HealthMike Milen is a chief executive besotted with bikes whose charity - he says - tells people what they need to hear, but would not always rather hear."

Monday, 15th February 2021, 12:31 pm

His Redcar and Cleveland Voluntary Development Agency (RCVDA) is involved in everything from subsidised car hire, to environmentally-friendly housing, to community broadband projects.

However many people wont be familar with it. He talks to Local Democracy Reporter Stuart Arnold about how the elastic holding the voluntary sector together is becoming frayed, along with his hopes for the future.

Redcar and Cleveland Voluntary Development Agency has been in existence for more than 35 years. We exist to support, promote and develop volunteering and the voluntary sector and are striving to achieve this in an ever changing and more complex world. We have sister organisations attempting to deliver on the same mission in local authority areas across England to bring groups and sectors together, to share insight and intelligence and to help amplify the voice of groups and communities.

And what exactly does RCVDA do?

We help individuals who are interested in volunteering find the opportunities that best fit their requirements, we pull together meetings and conversations and try to make sure information, ideas and intelligence flows back and forth across the voluntary sector, also involving other stakeholders like health bodies and local government.

We help people set up new groups, social enterprises and charities and we offer organisations help with funding and other organisational challenges. We are often the ones telling people what they need to know, but would rather not hear.

Our staff have a desire to see local people take a lead on initiatives that help shift power and control towards communities and support improvements in the quality of life locally.

We have a board that trusts the staff, staff that trust and support each other and have a belief that the best solutions, even to the most complex social issues, start with local people making decisions about what matters to them.

We have a good relationship with Redcar and Cleveland Council and receive core grant funding from them, but nowadays like many organisations we have had to develop trading activities that assist in funding our activities.

What sort of activities do you mean?

Redcar and Cleveland Council helped us establish a subsidised car hire project to help people access job opportunities that wouldnt have been possible using public transport. We also run the Tees Valley Wheels 2 Work scheme on behalf of the Tees Valley Combined Authority.

We are in the process of developing a new urban mountain biking facility and are helping to roll out a community broadband service in Hartlepool. We are bidding to deliver employability support programmes, have developed our own housing company and we own a part of a modular housing business.

Why did you branch out into housing?

We work a lot with South Tees Public Health trying to address some of the long-term health inequalities that plague the area.

Through our core charity support work we have developed a partnership with a local social enterprise, Living Sober, that has seen us become increasingly involved in the development of housing for recovering addicts based on the US Oxford House model, such as Cromwell House in South Bank.

Having taken the decision to become a socially-aware housing association primarily in support of one niche, but important housing project, it soon became clear that there were many groups with a desire to progress housing related projects and numerous areas where the private rental and existing social housing market was failing to meet the needs of local people.

We could have marched or campaigned or lobbied, but to be honest we preferred to act. So we are now looking to disrupt things a bit and bring high quality housing solutions to those who generally have to accept what they are offered.

We are building eco-powered homes so that people dont have to worry about fuel poverty, basing them around small communities so that people have a chance to get to know their neighbours and setting up electric pool car schemes for residents so that they can remain independent for longer.

We will not solve the housing or public health problem that blight the area on our own, but hopefully we can shake things up and get other people engaged in providing solutions. We have made a few mistakes along the way and may make a few more, but we are learning and we will keep going.

What is the obsession with bikes?

I am besotted with bikes, I have ridden since I was a child and I try to ride as much as possible now. I think the bicycle is one of the most important inventions ever made.

As a child it gave me the freedom to travel and explore, as a teenager it provided me with a network of friends and I even met my wife through cycling. It has provided me with the things I value most in life and I want as many people as possible to get the opportunity to ride a bike.

I dont feel at risk when I ride, but I recognise that for some people, when starting out, or returning to cycling, traffic often makes them feel vulnerable. So we need places where people can gain confidence to learn to ride and become more assertive road users.

We have worked with Steve Mussett, Redcar and Clevelands Sport Development Lead, to pull together a proposal for development of a local urban mountain biking facility and we hope to hear back within the next couple of weeks from British Cycling whether or not they are going to back the project with a significant investment.

What next for RCVDA then?

Last year was tough and 2021 looks as though it will again be a challenging year for everyone. Many charities and local groups have stepped up during the pandemic to help their neighbours, their clients, or just those in need in whatever way they could, but the elastic that holds the voluntary sector together is beginning to fray.

Just as in the health service and many other areas relief from lockdown measures cannot come too soon, people and organisations are tired. I worry that we will lose some good local organisations to exhaustion or through financial difficulty.

