BOSTON, Feb. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Margulies Perruzzi Architects, one of Boston's most innovative architectural and interior design firms, today announced that it has been selected to assist with interior design services for Mass Insight Global Partnerships, a Boston-based consulting and research firm that builds strategic pre-competitive alliances between higher education, industry and government. The firm and its non-profit affiliate Mass Insight Education are moving to a new 10,000 square foot office suite at 18 Tremont Street, a building where they both currently reside.

Mass Insight had outgrown its previous space and sought a more efficient and organized layout in the U-shaped building. With a mix of offices, workstations and meeting spaces, Margulies Perruzzi Architects was retained by the tenant to ensure adherence to their strongly established brand. By doing so, the interior palette features light neutral colors with high contrast color accents. In addition, Margulies Perruzzi Architects advised upon the open, light-filled design and provided input for efficient workspaces and better storage for Mass Insight's 40 employees. The project is slated for completion in early 2012.

"It was important to us that our new space reflect our mission as an organization, while providing a comfortable space for our clients, partners, sponsors, and staff," said Bill Guenther, president of Mass Insight. "Margulies Perruzzi Architects understood our business model and helped us set forth a confident and polished design that fosters communication. We look forward to moving into our new space."

Founded in 1989, Mass Insight Global Partnerships creates competitive advantage through public policy and partnerships of industry, universities, and government. Mass Insight Education is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 1997 to transform public schools into high performance organizations and close the achievement gaps.

Fusion Design Consultants LLC is the architect of record for the project, responsible for construction documentation. The landlord for the building is BPG Properties, Ltd.

About Margulies Perruzzi Architects
Consistently ranked as one of Boston's top architectural and interior design firms, Margulies Perruzzi Architects creates buildings and corporate interiors for clients who value design. The firm services the corporate, professional services, healthcare, research/lab, and real estate communities with a focus on sustainable design. Clients include Manulife/John Hancock, Nuvera Fuel Cells, Fallon Clinic, Sapient, Hobbs Brook Management and Forrester Research. For more information, please visit http://www.mp-architects.com.

Media Contacts:
Michele Spiewak
Rhino Public Relations
617-851-2618
MPArchitects@rhinopr.com 

Link:
Mass Insight Selects Margulies Perruzzi Architects for Office Design

Adelaide may get next Australian outlet

Some of Apple's 2012 retail plans should involve New York and Florida in the US, and the city of Adelaide in Australia, according to ifoAppleStore sources. The Carousel Center mini-store in Syracuse, New York is expected to move into a larger space later this year, possibly to one currently under construction near a Clark's in the same mall. The current location is rare in not only being a mini-store, but having its partner full-sized store situated 95 miles away, in Albany. The new Carousel Center shop could be ready by mid-year.

Elsewhere in the state, the Walt Whitman outlet in Huntington Station is also expected to move to a bigger space. Where in its mall it might move isn't known, though, nor is there any kind of timeline.

In Florida the owners of the BayWalk in St. Petersburg claim to have been in "conversations" with Apple, trying to lure the company to the area. The mall was bought by new owners in September, who have promised to invest in needed renovations and upgrades. Currently there is no hint of when the BayWalk renovations will be finished, though, or when Apple might move in.

Turning to Australia, real estate industry sources say that Apple has been talking with the developer of Rundle Place in Adelaide about a possible location. The building is a four-level mall in the city center, paired with an office tower. Construction has only just begun, however, with a 2013 completion date.

by MacNN Staff

See more here:
Sources tip Apple Stores in New York, Florida, Australia

BALTIMORE (WJZ)— BGE has begun restoring natural gas service to the hundreds of Southwest Baltimore residents affected by Tuesday’s gas main break, which was caused by a non-BGE crew making repairs to a Baltimore City water main.

Crews have already pumped more than 4,000 gallons of water from the gas main—allowing the utility to begin the process of restoring service to some customers where it is safe to do so. Pumping will continue until the main is completely free of water and sediment.

The break occurred in the 300-block of Millington Avenue between Wilkens and Frederick Avenues Tuesday morning.  In order to safely repair the gas main and clear it of all water and sediment, natural gas service to approximately 900 buildings was turned off—a process that requires BGE and support personnel to enter each and every building affected.

