LAKE PARK, Minn. School officials here got a first glance last week at a $4.5 million addition to the districts elementary school in Audubon.

The project is driven by a projected increase in enrollment and comes after the school just finished a round of new construction and renovation, including an addition and extensive renovation of the elementary school in 2011 that cost $3.5 million.

The preliminary plans for a proposed 22,000-squarefoot Early Learning Center addition were unveiled at a Lake-Park Audubon School Board meeting Dec. 17.

Brian Berg of Zerr-Berg Architects rolled out plans that included a 22,740-square- foot addition to the north of the existing elementary building, and renovation of 5,350 square feet of space inside the current facility.

In addition, a second playground would be added, and the current elementary playground would be relocated to the opposite side of the building.

A total of four kindergarten and five early-childhood classrooms would be built, along with a Head Start classroom.

Because of Minnesota Department of Education guidelines, the kindergarten rooms would each include 1,200 square feet of space, while the Early Childhood and Head Start classrooms would be 1,100 square feet each, Berg said.

The addition would also include an administrative office, lobby area, commons, activity area, mechanical room and storage.

Plans for the Early Learning Center have been on the boards radar since last spring, when projected enrollment numbers in the districts early-childhood, preschool and K-6 education programs indicated classroom space would soon be severely limited.

Construction of the addition would also allow five classrooms in the existing building to be freed up for other uses, though Superintendent Dale Hogie noted that the extra classrooms are not projected to be necessary until the 2015-16 school year. The need for additional music and special education space is more immediate.

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Lake-Park Audubon considering $4.5M elementary school addition

Douglas Pope from Reydon has written a book 'The Sailors' Reading Room.

Kathryn Bradley Saturday, December 21, 2013 8:06 AM

Standing in a prominent position on Southwolds East Cliff, the Sailors Reading Room is one of the oldest institutions in the town.

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But, despite its long and rich history, the humble red-brick building is often overshadowed by Southwolds more iconic and better-known landmarks such as its pier and lighthouse.

On June 2 next year, the reading room will have been open for 150 years making it 36 years older than the pier and 28 years older than the lighthouse.

To mark this special anniversary, reading room member and its former secretary Doug Pope has written a book celebrating the history of the Grade II listed building, which was founded as a place for sailors and fishermen to meet, read and chat rather than go to the pub for a drink.

The reading room was built on the instructions of the widow of Royal Navy Captain Charles Rayley and constructed by Benjamin Howard Carter, who had a workshop in Victoria Street.

Sharp-eyed visitors will be able to spot the letters and numbers BHC 1861 1 Feb carved into the brickwork.

It is believed the idea for the institution came from the Bible classes held by Charlotte Ellis in a redundant lifeboat house on the beach under the cliff. She was concerned about the spiritual welfare of the sailors and fishermen of Southwold because they did not go to church.

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History of Southwold Sailors’ Reading Room is explored in new book

Marianna- Had you met Dr. Ben Carson in the early days of his youth, you would have probably have never guessed he'd one day become Chief of Pediatric Neurosurgery at John Hopkin's Children Center- let alone consider putting his name in the hat to run for President of the United States in 2016.

"Reading was so vitally important in my transformation from being a terrible student- to the extent that people thought I should be in special education- to moving to the top of the class," Carson explained.

Carson told us, had he not developed a love for reading, his humble upbringing could have been difficult to overcome.

"Between the covers of those books I could go anywhere, I could be anybody, I could do anything. And, I basically left the world of the ghetto and traveled the world through those books," he said.

Carson said what he had in common with everyone were challenges. He told us, while everyone faces adversity, he hoped to be an inspiration of what life could be for kids who felt overwhelmed.

That fighting spirit was not lost on eight year old Hunter Vandusen, His challenge has been living with a hearing impairment.

"How do you like the reading room? Do you like it," Hunter's interpreter, Kelli Todd asked him.

"Yes" Hunter squealed, "This" excitedly pointing to a sign hanging from the ceiling.

"What does that say," Todd asked. "Think big," he said with a smile.

Thinking big, he was. And as far as creating the jungle themed treading room, the teachers thought big too.

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Anonymous Donors Fund 'Ben Carson Reading Room' at Jackson Alternative School

Tired, a little personally neglected and overwhelmed? No, that's not us all, as we struggle with the last minute preparations for Christmas - it's a description of the average spare room.

Around 54% of us have an 'unloved' room in our houses, according to recent research by B&Q, and most often that's the spare.

