Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

GE Aviation found itself distributing sheds this week.

The company has donated five wooden sheds initially built for COVID-19 screenings to area organizations, exposing a wider need in the process.

I have about 40 emails from people looking for sheds, GE business leader Drew Smith said.

Smith said GE assembled the sheds back in April.

We basically had tents set up at the mall where we did COVID screening, he said. We wanted to get back on our own property.

The maintenance staff built the wooden sheds, which he said were roughly 12 feet by 16 feet and insulated, with space to install a heater or air conditioner. They were made to hold one employee at a time along with the person tasked with taking employee temperatures before employees could enter the factory. About a month ago, Smith said, the company has acquired thermal scanners and moved the screening process indoors.

They withstood all the weather we had this year, including the big wind storms, Smith said.

With no more use for the sheds itself, Smith said the company figured there had to be organizations in the area that could use them. Inquiries led him to Project VISION, which sent a notice out on its mailing list.

I immediately had this mad rush of emails in my inbox of interest in sheds by nonprofits in Rutland County, he said. Within 24 hours, we had a home for all of them, and we have a backlog list.

Smith said the sheds were awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

We didnt want to decide who needs a shed the most, he said. Every organization had a really specific special need.

The sheds wound up going to Northeast Primary School, Northwood Park, Alliance Community Fellowship, Habitat for Humanity and Kinder Way Farm Sanctuary.

With the changing health situation, we are spending a lot of time outdoors, said Susanne Engels, principal at Northeast Primary School. The more were learning outside, the more were realizing the value of convenient storage.

Also, Engels said the need for room for social distancing has placed a premium on indoor storage space, making the schools new shed doubly valuable.

gordon.dritschilo

@rutlandherald.com

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GE shed giveaway sparks heavy interest | Pandemic 2020 - Rutland Herald

A scientist originally from Nova Scotia was part of a Massachusetts-based team that used genetic fingerprinting to track the devastating spread of COVID-19 from a single event.

A Biogen corporate conference held at a Boston hotel in February led to an estimated 245,000 infections in 29 U.S. states and several countries around the world by Nov. 1.

Bronwyn MacInnis, director of pathogen genomic surveillance at the Broad Institute in Cambridge, Mass., led a team that used genetic fingerprinting to track the spread of the virus from the Boston conference.

MacInnis grew up in Lower Sackville and credits her high school biology teacher, Roger O'Neil, with sparking her love of biology and curiosity aboutthe natural world.

That passion led her to complete an undergraduate degree in biology at Dalhousie.

MacInnis said it was an exciting time in genomicsas it was moving from being a theoretical field to one with real-world applications.

Inspired by the life-saving possibilities of genomic research, she went on to complete graduate degrees in molecular and cellular genetics at University of Alberta.

After following work opportunities in California and the U.K., she said the "gravitational force" of Nova Scotia drew her back to the East Coast.

When an opportunity arose for her to continue her work in Boston, a major biotech centre, she jumped at the opportunity to be closer to her family.

"It's now either a short flight or a long drive home depending on how you look at it," she said, adding that if an opportunity ever arose to work in Nova Scotia she would move back in a heartbeat.

She is the senior author of thestudy that waspublished in the journal Science on Dec. 10. The study paints a disturbing picture ofhow easily and quickly COVID-19 spreads.

"We're looking at little genetic markers, like a genetic fingerprint, that enable us to distinguishthe virus in one infection in one individual from another," she said.

"This is a new kind of approach to infectious disease epidemiology, where we use the DNA, the genetic sequence of the pathogens and viruses, to understand how they're evolving and spreading through communities."

She said the process was akin to building a virus "family tree."

MacInnis said when COVID-19 cases started to pop up in the state, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the Massachusetts General Hospital would sendsamples to her institute to be sequenced.

After looking at the genomic sequence of the viruses and identifying the COVID-19 variant, they were able to track the spread back to the conference and follow its progress.

She described the circumstances that led to the spread of the virus following the conference as a "perfect storm of unfortunate events."

Because the conference was held in the early days of the pandemic, measures like physical distancing, avoiding large gatherings and maskwearing were not yet in place.

"There was just a lot of opportunity for the virus to spread undetected widely at that time," MacInnis said.

Conference participants from across the U.S. and around the world returned home when the event ended, taking the virus with them.