“BGE recognizes the challenges associated with an extended interruption in natural gas service at any time, but particularly during the winter months—even a mild winter— when customers are using natural gas to heat their homes,” said Jeannette M. Mills, senior vice president and chief customer officer for BGE.  “Our customers have been very cooperative and understanding throughout this entire event and we ask for their continued patience as we work diligently to safely restore service as quickly as possible.”

Crews from PECO, a nearby utility based in Philadelphia, is assisting BGE in the door-to-door effort . For safety purposes, customers should always ask to see the photo identification of people requesting entry into their home or business.

More here:
BGE Begins Gas Service Restoration To Southwest Baltimore Community

15-02-2012 15:12 Nestled in the oak studded neighborhood of Garden Ridge Estates, this Victorian style home boasts the best Garden Ridge has to offer- a location second to none, minutes from the new Garden Ridge Elementary school and half a block walk to Paul Davis Park. Perfect for entertaining a crowd or a small gathering, this home has a showplace kitchen, with alder wood cabinetry and granite countertops, and GE stainless steel appliances. Abundant cabinet and countertop space with a large center island with eat-in counter bar. Travertine floors in the kitchen, dining and breakfast. Living room features glowing Brazilian cherry wood hardwood floors, custom Victorian inspired fireplace mantel. Glass door knobs and intricate door plates are just a few of the interior Victorian period design details. All bedrooms are situated on the second story. A large master suite with sitting area, custom ceiling copula detail. Relax and enjoy the view of the treetops in your jetted master tub. Large walk in master closet and plenty of linen closet storage. The secondary bedrooms have large closets and space saving built-ins. Dual patio decks make enjoying the mature landscape and vast backyard space enjoyable year round. Plenty of space for both outdoor living and covered dining areas. Large laundry area with a mud bench-a perfect spot to store your gear and hang your coat. Guest powder room off the laundry area. Detached garage with workshop, storage and access to side yard dog run. The house has ...

Originally posted here:
9325 Blazing Star Trail Garden Ridge 78266 - Video

Article updated: 2/15/2012 6:23 PM

A new air conditioning unit is delivered last year to Butterfield School in Libertyville. The district is using rebated tax funds for building improvements.

Courtesy of Libertyville Elementary District 70

A $67,561 tax windfall doesn?t put the Cook Memorial Public Library District in the category of a lottery winner, but the money is being accepted with the feeling of good fortune.

?We?re just happy to get it when we get it and strive to spend those dollars as wisely as possible,? said Library Director Stephen Kershner.

The cash, an annual rebate from Libertyville?s special taxing district, will be added to the library?s $1 million materials budget used to buy books, databases and other media.

?It?s a little piece, but every dollar helps,? Kershner said.

That a government body is giving back any taxes is worth nothing these days. But Libertyville?s largesse was negotiated three years ago with all the taxing bodies within the tax increment financing district, which covers the downtown area.

In a TIF district, property values are frozen and taxing bodies within it continue to receive the same amount of property taxes even though values increase because of new streets or sidewalks, for example.

Taxes are levied on the increased value, however. That amount, known as the increment, is put in a special fund for improvements in the area.

TIF districts are governed by state law and end after 23 years. But with more work to do, the village sought an extension to 2021. To do that, it needed the approval of all the taxing bodies involved and the state legislature.

Village leaders determined that only 30 percent of the increment would be needed to complete parking improvements envisioned in the original plan.

Those include a recently completed surface parking and streetscape upgrade on the west side of Milwaukee Avenue to complement a parking deck that opened in September 2009. A new deck and/or other parking improvements on the east side of Milwaukee are being pursued.

The carrot for the village was rebating 70 percent of the increment to the taxing bodies. Last year, more than $1.7 million was split.

At the top of the tax increment rebate heap is Libertyville Elementary District 70, which is expected to receive more than $690,000 this year as its share of more than $1.8 million in property taxes the village is rebating to nearly a dozen taxing bodies.

Last year, District 70 used its cut to put new roofs on Copeland Manor and Adler Park schools, install window air conditioners at Rockland School and replace five rooftop cooling units at Butterfield School.

This year, planned work includes installation of automated heating and ventilation controls at each of the five schools. That will allow temperatures to be adjusted remotely for savings on heating costs.

?It gives us funds to make improvements to facilities we probably wouldn?t have been able to do without going to referendum,? said Kurt Valentin, assistant superintendent of finance and operations.

