Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

Interim policy compensates displaced home-owners with $20,000, provides relocation assistance

More protections are on the way for residents of manufactured home parks in Mission.

At the May 21 meeting, council unanimously adopted the Manufactured Home Park Redevelopment Tenant Assistance Policy on an interim basis, with the intention of replacing it with a bylaw in the future.

The new policy includes protections that would require compensation to tenants who own their housing unit. The payout would be based on appraised values, assessed values or $20,000, per the report.

The policy also requires rezoning applicants to include a relocation assistance plan and a commitment to hire a qualified professional to assist tenants impacted.

Additionally, the developer will need to provide proof of early and ongoing tenant notification, including a consultation meeting early in the process for tenants to voice comments.

The policy has been modelled after a Maple Ridge policy in use since 2023. Policies from other municipalities have been reviewed and could inform future amendments to the policy or bylaws.

The provincial Residential Tenancy Act and Manufactured Park Home Tenancy Act already provide some protection measures.

Meanwhile, a new provincial bill (Bill 16) provides municipalities with the authority to develop Tenant Protection Bylaws.

These bylaws can require developers to provide added support for tenants facing displacement in cases of redevelopment, including financial assistance, assistance with finding a new place to live and opportunities for right of first refusal on units in a new building, the staff report reads.

City staff will soon review the advantages of developing a bylaw under Bill 16.

The initial compensation payout in Missions policy was $10,000, but council resolved to double it. Coun. Jag Gill said it doesnt buy much.

Thats just the reality of it. For a lot of folks, they put all their money into these manufactured homes. So Im hoping that theres something that gives them a little bit more protection and if its those bills that staff talked about in the report, I look forward to seeing those as well, Gill said.

Council decided to act on the issue at the April 15 meeting after residents of the Grove Mobile Home Park on Lougheed Highway received a letter from new owners informing them of plans to redevelop the park into a multi-family residential and commercial project.

At the meeting, council asked whether a moratorium on development of manufactured home parks would be possible.

However, according to the report on May 21, staff determined a moratorium on processing development applications for redevelopment of manufactured home parks is not possible under the current legislative framework.

Mission Mayor Paul Horn says protecting tenants is an evolving process. He said the city is sending a message to potential developers of manufactured home parks that council will be watching and that developments must consider the needs of current residents.

READ MORE: Residents fear homelessness if Mission mobile home park closes

Continued here:
Mission council approves temporary protections for manufactured home tenants - Mission City Record

Several residents of a neighborhood in the Skipcha subdivision went before the Harker Heights City Council on Tuesday to bring attention to a collapsing retaining wall that is threatening their property.

The wall, which is made of wooden crossties, has given way in several spots and shifted away from residents fences, causing significant damage.

One resident who spoke, Jean Flores, gave an impassioned presentation about the problems she and her husband had been dealing with especially with the recent heavy rains and implored the city to help.

Her husband, Dan Flores, presented a lengthy letter detailing the problems with the wall, complete with photos of the damaged yards and collapsing fences along the failing retaining wall.

He noted in the letter that his neighbors fence has fallen and his own fence is leaning. Other neighbors pools are at risk, he said.

I called our insurance company, USAA, and they said they wouldnt cover it, since it was erosion, Flores said.

But Flores also said the problem first started when Astound, a fiber optic company, blew a hole for its line near the Flores back fence in December 2022. By April of 2023, the Floreses noticed large holes in the yard and through the drainage ditch retaining wall where the Astound contractor blew the hole.

Flores called Public Works Director Mark Hyde, who came out to view the damage, along with the contractor contact from Astound. The Astound representative conceded that the fiber optic installation was the likely cause of the damage. But the next day, Flores said, the contractor tried to say it was a city problem, apparently after talking to his boss.

Astound send a landscaper out to make some temporary fixes the next month, but the damage has still been getting worse.

Last month, as heavy rains accelerated the erosion, the Floreses and neighbor Anthony Sniggs went to City Manager David Mitchell, who agreed to discuss the issue at a workshop, which the city held Tuesday.

During Tuesdays meeting, Mitchell clarified the issue of responsibility regarding the retaining wall.

He said the retaining wall was built on the homeowners property when the homes were built 15 to 20 years ago, and it remains the homeowners property.