It also led to widespread community transmission throughout the Boston area as well, including to homeless shelters and other high-risk communities.

The Boston conferenceis categorized as a superspreader event.

In a year when most people have been exposed to a slew of pandemic-related terms, MacInnis said the term has a specific meaning in the context of the study.

"Epidemiologically, we use that word when a single individualcase leads to many onward infections in a very short amount of time and often associated with a particular event or gathering," she said.

MacInnis said although the extent of the spread from a single event was dramatic, it wasn't shocking to her as it reflects infectious disease epidemiology at work.

She described seeing the transmission and reconstructing it with data as "kind of mind blowing."

MacInnis said there are practical applications of this new genetic approach to tracking infectious diseases and said it is a new tool in thetoolkit in thefight against COVID-19.

She said this study in particular offers an important"cautionary tale" in terms of public awareness and public health messaging, especially in the holiday season.

In the case of her home province, MacInnis said she was "deeply impressed" and very proud of Nova Scotia's ability to keep COVID-19 in check.

She said while there are features of the province, like a relatively small and fairly isolated population, that made containment easier, the political and public will also played a big role.

MacInnis said she often refers her colleagues to Nova Scotia when discussing preventative measures and the "receptivity of the public to take them up and enforce them."

"I have no doubt that those practices have largely protectedthe province from thedevastating experience that others are grappling with," she said

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Nova Scotian researcher sheds light on Boston COVID-19 superspreader event - CBC.ca

Want to learn about the likely economic outcomes for2021?Looking for sector insights for construction and agricultural machinery, the various forecast scenarios for the remainder of the year and the drivers behind the industries?

Consider attending this week's free 2021 Manufacturing Outlook Webinar, slated for Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 12:301:30 p.m. CST.

This is the first time that the AEM MI department will be presenting jointly with the economists of Oxford Economics, providing quantitative outlooks from the U.S. Ag and CE Machinery Outlook reports, as well as qualitative insights from AEMs quarterly industry conditions reports, said AEM Director of Market Intelligence Benjamin Duyck.

Register now.

Oxford Economics EconomistChloe Parkinsand Director of Industry ServicesMark Killion, will provide expert analysis of theU.S. Ag and CE Machinery Outlook Reports. In addition,Duyck will present the latest construction market insights and information to help prepare you to navigate the disruptive trends set to impact your business in the year ahead.

Through AEMs partnership with Oxford Economics, the quarterly Agriculture and Construction Machinery Outlook reports offer information on the evolution of the U.S. market, tied to trends in key industry drivers, such as industry structure, trade and major events.

For more information, contact AEM's Benjamin Duyck at bduyck@aem.org.

Subscribe to the AEM Industry Advisorfor the latest information about AEM member offerings.

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Attention AEM Members: Manufacturing Outlook Webinar To Shed Light on Likely Economic Outcomes for 2021 - Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM)

Hold on to you hats, ladies and gentlemen, because Red House BBQ has opened a drive-thru window serving all your barbecued favorites and sides.

After giving it much thought, owner Mano Lujan decided to open a drive-thru window at his other restaurant, The Shed, located across the street from Red House BBQ at 333 E. Tehachapi Blvd.

Effective Dec. 9, The Shed is serving as the Red House BBQ Drive Thru.

"Red House Drive Thru will be a mirror of Red House BBQ. The exact same menu will be at both places. This means we are in complete compliance with the (COVID-19) situation and not only will my staff continue to work, but we are actually creating more jobs as we have hired a few more people and are looking for even a few more," Lujan wrote on the Red House BBQ Facebook page.

Patrons will also notice some changes at Red House BBQ.

"Please be understanding and patient as we deal with this and try and move in a forward direction," Lujan wrote. "I am not closing. I am not laying off staff. I'm fighting. I really don't care what other restaurants/establishments do. I'm focused on my staff, my family and the future of my establishment. I'm a worker... Other people can go home. Other people they can split. I will never stop. I will never quit."

The full menu will be served via drive-thru only, and no walk-ups or phone orders will be taken.

Patrons are asked to enter from the east side of the building and drive right up to the first sliding door to place an order.

Walk-ups and phone orders will still be served at Red House BBQ, 426 E. Tehachapi Blvd. Call 822-0772.

