became a possibility. But, thats no longer true for a place called the McShane House.

Emily Ehrgott and her family found what they wanted at the house, but at a time it didnt look so great.

It was falling down, Ehrgott said.

The house is the heart of a picture a photographer called Fear. Thats how run down it was when the Ehrgotts bought it.

It was kind of twice as much as what we expected, Ehrgott said.

After more than a year of rebuilding and blogging about it they restored the McShane House along Rangeline Road in Carmel.

It was a house that really wasnt touched very much, Ehrgott said. A lot of people just moved in and kind of painted. And so this was a house that we felt like we could bring back to life pretty easily.

And they did buying it in August of 2013, fixing it, then moving in this past August.

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Family fixes up historic Carmel home saved from demolition

A house is fully engulfed with flames in the midst of the Black Forest Fire northeast of Colorado Springs on June 12, 2013. (Helen H. Richardson, Denver Post file)

There are 154 new homes in the Black Forest neighborhood, and nearly 18 months after the devastating fire, more than half of the hundreds of houses destroyed are on track to being rebuilt.

But home construction is a small part of how Black Forest residents measure recovery, a process that could involve decades of forest restoration and changing the community's culture.

The 2013 Black Forest fire was El Paso County's second devastating blaze in two years, and recovery managers quickly learned that Black Forest could not compare to the 2012 Waldo Canyon fire.

When Eddie Bracken formed the recovery nonprofit Black Forest Together, the plan was to follow the example of Colorado Springs Together, another nonprofit that organized debris removal and focused on rebuilding the 347 homes destroyed in the Mountain Shadows neighborhood in 2012.

But as residents grappled with homeless livestock, thousands of charred trees and the loss of home businesses, it became clear that Black Forest would have to forge its own path to recovery.

Unlike the more suburban Mountain Shadows, Black Forest is an isolated community where residents sought solitude among the dense ponderosa pines. Now, those living trees have become the area's greatest hazard because of decades of overgrowth.

Black Forest Together's focus is on the future of the forest, said Scott MacDonald, Black Forest Together's forest recovery program director.

MacDonald and Kathy Russell, a resident and nonprofit volunteer, have encouraged neighbors to band together and create community fire mitigation plans that require them to cut down live trees.

"There's a heavier price to pay" if residents don't mitigate, Russell said. "If you love the forest, you have to cut some of it down."

Continue reading here:
Reconstructing Black Forest

By - Associated Press - Sunday, November 30, 2014

JONESBORO, Ark. (AP) - Hoping to collect money for a barn-raising at the site of the boyhood home of country music legend Johnny Cash, the Arkansas State University Alumni Association is planning an online fundraising campaign for Tuesday.

The campaign is scheduled for what is being called Giving Tuesday, with the association asking alumni, friends of the university and Johnny Cash fans to contribute.

Were trying to counteract the commercialism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday with Giving Tuesday, Elaine Poynter, director of annual giving at the A-State Alumni office, told the Jonesboro Sun (http://bit.ly/1B36baI). Its a chance for people to give back.

Arkansas States Heritage Sites program has overseen the renovation and restoration of the Historic Dyess Colony and the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home in northeastern Arkansas.

In the book Recollections by J. R. Cash, by Cashs daughter, Tara Cash Schwoebel, she said the barn - especially the hayloft - has sentimental value as a special place where her father liked being alone as a boy. Plans for the barn include an education center and a classroom for visiting school groups.

Using archival photographs as a guide, Poynter said the plan is to eventually add a chicken coop, a smokehouse and an outhouse at the site.

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Online: http://www.AstateAlumni.org/GivingTuesday

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Barn-raising planned at Johnny Cash home