The city owns the easement between the drainage ditch below the back of the properties and the retaining hall.

However, due to Texas law, all utilities including fiber optic companies have access to the easements to install or service their lines.

Because of this, neither the property owners nor the city had the authority to prevent Astound from installing cable near the fence. However, Mitchell noted that the city has issued a stop-work order in the area of the damaged retaining wall, which is allowable under the law.

In the meantime, residents want to know when the wall will be repaired and more importantly, who will pay for it.

Mitchell quoted cost estimates for replacing the 750-foot length of wall that has given way and it isnt cheap, as residents have found out.

A new wall with pavestone construction would cost about $668,500, and a concrete cast wall would cost $811,750, based on price per linear foot.

Mitchell expressed doubts about whether Harker Heights could legally use city money to pay for repairs to private property.

Well have to talk to our city attorney, Charlie Olson about that issue, he said.

He also noted that opening the door to paying to fix retaining walls on private property could have a domino effect.

Those walls with crossties are all around the city, Mitchell said. If we had to pay to repair a number of them, it would impact our budget and affect other road projects.

He displayed several slides showing walls made of crossties in the Country Trails subdivision, as well as in other areas.

Mitchell noted that the city no longer allows wooden crossties to be used to build retaining walls an ordinance that was changed in 2006.

Councilwoman Jennifer McCann called Dan Flores back up to the podium and asked him to clarify the timeline of the retaining wall problems.

Flores answered that he didnt have any problems with the wall for the first 15 years he lived in the house, but they started cropping up shortly after the fiber optic line drilling took place.

After Flores ran through the sequence of events, noting that Astound kept asserting that the retaining wall issue was a city problem, Mayor Michael Blomquist asked whether the fiber optic company might bear some responsibility in this issue.

Mitchell said this would be another question for the city attorney, and asked the city secretary to add the issue to the closed session the city already has scheduled at its June 4 meeting.

See the rest here:
Heights council hears concerns about collapsing retaining wall - The Killeen Daily Herald

Work orders worth Rs. 2.30 crore issued to ensure safety of motorists

Mysore/Mysuru: Even as the work to construct a retaining wall atop Chamundi Hill between View Point and Nandi Statue Road is yet to be completed, several more retaining walls on the main road of the Hill and the road leading to Uthanahalli have collapsed due to heavy rains, endangering the motorists.

The Public Works Department (PWD) has undertaken the restoration of these retaining walls to ensure motorists safety. The main road to the Hill runs from Thavarekatte at the foothill to the parking lot on top of the Hill. The retaining walls, built many years ago, have either been damaged or broken in many places.

Similarly, the retaining walls on the road from Chamundi Hill to the Uthanahalli Jwalamukhi Tripurasundari Devi Temple have also been damaged and broken in places. Some of the damage to the retaining wall has occurred at places with a steep gradient, making these stretches particularly risky for motorists. As such, the PWD has prioritised the restoration of these retaining walls.

The PWD prepared a Detailed Project Report (DPR) along with an estimate for constructing concrete retaining walls on these two roads. It sought approval from the Government and initiated the tender process even before the implementation of the Model Code of Conduct for the Lok Sabha Elections. Work orders have later been issued to contractors to commence the work.

Two contracts issued

PWD Executive Engineer Raju told Star of Mysore that a contract worth Rs. 1.8 crore has been awarded to one contractor for the restoration of retaining walls from Thavarekatte to the multi-level parking lot building atop the Hill while another contractor has been tasked with restoring the retaining wall along the road from Chamundi Hill to Uttanahalli for Rs. 50 lakh.

Both projects were initiated simultaneously before the start of the Lok Sabha election process, and already 50 percent of the work has been completed. The previously existing stone retaining wall has been removed at places and the available spaces have been expanded concrete walls with iron reinforcements are being constructed from the foundation level.

Instead of the earlier stone retaining wall, which was only 2 feet high, new 4 feet-high concrete retaining walls are being constructed at places where damages have occurred, providing increased safety for two-wheelers, cars, autos, tempos and buses travelling on this route.

Raju stated that the Government approved the construction of concrete retaining walls at the collapsed and weakened spots for the safety of motorists.