"We are hoping that this will help speed things up," wrote Lujan.

Also, soft drinks (iced tea and soda) will not have free refills since all food is to-go.

"Since we are doing single serving, the price will drop from $2.50 to $1.50. It is only fair," wrote Lujan.

View original post here:
Red House BBQ opens drive-thru window at The Shed - Tehachapi News

In 1929, Virginia Woolf famously posited that in order for a woman to write fiction, she must have money and a room of her own. In 2020 Pinterest moms have one-upped Woolf by investing in small houses of ones own, wine bar optional.

The she shed is the wifes response to the man cave, a separate, feminized space where she can relax away from her family, pour a bottle of wine with some girlfriends, or simply be alone (oh, to be alone!). As the name suggests, most are made from shabby pre-built lawn sheds; the hardware store Lowes even has a page on its website advertising guides on how to best construct one. But busted, dirty sheds these are not. By the time most she shed designers get done with their projects, they look like fully inhabitable mini-homes, often carpeted, furnished, and wired with electricity.

On Pinterest and Instagram, she sheds of all different flavors abound: modern and shiplapd as if touched by the Gaineses themselves, rustic cottages ripped from a fairy tale, brightly colored to fit to reflect the crafting activities that happen inside of it. Reanne Rudd, 34, a real estate agent in Amarillo, Texas, discovered she sheds on Pinterest last year and was inspired to create her own as a place to hang out with her friends. With the help of her husband, Rudd bought a pre-built shed and fitted it with electrical wiring, shiplap, vinyl flooring, and a bar space. A video of the finished result, which includes furniture and a small electric fireplace, has over a million views on TikTok.

[My friends] and I, all of us have kids, so we never really have a spot to ourselves like the guys do, Rudd says. They all have their shops and their man caves. Us girls dont really have a space for ourselves. Rudd says her she shed is a no kids allowed zone, though the kids do try to sneak in. I have a little keypad on the door, so I keep it locked.

For Kirsten Hamstra, 39, the creation of her she shed was directly influenced by the pandemic. A social media director for a global company that requires her to take international calls at different hours, she and her husband quickly realized that there wasnt enough space in their Raleigh, North Carolina home to both work in the same office, not to mention alongside their kids going to remote school full-time.

I was talking with my parents about how we were trying to pivot and figure out what we are going to do about this office situation, Hamstra says. She was like, well, have you ever considered a she shed? I started laughing at her, like what are you talking about? With a sizeable enough backyard, Hamstra ordered an Amish built-shed from a local company which allowed her to customize her she shed. The completed project is fit with electricity and internet, a desk, a TV, a mini-fridge, air conditioning, and a mini fireplace.

I dont have a space, a girly space of my own, something where everything inside is mine and everything inside kind of uniquely reflects me and my passions and what makes me happy, Hamstra says, adding that she plans to hang photos on the walls of her trips to Italy, her favorite place in the world. Its not to say that I cant have it in my own home, but to really have my own personal space where I can get away and take a breather...I wanted to be able to have a space where I could do that uninterrupted.

The creation of a gendered space in the house for women has roots in the dressing room, which emerged in the Renaissance as a counterpart to a mans closet, essentially a study. Whereas a mans closet might house his papers and exist as a space for intellect, a womans dressing room would house clothing, cosmetics, children, and servants, the rooms helping to delineate a woman and mans clear household roles Tita Chico wrote in Monstrous Dreams of Reason: Body, Self, and Other in the Enlightenment. In the 18th century, gendered living spaces in modern homes became more pronounced, as dressing rooms, toilettes, and boudoirs served as more private spaces of self-discovery for wealthy women, the latter of which was seen as a sphere of sexual expression in the age of the Enlightenment.

The home became even more aggressively gendered in the Victorian era, as women were expected to devote themselves to homemaking and express their identity through domestic pursuits. But while the home itself may have been a private space, for women to find autonomy and solitude within it away from domestic labor and organizing of her household was harder. The space was not private in the sense of withdrawal, Judith Flanders wrote in Inside the Victorian Home: A Portrait of Domestic Life in Victorian England of feminine morning rooms in spacious houses. Because this is where the running of the household was done, it was part of the public persona of the house, part of the presentation a man of worth would display to the world.

