ARLINGTON, Texas The Texas Rangers and the Los Angeles Angels will start their series Friday night at Globe Life Park in pretty much the same spot they were when they opened a series Aug. 21 in Anaheim.

The Angels are still four games over .500, exactly where they were before dropping three of four to the Rangers. Texas is still one game under .500, exactly where it was when that series began.

The teams are a different, though.

Los Angeles pulled off two key trades Thursday, acquiring outfielder Justin Upton from the Detroit Tigers and second baseman Brandon Phillips from the Atlanta Braves.

The Angels cleared an outfield spot for Upton by letting outfielder Cameron Maybin go to the Houston Astros on a waiver claim.

Those deals, plus the fact the Angels come into the series having won three games in a row, have them feeling good.

Upton brings a significant presence to the middle of our lineup, general manager Billy Eppler told the Orange County Register. Hes an impact bat. He brings the ability to hit for average, the ability to control the strike zone and the ability to drive the baseball, as well as strong defensive ability, which you know we like here.

Regarding Phillips, Eppler told the Register, He has elite contact ability and the ability to hit for average. He knows the strike zone. He can contribute big at-bats in big situations. He plays above-average defense. He has experience.

It was unclear if the new additions would immediately be in the lineup to back the Angels Friday starter, left-hander Tyler Skaggs (1-4, 4.25 ERA).

Since coming off the disabled list in early August, Skaggs is 0-3 with a 4.56 ERA. That ERA is better than his career numbers against Texas. Skaggs has a 5.66 ERA against the Rangers to go along with a 2-2 record. He started the series opener against Texas on Aug. 2 and took the loss, allowing five runs (four earned) in 5 1/3 innings.

Skaggs will square off against Texas lefty Cole Hamels (9-2, 3.78 ERA), who had a solid August start end with a clunker as he was charged with six runs in 4 1/3 innings in a loss at Oakland on Saturday.

Still, Hamels has pitched well against the Angels, going 4-1 with a 2.47 ERA for his career. He was the winning pitcher in the Aug. 21 game against Los Angeles, surrendering two runs in seven innings.

That game started a weird 10-game road stretch for Texas. After the Los Angeles series, the Rangers were swept by Oakland and then took two of three from Houston in a series that was played in St. Petersburg, Fla., because of the impact of Hurricane Harvey.

Texas is happy to be back home after its long trip. The Rangers will play 10 of their next 13 games at home in a bid to get closer in the wild-card race. Texas sits four games behind the Twins, who hold the second American League wild-card position, while the Angels are 1 1/2 games behind Minnesota.

Like the Angels, the Rangers will look different, but not for a good reason. Third baseman Adrian Beltre exited Texas 5-1 loss to Houston on Thursday with a hamstring injury. He will undergo an MRI on Friday but he doesnt think he can play.

Were playing so well and pretty much everybody was healthy, Beltre said. I feel like Im letting the team down. Its a little disappointing.

The Thursday defeat capped a long 5-5 trip.

It was a very challenging trip for us, Texas manager Jeff Banister said. I felt like our guys played well for most of it. Obviously, the three games in Oakland I felt like we should have played better. But to take two of three from Houston is a plus. Now we get three against (the Angels) to see if we cant (gain) a little ground.

Link:
Angels acquire Upton, Phillips before series at Texas (Sep 01, 2017) - FOXSports.com

Clockwise from the top left: 11 Cove Hollow Farm Road in East Hampton, surfer/broker Dylan Eckardt and the $175 property in Southampton

Former Henry Ford estate in Southampton lists for record $175 million

Montauk-based surfer-turned-broker shops TV show about himself

After 5 years and $10 million in price cuts, a contract is signed in East Hampton

You can now build larger pool houses and servants quarters in Quogue

Changes to the law in Quogue will allow homeowners to build larger pool houses and second-floor additions over detached garages, 27East reported. The Quogue Village Board amended local rules, which will now allow pool houses to be up to 1,000 square feet and garages can now be up to 1,200 square feet. Residents might need the extra space because the new laws will also ban portable storage containers larger than 8 feet by 16 feet. The board ruled that residents can only keep storage containers on their properties for 60 days or less and that they must be set at least 25 feet away from the property line.[27 East]

Most expensive home on Shelter Island is now $7 million cheaper

A Water Mill compound, previously listed for $10M, now 40% off

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Hamptons Cheat Sheet: Southampton home hits market for $175M, Montauk surfer-turned-broker shops real estate ... - The Real Deal Magazine

Some homeowners who live in a single story house consider adding on a second floor to increase the size of their home. This can be done for many reasons family size expansion, increasing the value of the home, simply wanting more space, etc.