He mentioned that the construction of the retaining walls on the main road of Chamundi Hill and the road towards Uttanahalli is progressing rapidly. Additionally, on the other side of the road, areas eroded by rainwater are levelled with cement concrete.

He emphasised the responsibility of regularly maintaining all roads leading to the Hill, noting that the Department prioritises immediate repair as soon as any weakening is noticed.

See the rest here:
Construction of rain-damaged retaining walls underway atop Chamundi Hill - Star of Mysore

ITHACA, N.Y. This round of construction updates will focus on the neighborhoods near Cornell, namely the University Avenue corridor, Cornell Heights and Collegetown. Read on and navigate the following galleries.

For those who missed part one of this gallery series, which looked at projects on Cornells campus, follow the link here.

To begin, the Ithaca Fire Station No. 2 is under construction at 403 Elmwood Avenue, on the cusp of the Collegetown and Belle Sherman neighborhoods. The new 13,400-square-foot building on the corner of Elmwood and Dryden Roads replaces two apartment houses that previously occupied the site.

The planned fire station will include resting quarters, a workout room, classrooms for training, multi-use facilities for skilled practice sessions (previously, the Ithaca Fire Department had to train at the wastewater plant during the winter), and indoor parking bays for fire apparatus. It will also host vehicular and emergency apparatus access, the usual complement of landscaping and lighting, and a rear parking lot with nine spaces.

As noted in a previous Voice update, the fire station will be fully electric, with a planned opening in Summer 2025. It replaces the existing station No. 2 at 309 College Avenue, which was built in 1968 and is functionally obsolete. Its property was sold in a competitive request for bids, and the winner, Integrated Acquisition and Development (developers John Novarr and Phil Proujansky), gave the city this corner site as well as a negotiated $5.1 million payment.

Walking past the site, the concrete foundation falls are being formed and poured, and some steel rebar can be seen poking out from the excavated site. The fire station is partially built into the hillside, so the foundation walls have a stepped appearance, as seen in the last photo.

Beyond the foundation wall are Larssen-style steel sheet pilings, serving as retaining walls to hold the soil back from the building site. As you can see in the background, before they are pile-driven into place, they are actually quite tall, and theyre manufactured to lengths of up to 118 feet.

Streeter Associates won the competitive bid process to build the new station, which is designed by Wendell Mitchell Associates Architects, a suburban Albany firm that specializes in fire stations. Edger Enterprises is performing the construction work; Streeter is the construction manager here, and subcontracted out various aspects of the construction.

Click on any of the above pictures to enlarge and navigate the gallery. Return to the story when youre done.

The Ithaca Voiceis providing a few extra photos on this project, due to its sheer size. Catherine Commons stretches along two blocks on the west side of College Avenue, and is programmatically divided into two portions, Catherine North and Catherine South, each consisting of three apartment buildings and totaling about 265,000 SF of space. The project is the work of longtime local real estate developers John Novarr and Phil Proujansky, who do business asIntegrated Acquisition and Development Corporation.

The buildings will contain approximately 360 residential units (with a net gain of 339 bedrooms versus the previous 11 apartment houses on-site), a 2,600 square-foot commercial space along College Avenue, a 1,600 square-foot private fitness center, and a small parking lot for Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and service vehicles.

The project also includes streetscape improvements, several ADA-compliant plaza spaces, pedestrian amenities, and public bus stop infrastructure.The city of Ithacagranted approvals to the project in March 2022. ikon.5 Architects is in charge of design, with Welliver as the general contractor.

The buildout is phased, but not as a simple north/south split. Two of the three buildings of Catherine South are framed, sheathed, and being faced in aluminum panels and terra cotta in a variety of colors, with Building 3b a variety of greens with red accents, and Building 3a a combination of grey and mustard yellow with red accents. The third building in Catherine South, the smaller, gable-roofed Building 4, is fully framed and sheathed, with window fitting and roof installation ongoing. It has yet to receive any exterior finishes.

Meanwhile, on the Catherine North site, Building 1 is receiving its finishes of grey and salmon terra cotta with green steel accents, and Building 2a and 2b have green terra cotta with a lighter green steel on the sides (2a/2b and 3a/3b present as separate buildings, but theyre connected by multi-story skyways).