But we know that the voluntary sector, like the population of the area, is resilient and I think in the longer term we will grow back stronger.I take some of what the Government says with a little scepticism, but I do think we will continue to benefit from significant inward investment.

There may be new and shiny buildings, but the challenge for the wider voluntary and community sector is how do we make sure we and the people we work with most closely dont miss out on a fair share of the rewards from any investment that comes our way.

What keeps you personally going?

I suppose I get up every day striving to make RCVDA irrelevant and myself redundant.

I am an optimist, I want to believe that the system will eventually figure out how to function so that not as many people fall through the gaps, that communities become much more assertive and demanding of themselves and others and agitate for change.

I want to see this as an area where the young choose to leave for the experience available elsewhere, rather than because they dont think opportunities exist for them here. I think we will probably be busy for a few years yet, but that does not mean positive change wont or cant happen.

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Meet the bike-loving chief executive who wants to make his charity and himself redundant - Yorkshire Post

Antony House and Roderick House will become one when the space between them is filled

The two blocks, Antony House and Roderick House, are getting a tier of two-storey modular houses laid on their roofs and the space between them is being filled in with more prefab flats to turn Antony & Roderick into a single building.

The new development also includes bookends at each end of the existing buildings.

The development for Lambeth & Southwark Housing Association (LSHA), designed by HTA Design, will add 30 more affordable homes, in a mix of one- and two-bedroom flats.

Adston Construction is Apexs design and build contractor.

The year-long project is set for practical completion in February 2022, offering a blend of light gauge steel (LGS) modular construction on the rooftop units and on-site LGS panelised for the bookends and infill. All 30 units will be built off-site.

Initial works will remove the existing pitched roofs before a structural steel exo-skeleton is positioned over the existing building. Once this is in place, the modular apartments will be craned onto the rooftop.

Apex Airspace chief executive Arshad Bhatti said: Our collaboration with LSHA demonstrates our ability to unlock a previously untapped supply of affordable housing in London and be able to deliver policy compliant rented accommodation in partnership with local authorities and housing associations.

He added: Our pioneering model is a blueprint for other councils and housing associations to follow suit and adopt innovative solutions to address the lack of affordable housing in London.

Modular apartments are to be added on top, in the middle, and at each end of the existing blocks

Apex Airspace construction director Jonathan Poole added: The 100% affordable development of 30 new homes will be the UKs first airspace project to be built on top of and connecting two existing residential buildings. The modular construction will save the residents from normal construction works disruption, particularly with the limited space surrounding the existing building.

Adston Construction manager David Rainey said: Antony and Roderick House is a fantastic project to be involved in and Adston are delighted to be appointed by Apex Airspace for the design and delivery of these new homes. This is an innovative and new direction in the expansion and extension of existing buildings, and we believe the first of many sustainable residential developments of this type.

Lambeth & Southwark Housing Association chief executive Mark Jackson said: As a housing association we need to ensure we are maximising our existing stock in the capital. We have been impressed by Apexs model and feel this is a tangible solution for fellow housing associations to consider.

Got a story? Email news@theconstructionindex.co.uk

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Work starts on Bermondsey airspace development - The Construction Index

Autovol builds with people and robots.

NAMPA, Idaho (PRWEB) February 05, 2021

Just over two years since breaking ground, Autovol is now using automation in new ways as it nears completion of its first major affordable housing project. The project, Virginia Street Studios, will make high quality apartment homes more affordable to seniors in San Jose, one of Americas 10 most expensive cities.

The 400,000 square foot Autovol factory has now successfully deployed its unique combination of construction trades and robotic automation. Autovol has hired more than 100 employees, which the company calls Solutioneers. Led by CEO Rick Murdock and co-developed by The Pacific Companies, Autovol is pioneering a new kind of modular construction.

Automation and robotics will lead the world into the future of housing, Murdock said. What were doing hasnt been attempted before. Our investors and Solutioneers leaned in with lots of confidence, and now were seeing great results that prove they were right.

According to Murdock, automated modular construction is designed to take the back-breaking work off of people, and use new techniques that werent humanly possible. Robotics empower the company to create new kinds of careers and a culture designed to raise the bar of career satisfaction in construction, Murdock said. The company is staffing up toward an expected team of 300-plus Solutioneers, and already has 600 modular units on its docket, with capacity for more.

Besides its own team of Solutioneers, Autovol has helped create over 100 jobs for the various companies helping build, tool-up, and service this first-of-its kind factory. One of these is House of Design, an automation and robotics firm also based in Nampa, Idaho. According to Shane Dittrich, House of Design founder, the company has grown by helping develop this new kind of automation.