Doubling the size of your homes square footage can be a tempting thought! But it does come with a price, and adding a second story addition is a bigger investment and challenge than a lot of people might realize when going into it.

Because second story additions are such a huge project, its good to have a clear sense of the process and the costs involved before making the choice to do it. Lets take a deeper look at the realities of adding a second story to your home and what impact it can have on your life and your finances.

First things first: Youre going to want to know how much the full project will cost you before committing to anything. The good news is that this particular type of remodel wont normally involve any foundation work the foundation of your home is already there and intact. Thats typically the most expensive part of a remodeling project.

However, youll need to have the foundation inspected to make sure it can hold the extra weight. Certain types of soil can only stand up to a specific weight load, so you dont want to overburden the ground and risk damages to your house or other unsafe conditions. Any contractor will make sure this is the first step in the project.

Another bonus is that, depending on the condition of your existing roof, you might be able to lift it off in one or two sections with a crane and reinstall it on top of the new addition. Its expensive to rent a crane, but not nearly as expensive as paying for an entirely new roof.

Also, remember that you dont have to take on the entire expense at once. Your initial investment can be for the basic structure of the second floor and the roof to make sure you can inhabit the first floor. After that, you can stretch out the finishes you add to each room on the second floor according to your budget.

Jeff Pelletier fromBoard & Vellum Architecture and Designin Seattle says that its tough to calculate a budget for a second story. It will depend heavily on your location, the size and style of your house, the quality of materials and the company you choose. His rule of thumb? Youll need $300,000 to add a 3-bed/2-bath second story and have it look decent. And, its probably safer to plan for $400,000 $450,000 after all the incidental costs.

However, he admits there are probably plenty of people who can do smaller homes for far less than that especially in areas less expensive than Seattle. But he reminds you to keep in mind that a well-designed second story addition to a home will live better, and appraise higher, than one slapped together for lowest cost.Legal Eagle Contractorsoffers up that $150,000 $200,000 is a better estimate.

There aremany reasonsto consider adding a second floor to your home. Beyond the benefit of having extra space, expanding your home vertically is a better use of space than expanding outward into your lot especially if your lot is small.

You can enjoy more space and still take advantage of your yard for gardening and outdoor living, and still have distance from your neighbors. Its also a great way to make more room for a family.

You can also take advantage of the construction project to heighten your ceilings on the first floor this alone can increase the value of your home. At the same time, you can look at the layout of your home and decide to open up small rooms or merge rooms together now that youll have more space upstairs. It opens up a whole new world of possibility.

Be prepared for a considerable timeframe on this project. Pelletier says that from the day you hire an architect to the day you start construction can be approximately four to six months or longer. The negotiations can take a sizeable amount of time, and thats just sorting out the details of the project. Then youll probably want to allow at least five months for construction.

Legal Eagle Contractorssay that homeowners should be aware that the project will absolutely turn your home upside down and youll have to find a place to live during the course of the project. That means giving up your house and renting a place for five months or longer.

There are some important questions to ask both yourself and your contractor before deciding whether or not to add on a second floor.

Its a good idea to look at your budget and figure out how much you can realistically allocate toward a renovation project. Then you can start contracting local contractors to get a sense of the cost based on the size of your house, location, etc.

Make sure to ask what the extra cost would be to add on particular extras that you want, like a full bathroom, specific finishes and more. Consider whether you will be funding the project with existing funds or borrowing from a bank or mortgage company.

Its a good idea to visit your local government zoning office to find out if you are permitted to add a second story. Many zoning codes have a limit for the height of a structure. A good rule of thumb is that if other houses near you have second stories, you should be able to build that high as well, but its best to check.