The marketing websiteboasts of community amenities such as a fitness center, high-speed internet, study lounges, bike storage, a package receiving room, and controlled (gated, essentially) access. Apartments will come furnished, and host a bevy of kitchen appliances, air conditioning, washer/dryer, granite countertops, and vinyl tile floors.Available apartments rangefrom 310 SF studios at $2,000/month to three-bedroom units that provide 1,054 SF and cost about $1,700/bedroom.

The question is always asked: Who can afford these? Collegetown is a captive market, and Cornells student population has grown by 4,000 students, mostly graduate and professional matriculants, in the past decade. Banks dont loan for big projects in Upstate New York unless the market is as solid as a rock. Catherine Commons initial phase of apartments will be occupied this August.

With 325 Dryden complete, AdBro Development (Chris Petrillose) has turned their attention to their next infill project,The William at 108-110 College Avenue. Similarly to its sister project, this project had a rather contentious review process and had to undergo a size reduction in order to obtain Site Plan Approval back in February 2023. It replaces two older apartment houses with a 29-unit, 44-bedroom, four-story apartment building designed by architect Jason Demarest.

As they did for 325 Dryden, Plumb, Level & Squareis handling the buildout of this project. The building is fully framed, sheathed in EnergyShield polyiso foam panels, and overlaid with TyPar housewrap. The primary lapboards are being installed, with the less prominent filler boards to follow. Structural brackets indicate where future balconies will be attached to the building. The black material is Grace Ice and Water Shield, rubberized asphalt more typical to roofing underlayment, and here meant to provide more durable protection from drips and drops below the balconies.

The marketing website shows a variety of studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units, and extolls fully-furnished units with in-unit washer/dryer, smart TVs, and wi-fi, along with community study rooms and a fitness center.Ads on Zillow show the units will go for $1,600-$2,300/bedroom, utilities not included, with occupancy in time for the Fall 2024 semester.

Cornells Roitman Chabad (ha-BAHD) Center, servicing students of the Jewish faith, is undergoing a buildout of a two-story, 10,000-square-foot addition to their Tudor mansion on the corner of Willard Way and Lake Street. The plans include a new commercial kitchen, a Pesach kitchen, a 140-person dining hall, a 50-seat community room, classrooms, mens mikvah (ceremonial bathing room), and covered ground-level parking.

The project has been in the works for several years, though the COVID pandemic delayed its review for a spell, when the future of in-person higher education was murky. Project plans were approved in 2022, with revisions approved last year.

The masonry elevator core and stairwell have been assembled and steel framework is ongoing for the commercial-grade structure. Concrete has been poured for new staircases on the sloped site. Steel trusses on a small building like this are uncommon, but large group assembly spaces are a heavy-duty use. Signage in front of the Chabad house as well as the Chabad website show the project about 75% of the way towards achievement of a $7.5 million fundraising goal, and state the new building will be completed next spring, though a Cornell fundraising site states January 2025.

Petrie Constructions regional office in suburban Syracuse is handling the buildout. The architectural work, with historical nods toward the century-old Tudor home that has housed Chabad for many years next door, was performed by Jason Demarest. Demarest previously designed the womans mikvah towards the rear of the property.

Modern Living Rentals, led by local landlord and developer Charlie OConnor, is not an attention-seeking type of development company. Most of their projects are renovations. When they do new construction, its small and intended to blend in with its older surroundings. Such is the case with 200 Highland Avenue in Cornell Heights, which was approved by the Planning Board back in February.

The project consists of a new 3,518 square-foot apartment house on a previously vacant swath of land that would comprise one three-bedroom and two five-bedroom units.

Since Cornell Heights is a historic district, architect Mike Barnoskiof local design and build firm Trade Design Build riffs off of the existing house next door, while seeking a modern materials treatment with a green roof and more generous fenestration. Building in historical districts in Ithaca is always a delicate balance of blending in, without mimicking older structures.

The house takes advantage of an ambiguity in the zoning code where technically its an addition to the house next door, through a shared basement connected by a passageway (which former Planning Board Chair Rob Lewis playfully called a party tunnel). This allowed more flexibility in design than cutting off a new building lot would have.