The collaborative effort of people and industrial robots in the off-site construction space provides endless opportunities. We cant solve the problems of unavailable labor and housing affordability without automation, Dittrich said. We also dont solve these problems without visionary companies willing to take a chance and endure unavoidable speedbumps on the road to extraordinary success. We applaud Autovol for their commitment and were excited to be on the forefront of realized robotics for construction technology.

Virginia Studios will be a five-story, 301-unit complex that will be over-podium, including underground parking. Automation is doing a substantial portion of the work, with Solutioneers skilled in the construction trades doing finishing work and other key tasks.

To learn more about Autovol, its vision, culture, current openings, and the Virginia Street Studios project, visit the companys just-updated website at http://www.autovol.com

For more information about House of Design Robotics, one of Idahos leading automation companies, visit http://www.thehouseofdesign.com

For information about Pacific Companies, developer of The Virginia Street project, and a national leader in affordable housing development, visit http://www.tpchousing.com

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Autovol Robots and Solutioneers Now Building Affordable Housing - PR Web

Modular housebuilder TopHat has been appointed by developer Urban & Civic at a 6,200 home development in Warwickshire.

TopHat will build 38 homes as part of the first phase of the 1,200 acre scheme in Houlton, a joint venture between Urban & Civic and Aviva Investors.

The homes, which will be the developers first built using modular off-site construction, will be manufactured in single-storey modules at TopHats factory in Derby before being transported to Houlton later this month.

Urban & Civic said the homes will provide significant improvements in energy efficiency over current building standards.

Housebuilders Davidsons Homes, Redrow Homes, Morris Homes and Crest Nicholson are also working on the scheme, which will include a secondary school, two primary schools, a nursery and a convenience store.

A former director at TopHat, Mike Ormesher, launched an alliance of 18 northern housing associations earlier this month with a goal of building 9,000 offsite homes a year by 2023.

The Offsite Homes Alliance, which is being driven by housing association Great Places, says it will provide a customisable catalogue of designs for its partners with a focus on as many MMC and offsite technologies as possible.

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TopHat to build modular homes at Urban & Civic's 6200-home project - Housing Today

The New Report Modular Homes Market published by Reports Web, covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.

The report firstly introduced the Modular Homes basics: definitions, classifications, applications and market overview; product specifications; manufacturing processes; cost structures, raw materials and so on. Then it analyzed the worlds main region market conditions, including the product price, profit, capacity, production, supply, demand and market growth rate and forecast etc. In the end, the report introduced new project SWOT analysis, investment feasibility analysis, and investment return analysis.

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Major Manufacturer Detail:

Three Sinha, Olinco Engineering , Nuwani Construction , LAUGFS Holdings, Amano construction , Winmo , Buffalo Building Solutions

Based on the industrial chain, this report mainly elaborates the definition, types, applications and major players of Modular Homes market in details. Deep analysis about market status (2014-2019), enterprise competition pattern, advantages and disadvantages of enterprise products, industry development trends (2020-2026), regional industrial layout characteristics and policies has also be included.

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Some of the main geographies included in this study:North America (United States and Canada and rest of North America)Europe (Germany, France, Italy and rest of Europe)Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, South Korea and the rest of Asia-Pacific)LAMEA (Brazil, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the rest of LAMEA)

Table of Contents:

Coverage:It includes key manufacturers covered, key market segments, the scope of products offered in the global Modular Homesmarket, years considered, and study objectives. Additionally, it touches the segmentation study provided in the report on the basis of the type of product and application.

Executive Summary:It gives a summary of key studies, market growth rate, competitive landscape, market drivers, trends, and issues, and macroscopic indicators.

Production by Region:Here, the report provides information related to import and export, production, revenue, and key players of all regional markets studied.

Profile of Manufacturers:Each player profiled in this section is studied on the basis of SWOT analysis, their products, production, value, capacity, and other vital factors.

Reasons to buy:

Major Topics Covered in this Report

Chapter 1 Study Coverage

Chapter 2 Executive Summary

Chapter 3 Market Size by Manufacturers

Chapter 4 Production by Regions

Chapter 5 Consumption by Regions

Chapter 6 Market Size by Type

Chapter 7 Market Size by Application

Chapter 8 Manufacturers Profiles

Chapter 9 Production Forecasts

Chapter 10 Consumption Forecast

Chapter 11 Upstream, Industry Chain and Downstream Customers Analysis

Chapter 12 Opportunities & Challenges, Threat and Affecting Factors

Chapter 13 Key Findings

Chapter 14 Appendi

About Us

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Modular Homes Market Set to Expand by 2021-2026 Focusing on Key Players Three Sinha, Olinco Engineering , Nuwani Construction , LAUGFS Holdings - The...