You can find good contractors in any area, but make sure they have proper licensing and certification in remodeling and construction. A good contractor will take the time to discuss the project with you in detail and gain a deep understanding of your needs and expectations. They should also be upfront with you about pricing and not tack on any hidden costs.

Do you have any tips on how to prepare to add a second story to your home? Share them in our comment section!

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The Lowdown on Adding a Second Story to Your Home - Zing! Blog by Quicken Loans (blog)

At Gamescom, I was able to play a brief snippet from early in the game. Alex has spent his summer in Brazil and completed a brief preseason tour in Los Angeles before settling back down in England. The demo started in Alex's apartment with his grandfather, Jim Hunter, preparing breakfast and his mother, Catherine Hunter, working on a laptop. Soon enough Michael, Alex's agent, bursts into the room with some big news: He's been on the phone with someone representing Real Madrid an apparently, "Los Blancos" is interested in signing Hunter. Alex, unsurprisingly, is elated.

Before the deal can go through, however, Hunter needs to play a few games with his current team. In this scenario, it was Chelsea, though that could change depending on your particular playthrough. Soon enough, you're sitting in the locker room, waiting for a match with Manchester United to begin. But the coach, Butler, has bad news: The manager wants Hunter to start on the bench, fearing that his heart and thoughts are no longer with the London club. "Personally, I hope you stay, lad," Butler says with a sigh.

Deep in the second half, the manager brings you on. Chelsea are 3-0 down and the manager, Antonio Conte, expects you to achieve a rating of 8.5 for the rest of the game. The other match "bonuses," which affect how the manager sees you, include winning the game and completing 10 passes. No pressure, then. In my game, I was able to score and set up a couple of teammates, drawing the two teams level. While I managed a rating of 9.4, I didn't complete the passing objective or ultimately win the game.

Then, disaster strikes. I won't spoil what happens, but the result is that you won't, it seems, be signing for Real Madrid any time soon.

Still, it's clear that Hunter will, at some point, get the chance to move abroad. Sam Rivera, lead gameplay producer on FIFA 18, says these moments are a reflection of the game's fanbase, which stretches all over the world. Soccer is a truly global sport, so it makes sense to show the profession and fan culture from different perspectives. "For people in the UK, they probably liked The Journey last year because it was all based there," he says. "But people around the world want to see more places. And even if you're in the UK, sometimes other places are fun, right?"

You won't visit every division on the planet, however. The Journey is successful because it balances wish fulfillment with authenticity. Last year, Hunter was able to play in the Premier League, but not before dropping down to a Championship side. The campaign stopped with an FA Cup Final which, while exciting, is far from the sport's apex. It's not like Hunter won the UEFA Champions League, or picked up the coveted Ballon d'Or.

"Even if you finished The Journey, you didn't play against Ronaldo, Messi, or other superstars," Rivera says. "Because that's how it goes in real life. It takes time, right?"

At least one of those players will feature in Hunter's second season, however. Cristiano Ronaldo is confirmed for the second season, alongside Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann, Bayern Munich legend Thomas Muller and Tottenham Hotspur's Dele Alli. That doesn't mean you'll play for their respective clubs -- at least, it's not confirmed -- but Rivera promises they'll affect Hunter's career somehow. EA visited Ronaldo in Madrid to capture his likeness and dialogue, and while that's no guarantee of acting prowess, Rivera hopes players will be impressed by the results.

Continued here:
The new story mode in 'FIFA 18' is all about choice - Engadget

'); adArtMain2Count++; element.load(item.link, { adnum: adArtMain2Count, scrolled: 1 }, function(response, status) { isLoading = false; if ($.trim($(this).html()).length && 'success' == status && !$('.error', this).length) { dest.append(''); var adspot = dest.find('.itemadcode:last'); dest.append(this); adspot.load("/ajaxcached?Code=adtag", function() { var ad = $(this); ad.show(); googletag.cmd.push(function() { var adSlot = DFPADS.createSlot({name:"ArtMain2",sizes:[[728,90]],target:adId,position:"ArtMain2",mapping:"StoryBanner"}); //googletag.display(adId); responsive_ads.push(adSlot); //googletag.pubads().refresh([adSlot]) }); dest.find('.nextitem:last .gpt-ad').each(function(i, e) { if (!i) { $(e).remove(); } else { var divId = $(e).attr('id'); divId = divId.substr(0, divId.length - 1) + num_of_stories++; $(e).attr('id', divId); DFPADS.createSlot({name:"ArtText",sizes:[160,600],target:divId,position:"ArtText"}); var adSlot = DFPADS.slots[divId]; /*googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(divId); 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Town Center at Levis Commons in Perrysburg.