The building is framed and sheathed in plywood ZIP panels, and the rough openings for windows are still being carved out of the frame. The house next door will also be getting a renovation. A small project with wood framing like this may be ready for its first renters by August if the buildout goes smoothly. Nextier Bank of Pennsylvania provided a $980,000 bundled loan for this project and renovations at other MLR properties.

In Collegetown, there are a few projects that have tentative schedules but are yet to begin construction. The Ruby, a 35-unit project at 228 Dryden Road, has been taken over by Visum Development, which the rumor mill reports is having some issues with codes, even though the project is fully approved.

Approved plans for a 35-unit apartment building at 121 Oak Avenue are dead, and while the existing houses at 109 and 111 Valentine Place have been taken down to make way for a new 25-unit, 40-bedroom apartment buildingby Novarr/Proujansky, no construction has taken place in over a year. Even Collegetowns high-priced rentals have struggled to make financing work since interest rates were hiked up last year.

Modern Living Rentals seems likely to have better luck with its six-unit, 18-bedroom infill project at 601 East State Street. Cornell Hillel has plans for a new campus center at 722 University Avenue, but they appear to have turbulence with early zoning board discussions for variances. Ithaca Guns site has been cleared of on-site contaminated soil, but as mentioned by the Industrial Development Agency last month, the project has a financing gap and is unable to move forward for the time being.

More here:
Gallery: See what's under construction near Cornell this spring - The Ithaca Voice

The SuperBungalows, a new apartment building completed this spring in the hip Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, is not a traditional bungalow. The project is an answer to LAs need for density and housing, with a nod to the pleasures of living in an individual residence with a porch. It replaced an existing single-family house, an increasingly common occurrence in a city where land values make houses unaffordable to all but the rich or lucky familial inheritors. Most notably, the SuperBungalows represents the first cross-laminated timber (CLT) multifamily residential building in Los Angeles, the start of what the developer SuperLA hopes to replicate many times in the city.

Photo Madeline Tolle

Consisting of nine units, six one-bedrooms and three two-bedrooms, there are no party walls for the market-rate apartments. Each unit is set apart by private balconies and shared outdoor spaces like a small bungalowthe difference being the one-bedroom units are stacked in threes at either end of the east-west-oriented rectangular building, while the two-bedroom units stack to form the middle. Outdoor corridors and open stairs, along with an elevator, define the south elevation, while the entire mass sits on a concrete foundation and parking garage that takes advantage of the sloping lot to appear unobtrusive given its size. Every square inch of the site is given to something, including the rooftop, which includes a garden, seating, and a photovoltaic array that powers the common spaces.

Photos Madeline Tolle

Although many apartment buildings in LA feature kitschy namesCedar Tropics or La Traviata, for examplethe SuperBungalows is more of a brand eco-system by SuperLA, a start-up created by Aaron van Schaik. The companys model includes all aspects of the multifamily market, from land acquisition to design and construction and ongoing ownership and management. The focus on CLT construction, however, is at the heart of the enterprise.

Image courtesy SuperLA

The way we supply housing now is incredibly inefficient, says van Schaik, who breaks down SuperLAs approach into three categoriesproductization, panelization, and optimizationthat he believes addresses the time-consuming ground-up, balloon-framing approach to most multifamily housing projects. First, SuperLAs in-house designer, Jeff Chinn, planned two standard layouts, which they dub 1-bedroom and 2-bedroom products. A one-bedroom product is always 24 feet wide by 30 feet long, a predictable module that everything is rigorously standardized around to eliminate construction waste and offer a 650-square-foot residence. SuperBungalows was a prototype, but now each product can be easily site adapted to new projects. The company also plans to obtain pre-approval of the products with the City to expedite permitting in the future.

The second category focused on the CLT panels, which were produced by Nordic Structures in Canada out of black spruce. By panelizing the floors and roof with 5-ply, 7-inch-thick CLT, the project minimized on-site construction time. The floors include several layers to address sound transmission requirements, including 2 inches of lightweight concrete and floating Capri cork floor planks. The exterior envelope is a rainscreen finished with CERACLAD panels, a GFRC product with nearly 50 percent recycled content and full recyclability at end of life. The walls were framed more conventionally on site as part of the proof of concept. Van Schaik hopes in the next iteration of the project, the company can panelize the walls and prefabricate them in a facility they are currently developing, or even subcontract them out to other parties.