It's commonly a dumping ground and at the bottom of the list for decor attention, with the result that it ends up groaning with clutter and, style-wise, is way past its sell-by date.

Panic can set in with the impending influx of visitors, but there's still time for a revamp which can transform it into a welcoming space.

"For me, Christmas is all about family and friends coming together and guest bedrooms should always be welcoming, comfortable and cosy," says Jenny Blanc, designer and owner of Jenny Blanc Interiors.

"I often create a small seasonal display with berries, fir cones, dried oranges and holly to decorate the dressing table.

"This year I'll place decorative and scented candles around the room to create a festive glow and on the mantelpiece or window ledge, a small artificial tree, with reindeer, robins, and glass angels to bring a touch of Christmas to the room."

Be inspired by hotel room luxury, she suggests, and as well as choosing classic bedding, decorate the bed with beautiful, plump cushions, and soft cashmere or faux fur throws.

"In the wardrobe, I always make sure there are soft towelling robes, slippers, thick, fluffy towels and bath essences smelling of winter spices, such as pine, orange, bergamot and ginger."

This neglected nook can be saved, and making a few small changes to get it guest-ready could inspire you to lavish further TLC on it later and transform it into a sanctuary you'll love visiting.

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Don't spare the style

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Print Create a hardcopy of this page Font Size: Default font size Larger font size Hospital expansion

LSUBMC CEO Kurt Scott points out features on a floor plan for an expanded emergency room department.

DAILY NEWS PHOTO/Lucy Parker

A temporary entrance is currently being constructed on the north side of LSU Bogalusa Medical Center, for use during an emergency room expansion project.

Posted: Tuesday, December 17, 2013 11:45 pm

$7.5 million expansion project under way at local hospital By Lucy Parker The Daily News The Daily News |

A $7.5 million project to expand the emergency room at LSU Bogalusa Medical Center has begun.

CEO Kurt Scott said work on the expansion, which began in November, will take approximately 18 months.

Its an exciting project for the hospital, he said. Its going to allow us to double the size of our emergency room and actually put a new front on the hospital.

The number of beds in the emergency room will increase from eight to 16 and waiting, treatment and clinical areas will be expanded. Scott said this will allow the hospital to provide emergency care for patients in a department that is more comfortable and efficient.

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$7.5 million expansion project under way at local hospital

News 13 - Tuesday 17th December, 2013

Roll Hall of Fame next year. The Rock Hall announced Tuesday that Hall and Oates, Linda Ronstadt and Cat Stevens also will be inducted April 10 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Artists are eligible for induction 25 years after their first release. Nirvana received a nomination in its first year of eligibility and next year the band will celebrate the 25th anniversary of its debut, ...

West Australian - Tuesday 17th December, 2013

Bangkok (AFP) - Thailand's opposition party said Tuesday it remained undecided over whether to boycott snap polls called by the government to mollify massive street protests. A boycott would likely plunge the kingdom deeper into turmoil, after weeks of street protests against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her brother Thaksin -- an ousted billionaire ex-premier who is despised by ...

Phuket Gazette - Tuesday 17th December, 2013

The warning follows the drowning of a 9-year-old nephew of a beach masseuse at Karon. There were no large waves and no red flags posted that day. Photo: Steven ...

Business Insurance - Tuesday 17th December, 2013

Developments and trends affecting buyers of specialty insurance lines, including D&O, E&O, employment practices liability, cyber risk, marine and transportation, and surplus ...

SINA - Tuesday 17th December, 2013

Former Thai prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva (C) arrives at court in Bangkok on December 12, 2013 where he was indicted for murder in connection with a deadly military crackdown on mass opposition protests in Bangkok three years ...

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Russian man found dead in Pattaya condominium room

[Editors note: This story appears in the My Favorite Room section of the December 2013 issue of LCT magazine.]

Canaanwhich for this purpose refers to the historical town now divided into North Canaan and Falls Villageis a community with two dominant cultural traditions: WASP and Italian-American. The warm and inviting home of John Pozzi of Falls Village perfectly encapsulates both qualities, recalling the stalwart first families who settled the wilderness town in the 1730s and the equally intrepid Italian immigrants who left their homes and beloved families to find a new life in the United States a century later.

Mr. Pozzi, an educator who during his first retirement took a 90-day position as interim principal at Lee H. Kellogg School in Falls Village and stayed for 10 years, has now lived in the town for a quarter century, all of them in a cozy little cottage on Belden Street that once belonged to the prolific, pioneering Beldens. While the house has evolvedas all doover the nearly 250 years of its history, Mr. Pozzi has carefully maintained the historic quality of his home.