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Jeff Dinnebeil, right, shows off specialties at Social in Perrysburg with co-owner Mike Graber in 2013. The former executive chef is opening a new steakhouse at Levis Commons.

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A longtime unfilled prime spot in the Orleans Building at The Shops at Levis Commons in Perrysburg finally will get its first tenant in the form of an upscale steak and seafood restaurant.

NAI Harmon Group, which owns the Orleans Building, said Wednesday that local restaurateur and former Toledo Zoo and Aquarium executive chef Jeff Dinnebeil has signed a deal to open a steakhouse on the buildings first floor.

The restaurant, to be called Benchmark, is slated to open in mid-October. Officials promised it would be a destination-type eatery.

We have been working hard to attain upscale entertainment selections for the Town Square at Levis Commons, NAI Harmon Group principal broker Dallas Paul said in announcing the new restaurant. Benchmark is the first of many additions planned for the complex.

At an auction late last year, Toledo-based NAI Harmon bought and then took over marketing of the Orleans Building.

Built in 2007, momentum for the Orleans Building stalled when the original developer defaulted on construction loans, sending the building into a long period of receivership. At the time of last years sale, the building was only about 60 percent occupied.

However, since then NAI Harmon inked a long-term deal with Morgan Stanley to move its offices from the buildings third floor to a larger portion of the second floor. And Mr. Paul said theres significant interest for the remaining space. Only two vacant spaces remain in the building.

We started the restaurant side heavily because we need new types of cuisine alternatives to create a more lucrative and beneficial destination to give customers and consumers options, he said.

Theres already new development underway near the Orleans building. In October, Gateway Hospitality Group broke ground on a four-story Home 2 Suites by Hilton hotel.

There also were plans announced at that time for an adjacent 27,000-square-feet of retail just east of the hotel. Across from the hotel is about four acres of vacant land which is under contract to an undisclosed buyer.

In addition to the Toledo Zoo, Mr. Dinnebeil previously served as executive chef at Social, a gastro pub across the road from Levis Commons. "He comes with a strong background of restaurant operations and comes very highly accredited, Mr. Paul said.

Contact Tyrel Linkhorn at tlinkhorn@theblade.com,419-724-6134or on Twitter @BladeAutoWriter.

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New locally owned steakhouse coming to Levis Commons - Toledo Blade

Mike Ilitchs success made him one of the best known people in Michigan. Detroit Free Press

Tigers owner Chris Ilitch on the field Friday, Feb. 24, 2017 at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla.(Photo: Kirthmon F. Dozier, DFP)

Christopher Ilitch has made a good impression on the commissioner.

While speaking with the media on Tuesday afternoon at Comerica Park, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said Ilitch, the Detroit Tigers president and CEO, has been an exciting addition to baseballs ownership group.

I think one of the most exciting additions to our ownership group in recent years has been Chris Ilitchs involvement, Manfred said. Even before he became the control person, hes brought a really intense sense of excitement about the Tigers to our owner meetings and very engaged in a variety of products at the ownership level.

I think Chris Ilitch is going to be a member of our little fraternity for a long time.

More: Rob Manfred: Theres not explanation for more home runs

Dodgers' Chase Utley understands Justin Verlander's dilemma with Tigers

Ilitch, 51, assumed his current role when his father, Mike Ilitch, died in February. Mike Ilitch bought the team in 1992.

While in Detroit, Manfred took a tour of Little Caesars Arena, which will open as the home of the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Pistons next month, and saw the development projectsthe Ilitch companies are undertaking.

I think when you have a day like I had today, its hard not to feel that the future of Detroit and the future of the Tigers is really, really bright, Manfred said.

[Ranking the Tigers' top-10 prospects right now]

At present, though, the team is facing a crossroads of sorts. This season, the Tigers are 54-70, which ranks second-to-last in the American League. They will likely enter a rebuilding phase in the off-season, which could mean a significant stretch of losing baseball.