The CLT panels also reflect a biophilic design sensibility that informs many features of the building, including the cork floors, generously-sized operable windows for cross-ventilation, daylighting and views in the open living room, kitchen, and bedrooms. Van Schaik considers the restrained and natural material palette, daylighting, and expansive use of built-in cabinets and closets to be a more common-sense approach to luxury compared to the granite counter tops and acres of clubby amenities that currently define the top end of the rental market.

Other features speak to the citys environmental agenda, including the rainwater storage tanks holding 2,500 gallons for irrigation, secure bicycle storage, and electric vehicle chargers at each parking spot. The building is fully electric, with heat pumps for both hot water and the mechanical system. The landscape design, by Stephen Blewett with CRAFTLandscape Architecture, highlights native species like penstemon, manzanita, and Island Oak and Western Redbud trees.

Optimizing the team and delivery of projects is SuperLAs third strategic focus, which is one of the reasons the SuperBungalows were able to go from idea to fully-occupied building in less than four years. The SuperLA team is only four people, including project manager Sophia Smith and brand leader Quinn Arneson, but they have also made strategic partnerships with suppliers like Pella windows and Mosa tiles to further expedite production.

With lessons learned from SuperBungalows for how to get through planning approvals with the city, such as the ability to eliminate adding a layer of plywood over the CLT floor panels, SuperLA is in construction on another, larger building in the neighborhood. Van Schaik says they were able to compress their design time to a month versus a year, plan review to 6 months versus a year, and construction to 14 months instead of two years, which significantly improves the financial return given the apartments will start renting sooner. The new project also includes two units of affordable housing and a transit-oriented communities density bonus, mutually beneficial to both SuperLA and for addressing the citys perpetual housing crisis.

Originally posted here:
SuperBungalows, a New Cross-Laminated Timber Apartment Building, is a Los Angeles First - Architectural Record

The long-planned Rome Yards development is officially under construction in West Tampa.

Related Urban Development Group, the affordable and workforce housing wing of luxury developer Related Group, has started work on Gallery at Rome Yards, an 11-story, 234-unit apartment building that will be 80 percent affordable and workforce housing. The developer, the City of Tampa and the Tampa Housing Authority marked the occasion with a groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday, May 21st.

While Related Urban has developed multiple affordable and workforce housing apartment buildings in the nearby West River district, the Rome Yards project introduces the developers Gallery workforce housing model to Tampa. That model aims to provide high-quality workforce housing to families and individuals priced out of the neighborhoods that were once home. Five ground-floor live/work units designed for local artists and entrepreneurs will each have a storefront area.

On-site amenities will include a state-of-the-art fitness center, a walking path with distance markers, a workspace for students and remote workers, a communal club room, a dog park with a nearby dog wash area and several ground-floor retail spaces. The property will also house a workforce training/small business success center offering job training and resume-building assistance.

Gallery at Rome Yards is the first development under Tampas Community Benefits Agreement program, in Tampa, which creates a process that considers the social and community impact of major development plans and requires developers to provide community benefits for projects that receive public funds. For Gallery at Rome Yards, Related Urban will hire a minimum of 40% WMBE (Women and Minority Business Enterprise) and ensure that 40% of all new hires are local to Tampa.

Gallery at Rome Yards is expected to open in December 2026 with a mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments. It is the first piece of an ambitious mixed-use development planned on an 18-acre City of Tampa maintenance yard on the west side of the Hillsborough River. At build-out, Rome Yards will have 954 units of mixed-income housing and 33,605 square feet of commercial space. The project will also include green space, a community amphitheater and a brick observation cigar tower in honor of West Tampas history.

For more information, go to Related Group

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In West Tampa, Rome Yards construction begins with affordable and workforce apartments - 83degreesmedia

Earlier this year, Juno, a Silicon Valley-based proptech startup with a novel approach to the multifamily sector, completed its first projecta 24-unit apartment building in Austin, Texas. The building, known as Juno East Austin, comprises four levels of mass-timber construction over a steel-framed podium. Designed with Ennead, the new Juno structure relies on a kit of parts of about 30 custom-fabricated components, including mass-plywood-panel (MPP) floor slabs and columns, laminated-veneer-lumber beams, bathroom pods, and a unitized facade. The aim is to productize housing, making its construction similar to the manufacturing process for consumer electronics, according to BJ Siegel, Junos co-founder and a former Apple executive.