Its the same impulse to escape domestic chores and duties, nearly inescapable in the home, that fuels the she shed phenomenon. A 2007 Los Angeles Times story titled The shed goes chic interviewed women and men who were rehabbing outdoor sheds into personal spaces like offices or art studios, while a 2008 Seattle Times article profiled a couple with a small business turning sheds into living spaces. If you just add on an addition to the house, its still your house. Its too tempting to be like oh, crying baby, oh, the dishes, one woman interviewed said, stressing the importance of a space separate from the house. A 2010 New York Times story featured a womans Gingerbread cottage getaway in opposition to her husbands man-cave, a mid-aughts trend that catered to suburban men seeking to create a masculine, almost bachelor-pad space in their nuclear family homes. But it wasnt until a 2015 Today show segment that featured women and their she sheds that the term became mainstream, so mainstream that the term was featured in a viral 2018 State Farm commercial.

She sheds reflect a cottage industry of products, whether found mass-produced in the aisles of Target or on Etsy, that attempt to commodify a central mom experience. There are t-shirts and signs that stress that mommy is in time out, merchandise that proudly proclaims the #boymom tribe, and mommy juice wine glasses, all of which reflect and reinforce the image of the exhausted mother seeking refuge from her screaming children. Nothing says leave me alone more than a wine glass helpfully emblazoned with go ask your dad. The she shedalong with its spicier counterpart, the bitch barntakes the trend one step further: why put up subtle walls to block off space for mom when she needs it through a variety of products when you can just literally build a space?

The she shed owners I spoke to for this piece confirm that their spaces were largely born out of a need for personal space, separate from their houses. But in the pandemic, she shed spaces have become even more urgent, as they become womens offices and local drinking holes in lieu of actual nightlife. Jennifer Underwood, 35, initially intended for her she shed to be a space for her crafting projects which she sells online. She started building the she shed with her husband from scratch last September, but in the pandemic, with her two sons doing distanced learning in Riverside, South California, the she shed has essentially become a school.

I am in there every day since covid started, Underwood says. Im in there from 8:30 until 8:00. Her kids are with her, she estimates, six hours a day with her inside the she shed. But once their schooling is done and her husband comes back from work, Underwood is back in the she shed for some alone time. And while she does work on her crafting while her kids do their work, what was supposed to be a space for herself alone is now a replacement for her kids daily school life.

In the beginning I [was] like, this sucks, Im turning it into a classroom and I have this little tiny space for a craft room, she says. [But now] Im enjoying having them in there. And even with its changed purpose, Underwoods she shed still satisfies her crafty impulses.

The funny thing is as a kid I always wanted a dollhouse and I never got one, she says laughing. Finally, I get this 35 years later, and its extravagant.

The rest is here:
A She Shed of One's Own - Jezebel

Mumbai:

The Bombay High Court on Monday asked the Maharashtra government to consider withdrawing an order passed by the Mumbai Suburban District Collector allotting 102 acres of saltpan land at Kanjurmarg for construction of a Metro car shed.

The Centre and the Shiv Sena-led MVA government in Maharashtra are locked in a tussle over the ownership of the land earmarked by the state for constructing the car depot which was earlier planned at Aarey Colony, a green belt in suburban Goregaon.

The Union government has filed a petition in the high court challenging the October 1, 2020, order passed by the Collector allotting the land for construction of the car shed, and said the land belongs to its (the Centre) salt department.

The Maharashtra government, however, opposed the plea and said the land, allotted to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) for the Metro car shed, is owned by the state.

On Monday, a division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice GS Kulkarni was of prime facie opinion that the Collector should give a fresh hearing to all parties concerned and settle issues related to land title ownership.

"We cannot allow this order (Collectors order) to remain in force. Prima facie, we are of the view that the matter should go back to the Collector. Consider withdrawing it (the order).

"It is better you (the government) settle all these issues before you proceed further," the court said.

Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni said he would take instructions from the state government over the suggestion following which the court posted the matter for further hearing on December 16.

The Union government, in its plea, has claimed that entire salt pan lands in the area, including the 102 acres allotted to MMRDA, belongs to its salt department.

The former BJP-led government had decided to construct the car shed, part of Mumbai Metro line 3, at Aarey Colony despite opposition from environmentalists and activists who campaigned against cutting of a large number of trees for the project.