District 70 issued a bond for nearly $4.3 million to fund building improvements and uses about 80 percent of the TIF district rebate to repay that debt. The rest is used for general building improvements.

As it did last year, Libertyville-Vernon Hills Area High School District 128 received the second-highest amount. Most of the nearly $660,000 will be used for building improvements.

Go here to see the original:
Libertyville gives library, schools rebate

Last Updated: February 16, 2012 11:10am ET

Disable this ad

Join the thousands of real estate professionals that subscribe to the Texas AM Alert. Each and every morning, we deliver the important stories, data, analysis…as well as the opinions and insights of industry thought leaders to provide you with market intelligence and a daily business advantage.

Become a registered member today and don’t miss another important story in the Texas market. Let GlobeSt.com be your source for everything real estate.

About this Ad

At GlobeSt.com, we are passionate about bringing you the best possible user experience. We listened to your feedback and now offer the ability to access information on GlobeSt.com without interruptions! Supercharge your viewing experience by disabling these ads.

Sign Up Today

Hollon: Building sustainability is more
than about environmental protection.

Read Victoria Hollon’s views about the future of sustainability in the upcoming issue of Better Buildings Magazine.

HOUSTON-While the 1.3-million-square-foot Pennzoil Place, an office building in the CBD was being retrofitted, 700 toilets were removed. Rather than discard the older toilets in landfills, however, the apparatuses were cleaned, the porcelain crushed, and sent to the Gulf Coast to help refurbish oyster beds.

Though this is an extreme example of “going green,” it does outline where the green building movement is headed. Soaring energy costs, combined with environmental concerns, tenant demands and even municipal regulations mean commercial real estate property managers and owners are being encouraged to consider ways in which they can get more mileage out of buildings.

According to Victoria Hollon, Transwestern’s senior vice president, innovation and quality assurance, making a building more energy efficient is a powerful money saver. With energy costs being a huge chunk of an office building’s budget, it makes sense to build sustainability initiatives into operations. Furthermore, there is the environmental factor; a building that operates more efficiently is less likely to spew all kinds of junk into the air.

This is why Transwestern joined the White House’s Better Building Initiative last year. As a partner with this initiative, the locally headquartered Transwestern committed to incorporating sustainability practices in the 442 office buildings the company manages, for a total of 78 million square feet. The goal of this initiative is to cut energy consumption by 20% by 2020. Transwestern, in fact, helped spearhead the Pennzoil Place retrofit.

But it hasn’t been an easy message to sell.

“For the past seven or eight years, we’ve been focused on energy efficiency because of an increase in energy prices,” Hollon tells Globest.com. “Years ago, we became active with the EPA; through its Energy Star program, we were aware of which properties might be consuming more than they need for a particular amount of square footage.” This, in turn, has allowed sharing that information with office building owners to encourage those owners to make some changes. However, “our owners haven’t always felt the same way we did,” Hollon acknowledges.

The good news, however, is that Transwestern and others are getting some help in hammering home the message. The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), established in the late 1998s, came out with its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program, which provides rating systems for the design, construction and operations of properties. LEED, Hollon points out, was a good first step and still remains the benchmark tool for measuring sustainability. It’s also caught on with a great many builders and designers – at one time, LEED certification of existing and even new buildings was more the exception than the rule. But these days, it’s rare to find a building going north that isn’t applying for some kind of LEED certification.

The challenge, then, is retrofitting the older buildings to operate in a more sustainable fashion. The good news here is retrofitting doesn’t necessarily mean tearing out entire HVAC systems or rewiring lighting components. “Most of the buildings in Texas are nearing their 20-year mark, and the ownership, management and caretakers have changed so many times, the controls in the building have gotten out of whack and aren’t functioning as they should,” Hollon explains. Simply studying those controls and making some minor fixes can make a huge difference on a building’s energy performance.

As such, a good first step for building owners is to get their properties benchmarked through the Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star program. Once the buildings receive an Energy Star score, “you can gauge where you are, then take steps to reduce consumption,” Hollon says.

Taking steps to reduce that consumption is becoming more important, and not just to save costs. Municipalities are incorporating sustainability elements in their building codes. In Texas, Austin has led the way with its own green initiatives, and Dallas and Houston are starting to follow suit, especially because design sustainability means a better quality workplace as well as fewer pollutants in the air. This is especially an issue during Texas summers, when pollutants combine with hot, stagnant air to create “ozone alerts.”