Published 14 January 2021

Stacey Cassidy on modular housing in Scotland and its role in creating a more sustainable housing sector.

According to the UK Green Building Council, the built environment weighs heavily on the UKs carbon emissions, contributing up to 40% of our carbon footprint. Given the imperative to reach net-zero carbon emissions in Scotland by 2045 to tackle climate change, the property sector will need to play its part. Whilst this challenge looms large, the growth of modular and offsite manufacturing can provide a solution to the housing sectors environmental impact, helping to create a more sustainable economy.

There are three main ways in which modular housing can contribute to this through offsite manufacturing, by developing energy efficient homes and by ensuring a better use of raw materials.

Concentrating fabrication in offsite facilities provides key advantages, notably the opportunity to use clean energy for most of the construction process by ensuring factories are powered by renewables. Such industrial facilities are ideal for the co-location of clean infrastructure (such as wind turbines, solar PV), reducing reliance on carbonised energy sources to power development.

Offsite construction also helps create economies of scale and fosters the development of more efficient local supply chains, both of which can reduce carbon emissions. Indeed, a report published last year by the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre revealed 15 of the largest manufacturing companies operating in Scotland reported that 85% of the products sourced came from suppliers within Scotland.

The decrease in transportation brought about by bringing building for numerous developments under one roof can also minimise traffic and pollution, while retaining a skilled, factory labour force raises productivity levels to help diminish both financial and environmental costs. The study found that offsite manufacturing can reduce the embodied emissions of building materials by 86%, that of the transportation of building materials by 18% and the resource consumption of equipment and techniques by 10%.

Modular can therefore impact on the sectors fossil fuel emissions during housebuilding but it can equally do so during the propertys lifecycle. Indeed, one of the core benefits of modular housing is that large volumes of homes can be designed with energy efficiency at their heart from the outset. Modern materials can be used en-masse to create highly energy efficient units that reduce heat loss and energy wastage, in turn cutting energy consumption and bills for occupiers.

To take this further, modular homes could even be designed to be carbon neutral from inception, powered by solar panels. These sustainable homes already exist in traditional housebuilding but the efficiencies enabled by offsite manufacturing offer the possibility of such homes becoming far more widespread at an affordable price.

Another important environmental advantage of modular housing is greater efficiency in the use of raw materials. Not only can offsite manufacturing allow for centralised resourcing to ensure the use of sustainably sourced materials at a large scale, but it has been shown to enhance recycling rates during housebuilding, cutting waste and carbon emissions (as fewer raw materials need to be brought in).

Developing homes made of units that are easier to assemble and deconstruct also means that widespread recycling of materials will be possible upon dis-assembly. Indeed, the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre report found modular construction to be more resource-efficient, with 86% of waste materials recycled compared to 75% in traditional construction. Given how the industry accounts for approximately 50% of all waste in Scotland, this recycling uptick would greatly contribute to Holyroods Circular Economy Strategy for Scotland.

There is clearly much to be optimistic about but more needs to be done to bring modular housing to maturity. The Scottish Government reports that 80% of new homes in Scotland are already built using offsite construction but most of these only make use of timber frames built offsite rather than wholesale modular units. For modular housing to really take-off, several barriers need to be taken down.

The first of these is the large investment needed to put large modular housing factories into operation and ensure sufficient manufacturing capacity. Another concern is the fact that once these facilities are up and running developers need to pay a large portion of the costs of development upfront to the manufacturer before onsite assembly begins, which can have negative consequences on demand, especially in a risk-averse context. The lack of local skilled labour and local supply chains also provides an obstacle to the rapid acceleration of modular housing.

These challenges are surmountable however and in recent years Scotland has seen numerous modular projects take-off from Edinburgh to the Highlands, notably in the social and affordable housing sector. Businesses and the government now need to come together to formulate an industrial strategy capable of unleashing modular housing.

A national modular housing industry, rooted in local resourcing and distribution networks, can play a key role in making the Scottish housing sector more sustainable reducing financial costs for businesses and households while minimising housings environmental footprint and maximising energy efficiency and quality.

Excerpt from:
Stacey Cassidy: Development of modular a key step on the road towards sustainable housing - Scottish Housing News

The site, located in Thurrock, has detailed planning permission in place for 153 modular homes, comprising 138 houses and 15 apartments.

The development will provide the local community with a mix of two, three and four-bedroom homes.

All 153 homes being delivered are proposed to be made available for shared ownership or affordable rent.

All homes will be manufactured along production lines at ilke Homes 250,000 sq ft factory in North Yorkshire.