Read the original post:
Consider Withdrawing Order On Metro Shed Land: Court To Maharashtra - NDTV

All of the world's freshwater dolphin species are now threatened with extinction.

With the small gray dolphin moving into the endangered category on the IUCN's latest Red List of Threatened Species, all of the world's freshwaterdolphinspecies are now listed as threatened. Of the 128,918 species included on the updated list, released Thursday, 35,765 are threatened with extinction as of December, according to the conservation organization.

And 31 plant and animal species have gone extinct, including all 17 freshwater fish species found mostly in Lake Lanao and its outlet in the Philippines.

From the lab to your inbox. Get the latest science stories from CNET every week.

There is at least some positive news in this week's report. Europe's largest land mammal, the European bison, has moved from vulnerable to near threatened.

The bison and 25 other species recoveries documented "demonstrate the power of conservation," Bruno Oberle, IUCN director-general, said in a statement. "Yet the growing list of extinct species is a stark reminder that conservation efforts must urgently expand. To tackle global threats such as unsustainable fisheries, land clearing for agriculture, and invasive species, conservation needs to happen around the world and be incorporated into all sectors of the economy."

The European bison population has seen a recovery, thanks to continued conservation efforts.

The small gray dolphin is mostly found in the Amazon river system. Its numbers have been severely depleted by fishing, river damming and water pollution. Eliminating the use of curtains of fishnet called gill nets, which hang in the water, and reducing the number of dams in their various habitats are priorities that should help numbers recover, the IUCN says.

The Chiriqui Harlequin Frog, endemic to Costa Rica and Panama, is now extinct.

Three Central American frog species are also now considered extinct. Additionally, 22 frog species across Central and South America are listed as critically endangered (possibly extinct). The main reason for these extinctions could be chytridiomycosis disease, an infectious disease caused by the chytrid fungus that affects amphibians worldwide.

"As a conservationist, the most emotionally impactful news to present is the confirmation of extinction. The causes range from overexploiting to disease, with some threats easier to mitigate than others," Thomas E Lacher Jr., a professor of wildlife and fisheries sciences at Texas A&M University, said in a statement.

Grevillea caleyi, from the protea family, is now listed as critically endangered.

Animals aren't the only species on the extinct and nearly extinct list. According to the new list, 45% of the protea family of plant species are now considered vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered. These flowering plants grow mainly in the Southern Hemisphere. And three macadamia species have entered the IUCN Red List as threatened with extinction in the wild.

Excerpt from:
Bison recovery offset by 31 animal and plant species declared extinct - CNET

News

You supply the house, you supply the utilities, you supply the septic tank. Mother Nature took care of the rest.

This waterfall isnt quite as dramatic as the one outside Pittsburgh atop which Fallingwater sits, but the 60-foot-high Buttermilk Falls makes for a dramatic enough setting for your own vacation home. Its part of a five-acre lot on White Haven Rd., Bear Creek, Pa. 18702 | Luzerne County Association of Realtors MLS images via Century 21 Smith Horrigan Group

The story of the most famous house in Pennsylvania began when Pittsburgh department-store magnate Edgar Kaufmann took starchitect Frank Lloyd Wright on a tour of the lot in Bear Run where he wanted Wright to design a house for his family.

Wright asked Kaufmann what their favorite spot was on the property. Kaufmann showed him a clearing next to a waterfall where they loved to picnic and watch the stream.

Wright promptly plopped the Kaufmanns house on top of the waterfall. And the rest is history.

Im not suggesting that you even try to duplicate Fallingwater on this Bear Creek lot for sale. But if you are looking for a one-of-a-kind lot on which to build your own vacation retreat, well, here it is.

And to be fair, its current owner wouldnt mind if you did try to one-up Wright on this lot.

Buttermilk Falls at peak water flow

I would hope that if somebody did build on there, they wouldnt pack it out with as many homes as humanly possible, says Victor Juliano. (At least in theory, local zoning would allow you to build up to five houses on this lot if you found the room.) I was always thinking of a Frank Lloyd Wright type of house.

This lot certainly has the Wright stuff. A tributary of Bear Creek runs through its middle, and in the middle of that tributarys passage through this lot is the 60-foot-high waterfall you see at left, known as Buttermilk Falls. The lot is surrounded by conservation lands, which means that your retreat wont be surrounded by subdivisions someday.