And tenants are demanding greener offices, too. “A couple of years ago, we couldn’t say that tenants were demanding LEED certification or sustainability,” Hollon remarks. “But now we can say they are.” The federal government especially wants LEED-certified buildings for tenancy. “Anyone with a government tenant in their buildings needs to make changes if they want to keep those tenants,” Hollon says.

Furthermore, data is now available about the relationship between dollars and energy consumption. “We can show a situation in which someone invested $400,000 in a chiller change-out, with payback less than two years. We can show where that change-out reduced energy consumption by 15% on an annual basis, and reduced annual costs by about $100,000 a year,” Hollon says. “The proof is always in the putting, when you can show the results of investment and payback, the question then becomes do we have the funds to do it.”

And finally, the next generation is concerned about sustainability. Generation Y, also known as the Millennials, grew up recycling and caring for the environment, and these folks are now entering the workplace. And they’re demanding workplaces that follow sustainable initiatives, all the way down to lighting sensors.

“We have people interviewing for property management positions at Transwestern who are asking: ‘What are you doing for sustainability? What are you doing for energy efficiency?’” Hollon says. “These are the people who will be making decisions for commercial real estate in the future.”

Categories: Southwest, Office, Development, Green Buildings, Online Exclusive, Texas, Houston

Read the original:
Building Sustainability Moves from "Optional" to "Must Do"

The Nation February 17, 2012 1:00 am

Earlier this month, the Central Administrative Court ordered the demolition of the hotel because the width of the soi was not at least 10 metres throughout the entire stretch. The law requires a soi width of at least 10 metres for buildings as tall as the Aetas Hotel.

Available documents have shown that Chalor Jamroonkarn, an assistant director of the Pathum Wan District Office, told the Larp Prathan company in 2005 that the width was 10 metres.

"I will look into the issue," Deputy Bangkok Governor Thirachon Manomaipiboon said yesterday.

To date, the Pathum Wan District Office has not yet ordered Larp Prathan to demolish its building because the company was appealing the court's verdict.

"I think the legal battle will drag on for years," Thirachon said, "I will ensure justice to all sides".

According to Larp Prathan, the physical dimensions of the soi varies continually, as plots along the soi frequently change hands and the subsequent encroachment on public areas may reduce the width to less than 10 metres at some points.

Latest stories in this category

Read more:
Illegal building case still up in air

This rendering shows plans for a building project under way at the former Peoples Church site, 600 Third Ave. SE. (Credit: Aspect architecture:design)

CEDAR RAPIDS — Downtown developer/architect Steve Emerson is investing at least $5.4 million in an office building now going up on the former site of the Peoples Church, 600 Third Ave. SE.

Emerson is seeking economic development assistance from City Hall in exchange for his investment. It’s a common request, but this time the City Council is raising questions about just how generous it wants to be.

“There ought to be something in here for us,” council member Justin Shields said.

The incentive proposal, put together by the city’s planning staff and Emerson, calls for Cedar Rapids to return to Emerson’s company, Progression LC, 75 percent of the new property-tax revenue that will come in from the site over 10 years. The city estimates that the new investment will generate $1.366 million in new property-tax revenue over 10 years. So under the proposal, $1.024 million would go back to Emerson with the city keeping $342,000.

The new building will retain the jobs of 106 employees and result in the creation of nine more, the proposal says.

City Council member Scott Olson, a commercial Realtor who said he supported the Emerson project, nonetheless wondered why the council was being asked to approve economic incentives now with a building that is already under construction. Also, he said, officials needed to pay attention to incentives in the downtown and how they might impact owners of other buildings vying for tenants — in other words, the city needed to be careful it wasn’t simply shuffling tenants from one owner’s building to another’s.

Colleagues Monica Vernon, Chuck Swore and Shields, meanwhile, wondered why the city couldn’t make some requests of a developer as part of a development agreement in which the city is providing financial incentives. Swore and Shields said they wanted some way to know if developers seeking incentives are using local contractors and local suppliers, while Vernon wondered what design review authority the city might be allowed to have.

“We ought to have some say,” Shields said. “What do you get for a million dollars?”

Mayor Ron Corbett asked Jim Flitz, the city attorney, to provide the council with an analysis of what it may or may not ask of developers.