The Juno system consists of about 30 pre-fabricated elements. Image courtesy Juno

Behind its weathering-steel skin and above a ground floor housing the lobby and retail space, the building has has 24 studio and one-bedroom apartments, including 20 market-rate units with rents starting at $2,000 per month, and four units designated as affordable. The apartments have a level of detail and finish that is unusual for rental housing, with features that include timber ceilings, wood floors, generously sized windows, and all-electric appliances. Instead of drywall, interior partitions are made of high-pressure laminate over a plywood core, with the edges of this substrate left exposed. There is a degree of care and sophistication that cookie-cutter apartment buildings just dont have, says Tomas Rossant, an Ennead partner. To date, 50 percent of the apartments have been rented.

The podium level, which is steel-framed, houses a lobby and commercial space. Photo Tobin Davies

The startup, in which Ennead has a small equity stake, had planned similar buildings in Denver and Seattle, but those projects are on indefinite hold, primarily due to high interest rates. Should they move forward, only their ground floors would require conventional construction documents, says Rossant, explaining that Ennead capitalized on the full capabilities of building information modeling (BIM), pushing the technology to the red line, using it for the development of the assembly, for designing and quantifying the components, and coordinating with fabrication and manufacturing partners. For subsequent projects, the developer would need to hire a local architect to navigate codes and zoning and to design a site-specific base. However, for the remaining part of the building, documentation would be essentially automated from the podium up, he says. The local firm would run the playbook developed by Juno and Ennead.

The kit of parts coupled with BIM allows for modifications to accommodate market conditions or material availability, according to the Juno team. For instance, cross-laminated timber panels (CLT) could be substituted for the MPP floor slabs since there are a growing number of CLT suppliers, suggests Rossant.

Juno's apartments have all-electric kitchens (1), floor-to-ceiling windows (2), and partitions made of laminate over a plywood core.Photos Tobin Davies

A typical Juno floor plan. Image courtesy Juno, click to enlarge.

In Austin, erection of the timber superstructure required 28 daysabout 60 percent faster than that of a typical stick-built building of similar size. Despite the time savings, the projects opening was delayed. Originally set for completion by the end of 2022, according to a RECORD story on the projects progress published in July of that year, the building did not open until this past February. The main culprit was not the innovative construction system, but the local utilitys difficulty in securing the buildings transformer, according to Siegel.

Despite the hurdles, the Juno team sees applications for the concept in other sectors. Siegel points to hospitality and retail and Rossant to dormitories. Multifamily projects could also materialize if interest rates fall. If that comes to pass, more apartment dwellers would be able to experience high design, says Rossant. Now most people dont get architecture, he says. They get buildings.

Photo Tobin Davies

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Ennead's Mass-Timber Apartment Building in Austin Pioneers 'Productized' Housing - Architectural Record

Understand how the following factors can affect your overall siding costs to accurately budget for your project.

Individual siding materials tend to come in multiple styles. Vinyl is a great example with a variety of looks and textures to choose from. Traditional vinyl lap costs just $2 to $6 per square foot on average, while products that mimic the look of wood, brick or stone cost an average of $5 to $10 per square foot.

The shape and size of your home will impact the amount of material and how long it takes to install your siding. Multiple stories, dormers and unusual roof angles are all factors that can increase siding installation costs.

Where you live will affect your ability to find or ship the materials you need. Vinyl holds up well to cold temperatures and is readily available in northern states. On the other hand, it tends to warp or crack in extreme heat, so its not used or stocked as often in southern states.

Siding removal costs $1,000 to $2,500. While vinyl and aluminum can commonly be installed over other siding, many materials require a clean base for installation. You may incur additional labor and disposal costs if the new siding you choose cant cover the existing siding.

With your materials selected and labor accounted for, there are a few other elements to factor into your siding installation budget.

Some types of siding can also be painted, with exterior painting costs averaging $3,000 for an entire house. Paint can also be an alternative to installing new siding as long as the previous siding isnt damaged. A fresh coat of paint provides a fresh look for renewed curb appeal.