By spring 2022, ilke Homes will transport the energy-efficient, factory-built modular homes to the site, located on Victoria Road in Stanford-le-Hope.

The proposals at Stanford-le-Hope dedicate around 2.6 hectares to open space, which will serve to enhance the ecological biodiversity of the site and provide a desirable setting for future residents.

Tom Heathcote, executive director of development at ilke Homes, said: Its great to carry ilke Homes momentum from 2020 into the New Year with the announcement of our first site acquisition in the South East of England.

This scheme will demonstrate that offsite manufacturing is capable of delivering beautiful places thanks to flexible designs that can react to different streetscapes and local character.

Whats more, due to our accredited method of delivery, we will be able to significantly reduce the carbon emissions produced during the construction programme by reducing time spent on site and vehicular movements in the surrounding communities.

Work is anticipated to begin on site in the autumn of 2021, subject to ilke Homes securing planning for minor amends to the approved Reserved Matters.

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ilke Homes secures first site in the South East of England - Planning, BIM & Construction Today

Dear Readers,

You may already have a trust, but it's very important to understand that once you make a trust, the job is only half done. For your trust to work as advertised, it must be funded with your assets. Today's column is about doing just that. As a rule of thumb, everything goes into the trust, with a few exceptions.

First, keep your day-to-day checking account outside of the trust and add your successor trustee to the title of the account as a joint owner. If you are married, keep the account in both of your names and wait to add someone to the account when either of you starts slowing down. You know, when you no longer read your mail, pay your bills, and read this column.

If you do not like the idea of adding someone to your checking account, then maybe you need to reconsider whether or not that person should be named as successor trustee. If you can't trust someone now, don't you dare trust that person when your incapacitated or dead.

Second, don't bother transferring into the trust your automobiles and boats registered with the DMV, or modular homes registered with the Department of Housing. They do not count against the $166,250 limit that triggers a requirement for probate administration in California, so there is no real need to do this. These assets can be collected 40 days or more after your death using DMV Form REG-5 or a Small Estate Declaration under Probate Code section 13101.

Third, and perhaps most importantly, you cannot transfer to your trust retirement accounts such as IRA's, 401(k)'s, 457(b)'s and the like. These are tax-deferred or tax-exempt retirement accounts. Transferring one to a trust means cashing it in and paying all that income tax. In addition, you probably should not name your trust as a retirement account beneficiary unless your lawyer advises you to do so. Instead, name your children or other beneficiaries directly, unless you have a minor or disabled beneficiary who should not or cannot have direct access to the money upon your death.

Incidentally, life insurance and annuities can go either way. You can name the trust as beneficiary, or name beneficiaries directly. Sometimes it's good for them to pay into your trust, to give the trustee more liquid cash while consolidating and selling those of your assets that will be sold.

Other than that, everything should be in the trust. Your lawyer should prepare and record deeds conveying your California real properties into the trust. The rest is up to you. Most lawyers provide their clients with a fancy three-ring binder with the law firm's name emblazoned in big letters (We do this too). Use that binder as a tool. When you visit your bank or broker to fund your trust, take the trust binder with you. It should have everything you need, and financial institutions are well aware of how to title accounts in a trust, although they will abbreviate the name of the trust. It's OK. They know what they are doing.

If you do all of this, and fund your trust correctly, then when you pass your successor trustee will have an easier job to do, and it will save your family money.

Len Tillem and Rosie McNichol are elder law attorneys. Contact them at Tillem McNichol & Brown, 846 Broadway, Sonoma, CA 95476, by phone at (707) 996-4505, or on the internet at http://www.lentillem.com.

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Creating A Trust Is Only Half The Battle, It Needs To Be Supplemented - Insurance News Net

The typical trappings of opera are incompatible with life during a pandemic. But for the new Boston-based company Helios Opera, which delights in smashing the usual confines of the genre, there have only been opportunities for innovation if not under ideal circumstances.

Helioss Modular Opera Project, which launched this summer, provided artists with audiovisual training and other support necessary to perform from their homes or other safe venues. Now, with the multimedia song cycle Stardust, Helios is proving that modular doesnt necessarily mean modest. The digital production premiered in December and is now online at productions.heliosopera.com.

With dreamlike music by New York City composer Felix Jarrar and a fantastical libretto by London-based poet B.L. Foxley, the visual extravagance of the final filmed version of Stardust belies its microbudget. Filmed entirely on smartphones, soprano Victoria Davis takes the spotlight in a journey through mythological archetypes and haunting multi-hued split-screen images. The mind behind these striking tableaux was director John de los Santos, whom the Globe reached at home in New York City to talk about taking a medium designed for big stages and making it play nicely on miniature screens.