This lot has been in private hands for more than a century and in the hands of Julianos family for 80 years. It was assembled by a Northeast Pennsylvania tycoon named Albert Lewis. Lewis, whose work as a timekeeper on the Lehigh Valley Railroad impressed founder Asa Packer so much he put Lewis in charge of the first train to run from the railroads hub in Mauch Chunk (now Jim Thorpe) to White Haven, married into the family that supplied lumber to the railroad and eventually went into the lumber business himself.

What brought Lewis to Bear Creek, however, was ice. He built a dam and a company village on the creek a half-mile upstream from here in 1895 that became the foundation of a prosperous ice-hauling business. The company survived his death in 1923, going out of business finally in 1938. This lot was not part of the ice operation, but it was part of the huge tracts of land Lewis amassed in Luzerne County. Juliano estimates that at his peak, Lewis owned about 100,000 acres in this rural part of the county.

Julianos grandfather eventually acquired this land from Lewis descendants through sheer persistence. When he went camping on the plot, Juliano says, he would ask the owners if they were willing to sell it. And for years and years, they said No, they had no interest in selling it. And one time, he went up there, and they said Yes, and he bought it. This would have been sometime around 1940, 17 years after Lewis death.

The falls in winter

Since then, Julianos family has used it as a getaway and a campground. Their own plans to build on the property never came to fruition, and as a result, he says, they became caretakers of the lot. And the lot became a community trust of sorts. I met a guy who was in his 90s once in Bear Creek Village, he says. And he told me that he used to go there with his father and play in the water. Somebody else told me that was where they proposed to their wife. Its meant a lot to a lot of people.

Juliano, who now lives in South Jersey, no longer visits this place like he used to, nor do his relatives, so they have decided to sell it on the open market for the first time since it was assembled by Lewis in the early 20th century. The stories he tells should make you aware that you are buying not just a lot with a lovely waterfall in it but a piece of Bear Creek Village history. Its yours to do with as you please, but if you decide to restrict access to it while you prepare to build your own vacation dream house on it, be aware that you might want to let your neighbors know respectfully that you plan on making it truly private.

Closeup of the face of the falls

Even though this lot is closer to Wilkes-Barre, a 20-minute drive to the northeast, than to Mt. Pocono, about 35 minutes to the east, its still a good place to build a Poconos vacation home, as several ski resorts, including Big Boulder, Split Rock and Camelback, are a 25- to 35-minute drive from here. And this lot is easier to get to from Philadelphia than many other places in the heart of the Poconos: its about a 10-minute drive from the Wilkes-Barre interchange (Exit 115) of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension. With state game lands even closer to this lot, you can indulge your hunting desires in season as well.

Even though he would love to see a Frank Lloyd Wright type of house on this site, Juliano, who is himself a developer, says he never would have chosen Wright himself to build it had he pursued that vision: He just made the decision and he built what he wanted, he says. He wouldnt be my ideal architect.

Given his personality, temper and monumental ego, he probably wouldnt have been yours either, but I suggest that whoever you do choose should be at the very least attuned to nature and rural environments. You will be giving that person a spectacular canvas on which to create a work of art.

Juliano hopes that whoever buys it at least doesnt clear the land and put a bunch of modular houses on top. And, he adds, You wouldnt want to put a McMansion on top, you know what I mean?

I certainly do. And I hope you do, too. It will be your land, and you can do with it what you will, but whatever you do with it, I think you at least should respect both its history and its setting.

THE FINE PRINT

LOT SIZE:5.05 acres

ZONING:Residential

SALE PRICE:$267,500

OTHER STUFF:Should you decide to build on this lot, you will need to provide your own electricity source, find a suitable source of water and build your own septic system, for this lot lacks public utilities.

White Haven Rd., Bear Creek, Pa. 18702 [Ben Piccillo | Century 21 Smith Horrigan Group]

See more here:
Just Listed in the Poconos: Five-Acre Lot in Bear Creek - Philadelphia magazine

Charles Bolinger, charles.bolinger@edwpub.net

Brewster Companies is blessed to have work so theyre giving back

MARYVILLE Brewster Companies, with land clearing, demolition, site preparation, erosion control and paving divisions, plans to donate 300, 15-pound turkeys to the first 300 drivers who show up at their location Saturday.