Christopher Ilitch of Ilitch Holdings stands in front of the Fox Theatre marquee, during the relighting event in Detroit in October 2015.(Photo: Kimberly P. Mitchell, Detroit Free Press)

I think baseball is a very, very difficult game, Manfred said. We have the most competitive postseason in the sense that the fewest teams actually get to the postseason on a percentage basis. I dont think in recent years payroll has been a particularly good predictor of whether or not a particular team is going to win. I think that Chris understands both based on his experience with the Tigers and his experience in hockey that most winning franchises build from within with young players and I think hes going to pursue a strategy that is designed to produce a winner here in Detroit.

Mikie Mahtook ignores his stats, but the Tigers are noticing

Contact Anthony Fenech: afenech@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @anthonyfenech.

Download our Tigers Xtra app for free onAppleandAndroiddevices!

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Rob Manfred calls Detroit Tigers owner Chris Ilitch 'exciting addition' - Detroit Free Press

By Dave Pasquantonio, Correspondent

Capes are the quintessential New England home style. Towns throughout Massachusetts, including Walpole, have neighborhoods peppered with capes, many springing up during the post-WWII housing boom. Theyre reassuringly familiar even in places where they werent built in large numbers. When kids learn to draw a house, they draw a cape. And those green Monopoly houses? Theyre capes, too, down to the customary center chimney.

Early traditional capes, designed with Yankee practicality to combat the regions harsh climate, shared several common design features. They were side gabled, with steep roofs to quickly shed water and snow, and had small roof overhangs. A center front door was flanked with either one or two pairs of windows, depending on the homes footprint. Center chimneys provided heat and light to the first floor, which often consisted of simply a cooking and gathering space and a bedroom separate spaces for the kitchen, dining room, living room and bedroom came later. The smaller second level was accessed by a steep, narrow staircase to maximize the first-floor living space, and was either unused or turned into two small (and often unheated) rooms for children or guests. The homes were finished with cedar shingles or clapboard.

Most modern-day cape owners need more space and function than those original homes could provide. Upgraded and more recently built capes feature gable dormer windows, shed dormers or Nantucket dormers (two gable dormer windows joined by a shed dormer) to increase living space vertically. Where theres room to expand horizontally, capes are outfitted with wing, extension or bump-out additions. Basements are easily finished due to the simplicity of the original foundation. Common exterior add-ons include sunrooms, porches, and garages, either attached directly to the home or accessed through a breezeway.

Though its rare to see a newly-built conventional cape in an age of ever-more-enormous homes, some recently-constructed houses take the essence of a traditional cape and add a larger footprint, multi-level flooring, dormers, and higher first-floor ceilings, giving the home the square footage and feel of a colonial, but with a unique style.

Here are a few examples of capes currently for sale in Walpole.

Built in 1942, the traditional cape at 82 Norfolk St. eschews a second floor in favor of a single level of living space, along with a walk-out basement ripe for finishing. A half-acre of land and a modern interior, coupled with the potential for vertical expansion, make this a great home for the buyer with an eye on the future. ($360,000; agent Thomas Blount; 781-417-5256).

At 324 Coney St. in East Walpole is a 1939 cape that received a two-story addition in 2009, and now boasts almost 2,200 square feet of living space. With three bedrooms and three baths, this 10-room beauty is a great example of an older home taken to new heights with smart improvements. ($499,900; agent Jen Conley; 508-265-3824).

The 1980s-built Gambrel cape at 7 Deerfield Drive retains traditional features while adding a shed dormer in the rear and three gable dormer windows and a gambrel roof in the front, along with an attached garage connected by additional living space. With over 2,500 square feet of living space, its an excellent example of a cape crossing into colonial-feel territory. ($635,000; agent Robin Wish; 508-944-1967).

The home at 7 Jessie Way also has three gable dormer windows and a shed dormer, and a front-gabled attached garage. It, too, was constructed in the 1980s, well after the initial wave of smaller capes, and thus has more pizzazz than its forebears. With about two acres of land and an 1,800 square-foot basement ready for finishing, this home provides living space on par with many homes found in executive developments, but without a cookie-cutter feel. ($719,900; agent Tony Ruggiero; 508-648-7393).