Once your siding is installed, youll pay an average of $1,800 for trim. This finishing element lines the edges, doors and windows of a home and is often included in the total price for siding.

Every local municipality will have different codes for the permits and inspections needed to install new siding. Simple repairs may not require a permit. However, because updating the siding material on an entire home can involve major changes with tax assessment implications, youll want to contact your local planning or development authority for an application. Expect permits to cost anywhere from $150 to $3,000 for siding installation.

Whether youre looking for a unique custom color shade or a highly specific trim style to complement your siding materials, expect an added expense for these special-order customizations.

No matter what type of siding you choose, it will look better and last longer with regular maintenance. Vinyl siding requires almost no maintenance costs since you can rinse it with gentle soap and water. Other materials like stucco, brick or stone should be maintained by a pro who can properly replace mortar. Wood siding can be maintained by a homeowner, but involves expenses related to painting, staining and sealing from moisture and mold.

More:
How Much Does It Cost To Install Siding In 2024? - Forbes

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United Roofing & Siding is a top-rated roofing company. In a recent update, the company explained the most prevalent roof installation mistakes to avoid. Albany, NY - In a website post, United Roofing & Siding explained the most prevalent roof installation mistakes to avoid.

The roofing contractors Albany, NY [https://www.unitedroofingservicellc.com/symbol-of-democracy-new-york-state-capitol-in-albany-ny/] said that one of the most common mistakes in roof installation is improper measuring and cutting of roofing materials. This can lead to gaps, overlaps, and uneven edges, which can compromise the performance and integrity of the roof. It is crucial to accurately measure and cut the materials to fit the roof's dimensions precisely.

The roofing contractors in Albany [https://www.google.com/maps?cid=8576518558066702249] mentioned that another frequent mistake is not properly securing the roofing materials. Many inexperienced roofers may not be aware of the necessary number of fasteners or the correct placement of them. This can result in loose or missing shingles, exposing the roof to water leaks and wind damage. This mistake can be avoided by following the manufacturer's guidelines and using the appropriate number of fasteners for the specific roofing materials being installed.

The technicians added that overlooking proper ventilation is a common mistake in Albany roof installation. Proper ventilation is essential to a healthy roof, as it helps regulate moisture and temperature. Improper ventilation can lead to roof damage, such as warping, cracking, and premature aging. It is crucial to ensure that the roof has proper ventilation before and during the installation process to avoid future problems.

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About United Roofing & Siding

United Roofing & Siding [https://www.unitedroofingservicellc.com/] is a leading roofing company. The professionals understand the importance of a solid and functional roof. That is why they strive to deliver exceptional service and craftsmanship on every project. The team of certified roofers is constantly staying apprised of the latest industry standards and strategies to provide customers with the best solutions for their roofs. Media Contact Company Name: United Roofing & Siding Contact Person: Manuel Tacuri Email: Send Email [http://www.universalpressrelease.com/?pr=united-roofing-siding-explains-the-most-prevalent-roof-installation-mistakes-to-avoid] Phone: (518) 524-5087 City: Albany State: New York Country: United States Website: https://www.unitedroofingservicellc.com/

This release was published on openPR.

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United Roofing & Siding Explains the Most Prevalent Roof Installation Mistakes to Avoid - openPR

Metropolitan Theodosios of Kinshasa, currently on a new missionary tour, recently visited the city of Kenge in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where a church is being constructed in honor of Saint Gerasimos the Hymnographer.

During his visit, the Metropolitan inspected the progress of the churchs construction and expressed satisfaction with the advancements made so far.

He addressed the faithful and the workers, speaking about the event of the Resurrection of the Lord. Together, they sang Christ is Risen, and the Metropolitan expressed his hope that, once the church construction is completed, the community will have a permanent priest to meet their ongoing worship needs.

Later in the afternoon, the missionary group traveled to the town of Kikwit, home to the parish of Saints Athanasios of Alexandria and Eleftherios. The priests and faithful of Kikwit warmly welcomed the Metropolitan of Kinshasa and his entourage.

Source: greek.vema.com.au

Link:
Metropolitan of Kinshasa visits Church under construction in honor of St Gerasimos the Hymnographer - Orthodox Times - Orthodoxtimes.com