Here one finds the heavy wooden beams, now exposed, that form the strong bones of the house, still tight and square despite the centuries. Here, too, is the massive central chimney whose stones, once heated by fires that never went out, radiated warmth throughout its rooms. And here, is a modern additionthe compact but efficient kitchen that is the social center for this warm-hearted Italian family.

Mr. Pozzis love of cooking and entertaining explains his designation of his favorite room: the large communal room that was once central to the Colonial life of the Belden family and that today is the focus of family gatherings for the extended Pozzi clan.

My wife and I had six children, he said, and now I have 15 grandchildren and one great-grandchild. We have always been a close family and often have as many as 20 people here for holidays.

Mr. Pozzi is expecting his family to gather once again for Thanksgiving. He was seated recently at the head of the modest size dining room table, which was surrounded by six authentic-looking Windsor chair reproductions. Asked where he would put such a large gathering, he said a table in the living room folds neatly out of the way most of the time but extends amply when the holidays roll around. More family members eat at the table in the dining room on other side of the kitchen and, if there is overflow, They can sit in the chairs in the den, he said.

Italians are very food-oriented, he said, and social gatherings center around wonderful meals and sharing that. My grandparents had six kids and there were a lot of us. It was the preparing and sharing of good food that was most important.

Mr. Pozzis classic little saltbox home is one of five houses that will be included in the Falls Village-Canaan Historical Societys third annual Holiday Historic House Tour slated for Dec. 7 from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a snow date of Dec. 8.

While the exact date of the houses construction is not certain, it was probably built by Charles Belden Jr. in 1778 or slightly later, when he married Lois Bosworth in 1784. Despite this relatively early date, Charles was already the third-generation of his family in the community. His grandfather, Silas Belding, bought land when the town was sold at auction in New London in 1737, and received the first share of land allotted by the proprietorsa parcel located near the Point of Rocks at the end of what is now known as Belden Street. Continued...

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Falls Village Home on December 7 House Tour

Regional Medical Center has improved its emergency room in recent months, speeding up procedures in preparation for a greater patient load caused by federal health reform, hospital officials say.

During the regular meeting of the RMC board, hospital CEO David McCormack said changes made to the emergency room in October have been successful by cutting down wait times for patients considerably. The changes have prepared the emergency room for increased patient volume from major health care expansion policies that begin in January as part of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, McCormack said.

"We have realigned the staff and the results have been significant," McCormack said. "Fortunately what we've done is working."

McCormack said that since October, emergency room visits for significant or life-threatening injuries have decreased to 2 hours from 3 hours, on average. In addition, the time for lesser emergency room visits, such as treatment for the flu, has dropped to an average of 20 minutes from 30 minutes, he said.

McCormack said that while hospital staff is always looking for ways to improve, the changes to the emergency room were needed to better handle impending patient increases through the ACA. On Jan. 1, insurance coverage begins for Alabamians who have bought health care through the state's federally managed insurance exchange. The exchanges were created through the ACA as a way to offer low-cost insurance mainly to people who previously could not afford it. The exchanges offer various plans through private insurers that will be federally subsidized by tax credits.

"When the ACA expansion begins, we wanted to be as ready and be as efficient as we possibly could," McCormack said.

McCormack said hospital staff researched the matter for months before developing a new process. Part of the change included hiring around 10 emergency medical technicians who all take turns managing the front desk at the emergency room. Previously, a secretary managed the desk, McCormack said.

"The EMTs can assess you quicker and decide if you need to go to the main emergency room or urgent care," McCormack said.

In addition, an urgent care room was established next to the main emergency room, which helps cut down on wait times, McCormack said. Previously, all emergency room visits, even if for minor injuries, were filtered into the same room, meaning there could be times when there was insufficient space for serious cases. Now, minor cases are sent to the urgent care room, freeing up more space and cutting wait time in the main emergency room for heart attack patients and other life-threatening cases.

Also during the meeting, the board learned part of RMC's fourth floor will soon be converted into a new Intensive Care Unit waiting room. Joe Weaver, COO for RMC, said the renovations will cost $150,000 and $175,000, will begin in January and probably take up to 90 days to complete. Weaver said an internal department was moved to another area of the hospital to make space for the planned 2,500-square-foot waiting room.

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Regional Medical Center improves emergency room wait times