Its not difficult to spot capes during a drive through Walpole. Our town has plenty of these rugged little homes, which are easy to live in, easy to upgrade and easy to draw.

Original post:
Walpole Homefront: A primer on the quintessential cape - Wicked Local Walpole

Photo: Elizabeth Conley, Staff

Erin Patchell checks out a new light fixture in her Heights home with her sister, Holly Fedora on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Erin Patchell checks out a new light fixture in her Heights home with her sister, Holly Fedora on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Erin Patchell holds up a new light fixture in her Heights home as she seeks advice from her sister, Holly Fedora on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Erin Patchell holds up a new light fixture in her Heights home as she seeks advice from her sister, Holly Fedora on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Mark VanDoren, owner of APD Design, has designed homes and additions int he Heights area for 25 years

Mark VanDoren, owner of APD Design, has designed homes and additions int he Heights area for 25 years

Mark VanDoren, owner of APD Design, has designed homes and additions int he Heights area for 25 years

Mark VanDoren, owner of APD Design, has designed homes and additions int he Heights area for 25 years

A home on Arlington listing that it has been historically renovated in the Historic Heights neighborhood on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

A home on Arlington listing that it has been historically renovated in the Historic Heights neighborhood on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Home on Arlington and 11th Street that needed approval for renovation in the Historic Heights neighborhood on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Home on Arlington and 11th Street that needed approval for renovation in the Historic Heights neighborhood on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Erin Patchell holds up a new light fixture in her Heights home as she seeks advice from her sister, Holly Fedora on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Erin Patchell holds up a new light fixture in her Heights home as she seeks advice from her sister, Holly Fedora on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Erin Patchell holds up a new light fixture in her Heights home as she seeks advice from her sister, Holly Fedora on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Erin Patchell holds up a new light fixture in her Heights home as she seeks advice from her sister, Holly Fedora on Monday, Aug. 14, 2017, in Houston. ( Elizabeth Conley / Houston Chronicle )

Erin Patchell holds up a new light fixture in her Heights home as she seeks advice from her sister.

Erin Patchell holds up a new light fixture in her Heights home as she seeks advice from her sister.

Part of the motivation for the city's set of design guidelines and approval process is to keep larger homes from overwhelming smaller ones with different aesthetic features in the historic Heights.

Part of the motivation for the city's set of design guidelines and approval process is to keep larger homes from overwhelming smaller ones with different aesthetic features in the historic Heights.

Proposed Heights guidelines would restrict renovation, new construction

Tina Nelkin's friends urged her to get a home security system when she moved to the Houston Heights 30 years ago. The neighborhood, she says, was notable for sagging front porches on tiny old wooden homes with broken refrigerators and furniture strewn in overgrown front yards.

"It was like going to grandma's house," Nelkin recalled Monday. "That's what people move to the Heights for."

It's since become a sought-after inner-city neighborhood where home prices average about a half-million dollars. Most of the original small homes, most of them built around the turn of the century, were buried beneath super-sized additions or demolished and replaced. The activity drew the attention of city planners who designated the region a historic district and waged a yearslong struggle to regulate how homeowners there could alter their historic homes.

"You can't do anything here without a permit," Nelkin said. "And we love that."

Now, for the first time, the city is preparing to publish a 225-page set of guidelines for building and modifying homes in the historic Heights, listing in explicit detail what can and cannot, should and should not be done. Until now, officials say, the process for permit approval has been subjective and reliant on substantial guesswork.

"If you are altering or building something new, these are the criteria you must meet to do that," said Margaret Wallace Brown, deputy director of the city planning department. "It will eliminate the guesswork that everybody has been operating under for the past several years."

A final public meeting will be held Sept. 28 at the United Way Building on Waugh, and the draft of the new guidelines then will be sent to City Council.

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If approved, the new guidelines would specify regulations on the size, height and footprint of additions to the historic buildings, as well as detailed stylistic guidance on everything from window frames and doors and siding, chimneys and porches.