Q. What happened to your daily life when COVID hit?

A. Basically I just spend more time in front of my computer. Since COVID has been going on Ive been lucky because Im also a librettist, and thats mostly what Ive been doing. Ive written and directed two pieces now for digital consumption, and also just caught up on a lot of libretto work. The funny thing is even though I Zoom for most of the day I still have a hard time figuring it out.

Q. To you, what makes for a compelling production or performance in the digital space?

A. I think there are a number of things. If you think about music videos, ever since the 80s, theyre little dramas, even if its just footage of a band playing on stage. The music video format really opened up a whole new world of interpretation where the visual narrative did not have to tie in completely with the lyrical narrative. I think thats what I really wanted to achieve here where I didnt want to make this a literal interpretation of the poetry, but to create something that tied in with some of the same themes and the authors intent ... but that [also] was a completely different visual direction. And also we were dealing with a small budget, a very small amount of time, and COVID. But I always try to make limitations into challenges that enhance the work.

Q. The piece was shot entirely on smartphones; were you present for that?

A. It was just myself, my assistant lighting designer Keith Browning, and our singer, Victoria Davis. We all got tested. We rented a room in New York City and met there with some lights and some really inexpensive material from Michaels, and got our phones out and shot it. Victoria was amazing, with a great knowledge of the piece and just so open to everything. We developed a rapport. There wasnt a lot of time to Hi, how are you? It was just Hey, heres the idea, lets get it going. But we had a lot of fun, and we laughed through our masks as much as we could.

Q. Besides music videos, what else influenced the staging?

A. A couple things. The first inspiration that I really had was Andy Warhols Chelsea Girls, a film from the 60s. It was two screens simultaneously that had nothing to do with each other. [Another inspiration was] the painter Francis Bacon, who did a series of triptych portraits. And in addition, the idea of Zoom, the idea of how were all imprisoned in these boxes.

But yeah, one of the main things was the Greek myth of the Moirai, or the fates. When I was reading the poetry at the beginning, I noticed that B.L. had many references to myths and fantasy in the poems. The poems were not written to be performed together; Felix took those three poems of hers and decided to set them to music, but there was no common thread. So I thought: What about contemporary myths? Each one of the three had a contemporary myth that I used as a visual starting point. To me, the best song cycles have some kind of a through line, whether its musical or narrative. And I had to really figure out a way to make that work visually as well.

Q. When youre only meeting a select few collaborators in person and doing the rest over Zoom, how do you create a connection with your creative team?

A. Honestly, I do it over the phone. Ive always been a phone person anyway; call me old-fashioned. Theres always this pressure on Zoom to have the right lighting and to clean your room and everything. Whereas Im just interested in the voice and the conversation. Thats actually why I was glad that we were doing this conversation over the phone rather than Zoom, because we can talk and get to the root of what we wanted to deal with rather than having to perform, which is what Zoom kind of dictates. Even if its just your friends, youre like oh, God, my room is a mess, or my hair looks terrible. For me, phone conversations have been a great way to check in with artists and talk about the future because we have to look to the future to keep the juices flowing, and to remind ourselves why were in this business.

A.Z. Madonna can be reached at az.madonna@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @knitandlisten. Madonnas work is supported by the Rubin Institute for Music Criticism, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation.

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What it takes to build a modular opera - The Boston Globe

Safe travel, but with commerce impacts

Dear Editor:

The MHABC represents the interests of the manufactured and modular housing industry in B.C. Our members sell, construct and transport these homes throughout the province.

We reference the article RDOS grills transportation official (Herald,Dec. 18) and the comments in that article pertaining to the installation of no-post rails. While the MHABC will always take the position that safety must be the paramount priority on all highways in B.C., our members are becoming concerned about the increasing preponderance of installation of these barriers on many B.C. highways.

These concerns arise because the installation of no-post rails also narrows the width of the highway lanes. This narrowing severely impacts the transport of wide loads. While our association focusses on the transport of homes, there are also many industry sectors that also transport wider loads.

The MHABC has asked the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure to take into consideration the impacts of the broad-based installation of these barriers on commercial transport towards finding a balance between ensuring safe travel on B.C. highways and the impacts upon commerce.

Gord Rattray, Executive Director

Signed on behalf of the MHABC

Pitt Meadows

Disgraced Mountie now plays the victim

Dear Editor:

Former Mountie jailed after Dziekanski taser death settlement,(Herald,Jan. 16).

Imagine, this murder took place in 2007, now 14 years later and more tears from a guilty cop who is alive after killing an innocent man.

If the Mounties were consistent in their training, I ask why in H did they fabricate such an untrue story as to what happened ? Training failed to mention a possible candid camera may have the guilty in their sights.