Between 9 a.m. and noon, drivers can visit 6321 East Main in Maryville and Brewster employees will put a frozen bird in their trunk, cargo area or on the back seat. Senior vice president Brent Phelps said that breaks down to 1.6 seconds per vehicle.

Phelps said for the past 15 years, the company has thrown employee holiday parties. Since thats impossible this year, they wondered what could they do to give back to the community. Unlike others who are unemployed or struggling to find work, 2020 has been good to Brewster Companies, Phelps said.

We are blessed to have work, he added.

To be charitable, they conceived the idea of giving away turkeys. After the company president approved it, Phelps soon discovered the difficulty in finding 300 turkeys to give away but after overcoming the hurdles, the frozen birds will be delivered in time for the giveaway. He said there are no other items included with the turkeys.

Mother Nature decided to throw a wrench into the plan by adding rain for Friday and Saturday morning. Phelps said adding a tent to the drive-through plan meant adhering to another set of rules.

The tent will be on the crushed rock parking lot in front of the building and Phelps said entrance and exit signs will be posted. Drivers pull in, workers load the turkey and drivers exit to either continue east on East Main or make a U-turn and head west.

They can roll down their windows or not, well put the bird in then tell em, Merry Christmas, Phelps said.

Reach reporter Charles Bolinger at 618-659-5735

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Brewster Companies is blessed to have work so theyre giving back - The Edwardsville Intelligencer

Authorities said people were living illegally on the North Portland property for months. An eviction Tuesday morning sparked a protest.

PORTLAND, Ore. Authorities early Tuesday morning made several arrests and cleared people who they said have been trespassing for months at the "Red House on Mississippi," a private property in North Portland.

The Multnomah County Sheriffs Officesaid the alleged trespassers had been ordered to leave the property by court order in September.

Sheriffs deputies and Portland police officers arrived at the home, on North Mississippi Avenue near Skidmore Street, around 5 a.m. Tuesday. Police blocked off streets and sidewalks surrounding the property while they removed people from the area.

The police activity led to a tense confrontation between protesters and police.

Officers took one person who was armed with a gun into custody. The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) announced seven arrests in a press release Tuesday morning.

Police later said protesters tore down fencing around the property and built a barricade blocking North Mississippi Avenue.

Just after 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, police announced that the barricade must be removed and that continued criminal activity at the scene "may result in arrests including the potential use of force."

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler announced at about 6 p.m. that he was authorizing the PPB to "use all lawful means to end the illegal occupation" on the property.

A tweet fromRed House's Twitter accountsaid the property is not an autonomous zone but rather "an active eviction blockade on Indigenous land."

According to representatives for the family inside the house, police "violently dismantled the 75+ day "Red House' encampment" on Tuesday morning.

"Along with sweeping the encampment, which supports and surrounds the Red House, officers entered the home itself, destroying its interior, and violently arresting two residentsinjuring at least one," the statement reads.

Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell on Wednesday called for a "peaceful and safe resolution to the occupation." He later recorded a video about the occupation that was posted to Twitter.

"We are aware of the stockpile of weapons and the presence of firearms," he said in the video. "We are aware of the threat to the community, to media, to police. We've seen the attacks. The Portland police will enforce the law and use force if necessary to restore order to the neighborhood."

Lovell said that can be avoided if those in the encampment "end it peacefully by putting down their weapons and leave the barricade."

Officers have responded to at least 81 calls at the property and surrounding area from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30, according to PPB. The calls included reports of fights, shots fired, burglary, theft, vandalism, noise violations, trespassing and threats. Community members told officers they were threatened and intimidated by people on the property, police said.

The Multnomah County Circuit Court ordered an eviction at the property in February 2020.

The judgment was issued prior to state and federal emergency moratoriums, said a press release from the Multnomah County Sheriffs Office. The eviction moratoriums do not apply to evictions based on post-nonjudicial foreclosures, such as this case.

In September, a group of protesters staged a sit-in at the property, which they said was the home of a Black-Indigenous family. The sheriffs office said housing and food assistance had been provided to people at the property.

Police announced the following arrests on Tuesday:

Read more:
'There will be no autonomous zone in Portland' | Wheeler says encampment at 'Red House' must end - KGW.com