Some disillusioned by efforts

The document represents a major change in Houston's uneven push for historic preservation. Since the passage of Houston's original preservation ordinance in 1995, planners have worked to strengthen the rules and provide means of enforcement to prevent alteration of particular buildings.

The Heights would become by far the largest historic district brought under neighborhood-specific design guidelines. While the city considers it a major achievement, some designers and builders fear the rules infringe on property rights and could stifle development.

"How can we have this kind of control over someone's property rights? This is Texas," said Mark VanDoren, owner of Heights-based APD Design. "You don't tell us what to do with our property in Texas."

VanDoren has watched the preservation effort unfold for more than 25 years, as he designed new and remodeled homes in the Heights. Initially he took part in a citizens' land-use committee to protest construction of tall townhomes rising amid the squat bungalows.

Yet he grew disillusioned by the preservation effort by what he saw as politics and power play.

"Things have gotten way out of hand," he said. "They're going to make it more and more restrictive."

Any modifications to historic structures in the historic district currently require city approval and a "certificate of appropriateness."

Erin Patchell has confronted some of those restrictions. Two years ago, she and her husband bought a lot with two structures on it at 12th and Arlington. They drew up plans to adjoin the two structures, but the city historical commission denied them. The commission didn't like their use of brick siding, the planned height of the addition and the shape of the roof line, Patchell said. Months later, their amended plan was approved, but only after a tie-breaker vote.

"While I support historic preservation, I will never go through this process again," she said. "And this is before the new guidelines."

Her plan would not be approved under the proposed new guidelines, she said. She worried that the burdensome restrictions would discourage anyone from buying historic properties, leaving them to decay.

'Borderline insane'

Such experiences aren't particularly rare. Rob Hellyer, presidents of Heights-based Premier Remodeling and a member of the city historical commission, said he's seen homeowners brought to tears at commission meetings, frustrated by the slow and seemingly fickle process for design approval.

He said that "absolutely" the guidelines are needed.

"There just aren't real clear guidelines right now. A lot of it is based on subjective judgment," he said.

City approval in the district is required for replacing doors, windows, siding or any historical materials, adding new rooms, carports or awnings and any new construction. The new rules specify size and height restrictions for any add-ons.

That's a point that VanDoren fears could hurt development in the area, making additions not worth the investment. In one recent project, he said, a homeowner wanted a 1,000-square-foot addition to a $459,000 house. Restrictions allowed him to increase the size by only 40 percent to the home footprint. He bid that work out for $248,000, far more than the value the addition would add to the house.

So instead, VanDoren fast-tracked a much larger second-story addition, knowing it would be prohibited by the time the new guidelines passed.

Under the guidelines, he fears that additions will become cost-prohibitive for the smaller bungalows, which will be left to decay beside $1.5 million homes.

"What the city is doing is borderline insane," he said.

The Houston Heights Association said it had no opinion on the design guidelines.

'You have to protect it'

For others, the guidelines represent progress in Houston, which has a notoriously poor record on preservation. This city adopted its first preservation 32 years after Los Angeles did so, said David Bush, acting executive director of Preservation Houston.

He said the new Heights guidelines bring Houston one step closer to the standard practices in big U.S. cities.

He called the restrictions necessary to maintain a unique character, preventing historic neighborhoods from becoming strip malls.

"You can always build new," he said. "You can't build old. You have to protect it."

The Heights posed a particular challenge in crafting cohesive design guidelines, though, because the neighborhood grew in several phases, with large homes for wealthy people in the early days, followed by smaller bungalows as the area grew less affluent.

The city plans next to develop similar development documents for seven more historic districts: Woodland Heights, updates to the Old Sixth Ward, Norhill, Market Square, Freeland and Glennbrook Valley.

"You shouldn't just take a special place and turn it into Anywhere, USA," Nori Minster, who owns a home on Harvard Street, said. "Sometimes I worry."

Correction: This article has been update to note David Bush's title with Preservation Houston is acting executive director.

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Proposed Heights guidelines would restrict renovation, new construction - Houston Chronicle

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Snell Motor Companies Awarded Second Jaguar Franchise In North Texas - TheStreet.com

Walking the halls of Poquoson Middle School was a trip down memory lane for many of the people who toured the building after a joint meeting between the School Board and City Council Tuesday night.