The only thing consistent in the justice system is the amount of BS they tread in, when it comes to the untouchables.

Poor Kwesi Millington has suffered post- traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, nervous shock, career advancement and other injuries

Welcome to the club Kwesi. I suffered a complete loss of childhood, growing up alone dealing with most of what you believe you have.

The difference in my case I was a child that nobody to this day gives a damn about, so I made a life on my own.

I also had peace officer status for many years with no bang-bang attached to my hip as I dealt with some of the worst individuals that Canada had to offer.

Its one helluva way for saying the Mountie always get their man, should add one way or another.

Tom Isherwood

Olalla

What the right-wing bubble truly believes

Dear Editor:

On Jan. 15, the Heralds Letter of the Day was John Thompsons latest bile-dump.

In it, he accuses the CBC of being in league with the Liberal minority government. He decries the CBCs slavish adherence to the norms of political correctness; of subliminal messaging of Liberal values (my favourite).

And he gleefully reminds us that the hated Liberals only got 33.1% of the vote.

He probably cant help himself. Im sure his inbox is full of hateful messages from Michele Rempel and Erin OToole every day. But still

Full disclosure: I worked for CBC News and Current Affairs for 21 years, through the governments of Trudeau Sr., Mulroney, Chretien, Martin and Harper. See the pattern? Liberal followed by Conservative followed by Liberal, etc..?

Never during my employment were we ever asked, ordered or urged to be sympathetic to any governments policies or actions. In fact, the opposite was true; we were hyper-conscious of fairness and balance and expressly forbidden to express political opinions or allow personal bias into our writing or reporting..

I gather Mr. Thompson feels deprived because the CBC does not air daily updates on the Trumpist doings of Erin OToole (I love that hes now the friend of working people.) But remember the 10 years Harper was in power (though he never topped 40% vote share)? When he was present on every newscast?

Does Mr. Thompson really believe the CBC would embrace the government in power knowing that in a few short years the opposition would inevitably come in seeking revenge?

The answer is yes. Thats what the right-wing bubble truly believes, along with the mistaken idea that Justin Trudeau is the root of all evil.

BobNicholson

Penticton

Question everything and learn something

Dear Editor:

With so much information at our fingertips we have become expert skimmers. What is that doing to us? It is steadily and methodically transforming the character of our culture?

Our current society has evolved into a culture of instant information and gratification. We are bombarded with a vast number of messages daily via social media, the news, television, and even flashing billboard signs aimed at gratifying our senses.

We listen with unshakeable faith to the fatuous patter of carefully-trained and indoctrinated guides who have bogus statistics and mindless slogans endlessly intoned in them. Malcolm Muggeridge, English journalist

It involves effort, a lot of effort to question and to challenge what we read or are being told when we are so easily distracted by entertainments or diverted by consumerism.

Consider this, why do we vest all our beliefs in a single person or governing body? When we do, arent we creating a climate which amplifies and exaggerates that individuals or groups understanding of their authority?

How often in history have we seen this new-found authority lead to a greater concentration of power? It never seems to work out well for the general populace. Without any kind of objective or just reporting these governing bodies, in their greed and ambition, flood the world with untrue or incorrect assertions, blaming a crisis on a few isolated fools to provide an explanation of why such extreme measures have been necessary.

Doesnt that make them misleaders?

We have been lulled into complacency rather than being challenged. We tend to get swept up in the moment because we want easy answers. And, as we are creatures of habit, we allow these habits to take hold. Where has our independence, individuality, and integrity gone? Patience and persistence seem to have become a lost art.

Shouldnt we be thinking more, reading more, learning more, teaching our children not only to read, but to question what they are reading and for that matter to question everything? Why do we continue to accept everything at face value?

We seem to forget how to form our own opinions. Euripides, an ancient Greek philosopher said:Question everything, learn something. Shouldnt we?

Mary-Anne MacDonald

Summerland

Is there racism in our medical system?

Dear Editor:

This letter is addressed to everyone, but especially those in the medical community.

I would like to share with you an incident in my life, then ask you all a question.

Back in the 1970s, I was in my hometown of Edmonton on days off from my job as a chef on a survey boat. I started feeling really sick. I was too sick to drive so I asked a friend to take me to my doctors office. I do not remember every moment, but I do remember laying on his table and him palpating my abdomen and saying, Can you get to the hospital? I am going to call ahead.

My friend drove me to the hospital. What sticks in my memory is that upon arrival, they took me right to an operating room and removed my appendix, which was about to burst. Without that operation, I probably would not be writing this.