They had walked these halls as preteens or teenagers some when the building was still the high school.

City Attorney D. Wayne Moore pointed out the old band room and a space under the current music room risers that once contained locker room showers. He drew laughs when he said he drove the school bus in high school, making a handsome wage for a teenager in the late 1950s.

Despite the light feel around the tour, its subject was a pending decision that Mayor Gene Hunt said would shape the citys education for a generation. It might be the most important work that we as School Board members have ever accomplished on our term, added School Board Chair Steven Kast.

At Tuesdays meeting, the council and the board reopened discussions of school consolidation, going over the enrollment decline the schools have faced for years, the shrinking of state funding and some infrastructure challenges in the school buildings.

Hunt implored the council and the board to approach the consolidation discussions with an open mind. He said the primary driver of any decision should be doing whats best for students, adding that any money saved by consolidating would stay in the schools.

Since 2006, Poquoson school enrollment has dropped by 522 students. The enrollment in fall 2016 was 2,080, leaving the school 649 students short of its functional capacity. Superintendent Jennifer Parish noted that the enrollment and capacity gap is distributed across the citys four schools.

She also went over declining state funding and the city having to meet the schools funding gaps, increasing its contribution year to year. Kast said the state does not provide money for capital projects, leaving the burden of construction on the city.

In 2012, a consolidation committee appointed by the School Board decided against closing any of the citys four schools but said the city and schools should revisit the discussion in 2016 if enrollment decline continued. The committee said Poquoson Primary School made the most sense to close because it could be used for other purposes for some financial gain and made for the easiest instructional transition.

Parish outlined a 2012 facility study by school staff and a contractor that offered several possibilities for the middle school, ranging from fixing it up to demolishing it and building a new one.

The contractor listed the architectural and mechanical work the building needed. The contractor found the school had undergone 11 phases of work, leading to some disjointed operating systems, like running about a dozen different HVAC systems. The contractor said despite renovations and additions, much of the building was out of date, adding that the schools out-of-date systems were grandfathered due to age and were not up to current code.

Steve Pappas, the schools executive operations director, led the tour of the middle school, highlighting signs of age and patchwork repairs.

(Aileen Devlin/Daily Press) /

School Board, City Council and school division and city staff members look over an out dated music room during a tour of Poquoson Middle School on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2017. Poquoson Middle is the oldest school in the city and is being considered for closing the school because of declining enrollment, down by about 500 in 10 year.

School Board, City Council and school division and city staff members look over an out dated music room during a tour of Poquoson Middle School on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2017. Poquoson Middle is the oldest school in the city and is being considered for closing the school because of declining enrollment, down by about 500 in 10 year. ((Aileen Devlin/Daily Press) /)

In the auditorium, he stood by a pillar that was warped from moisture with paint bearing scars of water damage. He took the group upstairs to one of the biggest rooms in the school what Moore said was the old band room and said the room only had two electric outlets. Lack of connectivity in some places inhibits the use of new technology in classes, Parish said.

Down the hall, Pappas pointed out a window to the other second floor across the roof the two upstairs wings arent connected, but were different additions made over the years. And even though there are two second floors, the building has no elevators.

In one utility room of pipes and electrical panels, Pappas showed a line about four cinder blocks tall the high water mark from Hurricane Isabel. Some electrical panels in the room were lower than the water line. In an outdoor utility room, Pappas invited the group to look up at a gash in the roof through which you could clearly see the sky.

He pointed out a computer lab as one of the lowest rooms in building. He said they stack all the equipment any time a big storm is expected. The room was also cooled by a window air conditioning unit, a sign of the disparate HVAC systems.

The shop class area showed a different sort of HVAC a piece of machinery hanging from the ceiling that looked like some antique car part. Pappas said hot water runs through it, and a fan blows out the heated air.

Toward the end of the tour, as if on cue, a leak sprung as Pappas passed through a first-floor doorway.

Kast said the School Board hopes to make a consolidation recommendation to the City Council in November. Hunt said he hopes the council can make a final decision in December.

Reyes can be reached by phone at 757-247-4692. Follow him on Twitter @jdauzreyes.

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Will Poquoson's leaky middle school fall to consolidation - Daily Press