My question is this. If I were not white, even back then, would I have received the same lifesaving treatment? Today, if a Black or First Nation person presented themselves to an office or emergency ward would they receive the same treatment as me?

I have heard too many stories to the contrary and I am imploring all those in the health-care field to search their hearts and minds to see where they fit. There is no room for racism in our society.

Do not judge a patient by their colour or appearance. Do your job, treat the person with all your ability.

Gary Kuse

Penticton

Misinformation remark was misinformation

Dear Editor:

I must disagree with some recent comments by Blake Laven, Pentictons director of development services.

Laven believes there is a lot of misinformation being circulated amongst locals. A 76-page citizen-authored report on this development proposal was issued to the City of Penticton (including Laven) on Nov. 1.

Other than a curt, we are looking at it from the City, there has been no communication that the report contains misinformation. Perhaps Laven could be called upon to elaborate on that.

Laven offers that this property is one of the few remaining sites where hillside development would be allowed, and that it is not fair to say that (this development) would lead to unfettered development throughout the rest of the hillsides.

I would remind Laven that I, and most others, do not oppose development of the site under its existing zoning as country residential which would permit only approximately 40 to 50 houses being constructed compared to the 324 in the current proposal.

I was at meeting with Canadian Horizons representative Nathan Hildebrand, where I requested that he provide assurances that CH would not attempt to develop any properties further to the north. He refused to give meeting attendees this assurance.

Ironically, two such properties are currently for sale, with advertising that alludes to future subdivision development.

Laven refers to the area as being important to satisfy our housing needs. Interestingly, the development was originally proposed to satisfy the Citys needs for affordable housing. This reference is nonsensical, and even Canadian Horizons has now recognized this and refers to attainable housing a weak attempt to obfuscate that the proposed homes wont be affordable to approximately 80% of Pentictons residents.

Laven projects hefty returns for Penticton; however, it is likely those perceived benefits could be negated by additional infrastructure and maintenance costs associated with this development. Also, have financial risks similar to the lawsuits that followed recent development projects near Naramata been considered? Will Penticton residents pay the piper while Canadian Horizons enjoys hefty returns?

Looming traffic concerns exist, as Laven concedes. Health and environmental concerns also accompany this proposal. The enthusiasm with which he welcomes this project should be balanced with an assessment of all relevant factors in his next media interview.

Ian Hornby-Smith

Penticton

Have racoons scared our skunks away?

Dear Editor:

Skunks. Where have they gone? We had regular visits through our backyard 15 years ago. The smell was so strong and distinct.

Yesterday, I awoke to a scritch, scritch, scritch sound in the backyard. A large racoon in the early light was prowling on the frozen surface of the pool, probably looking for a drink. Maybe the racoons have chased the skunks from the neighbourhood.

Come to think of it, I still can smell the skunks, occasionally, usually on Friday or Saturday evening.

And it depends on the wind direction.

Glenn Noble-Hearle

Penticton

Biden, Democrats will destroy economy

Dear Editor:

So the alternative to Trump isnt even in office yet and hes already showing his disdain towards Canada by announcing that one of his first official acts will be to kill the Keystone XL pipeline.

Typical leftist Democrat maneuvering, destroying jobs on both sides of the border on a $7 billion project thats more than 50% completed. Many contributors to this section including the actual Editor continue to suffer the severe effects of TDS (Trump Derangement Syndrome) by showing how uneducated they really are.

Trump is what he is, but he was alway pro- business, pro-jobs. Now the cognitively impaired geriatric will show everyone how to destroy whats left of a struggling economy in the middle of a pandemic by shutting it down. Disgusting!

Our illustrious leader Justin Trudeau already called Joe Biden and congratulated him on winning the election and apparently old Joe forgot that he told Justin not to worry, Keystone is safe with me.

Yeah right. Its okay though, with all the money printing going on in the U.S., pretty good chance Biden is being set up as the fall guy for a real good ole fashioned financial, economic, health and political hurricane crisis.

Good luck America! Youll need it with the Democrats in power.

Dan Bitor

Penticton

Off AirForce One into Crowbar Towers

Dear Editor:

Unknowingly, Donald Trump is to initiate his own transfer of presidential power by stepping off Air Force One and into the peoples paddywagon and guested in Trump Crowbar Towers.

Joe Schwarz

Penticton

Did PM screw up on vaccine rollout?

Dear Editor:

U.S. President-Elect Joe Biden is increasing vaccination rate to 100 million over next 100 days. Canada will receive less vaccine. Why? Did our prime minister screw up?

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Letters to the Editor: Tuesday, January 19, 2021 | Opinion - pentictonherald.ca