The council then moved the incentive package ahead for further negotiations before it votes on a final development agreement for the project later this month.

Emerson said he is not alone among developers in beginning a project before incentives have been finalized. The proposal now under review by the City Council has been in the works for some time, he said.

He said he’d needed to start construction on the building, which should be open in September, to meet the deadlines of his new tenants.

In terms of the amount of his request, Emerson said he has presented a financial plan to the city that shows the size of the property-tax help he needs in order for the project to “financially make sense.”

“If I don’t get the money, I’m still building the building,” Emerson said. “But if I lose that money out of the project, it will just prevent me from doing developments for the next eight years in downtown Cedar Rapids. Which is not my intent. I intend to keep doing developments down there.”

In answer to Olson’s comments, Emerson said his new building will not simply result in shuffling existing downtown tenants into a new building. One of the new building’s tenants had intended to leave the downtown, one is outside downtown now and one is coming back downtown after leaving in the wake of the Floods of 2008, he said.

Emerson said all of the contractors working on the project are local ones, and many of the suppliers are in the downtown already.

“I’m a downtown freak,” he said. “I will use anybody associated with downtown if I can. … I don’t have contractors or suppliers coming from out of town. That’s not at all what I’m trying to do.”

Read more from the original source:
Council ponders development incentives for new office building

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

ORIX Public Finance, a specialty provider of financing for public and not-for-profit entities, announced a $5.7 million financing for the construction of an office building in Monroe, Georgia, leased to Walton County for use by the Georgia Department of Children and Family Services and the Department of Child Support Services. The 31,250 square foot office facility is being developed by Walton Development Partners, LLC; construction is expected to be complete by November 2012.

Andrew Garvey, Managing Director of ORIX Public Finance, said, “ORIX is pleased to continue helping public entities, such as cities, counties and states, as well as non-profit organizations fund facilities and infrastructure. As these needs arise and clients prefer not to issue public debt or seek bank financing, ORIX Public Finance is prepared to be a responsive source of creative and flexible funding programs that can be tailored to fit specific needs.”

About ORIX Public Finance

ORIX Public Finance uses its experience, resources and trading capabilities to be an active investor in and proprietary lender to the public and non-profit sectors. The group is located at ORIX USA’s headquarters in Dallas, Texas. ORIX USA is a financial and investment conglomerate with more than 1,400 employees and primary offices in Dallas, New York, Los Angeles, Columbus (OH) and Minneapolis (MN). ORIX USA holds approximately $6 billion of assets and manages approximately $25 billion through various subsidies. ORIX USA invests across the spectrum of commercial, real estate, venture and municipal finance and has operating subsidiaries in investment banking, multifamily agency lending and hedge fund management. ORIX USA (www.orix.com) is the wholly owned subsidiary of ORIX Corporation, a Tokyo-based, publicly owned international financial services company with operations in 27 countries. ORIX Corporation is listed on the New York (NYSE:IX - News) and Tokyo (8591) Stock Exchanges.

Follow this link:
ORIX Public Finance Provides Financing for Office Building Leased to Georgia Department of Human Services

2/16/2012 - West Side Leader
     

By Maria Lindsay BARBERTON — The Village at Anna Dean is a one-and-a-half-year-old senior lifestyle community set on the historic site of Anna Dean Farm at 33 Third St. S.E.

According to Manager Diane Miller, the independent living facility is designed for ages 55 years and older. There is no on-site medical staff.

Miller said the complex has 36 one-bedroom apartments measuring 680 to 756 square feet and 24 two-bedroom apartments measuring 870 to 1,135 square feet. They include individually controlled furnaces, air-conditioners and hot water heaters, she said. Each also has a full kitchen with a refrigerator, electric stove, dishwasher and garbage disposal. The bathrooms have walk-in showers and grab bars, and each unit comes with a free emergency response system.

The Village at Anna Dean also has six common areas that include: a fitness room; game room; computer/library/craft room; great room with a fireplace and large-screen TV; a greenhouse; and a bocce court. In addition, there is a sunroom and outdoor patio. A private dining room also is available, but there is no on-site meal service, she said.

There is also a laundry room on each floor, elevators and controlled-access entry doors and keyless entry system entrances, Miller said. The facility offers van transportation for groups of residents wishing to travel to stores or restaurants, according to Miller.

Miller added that rent fees for the apartments range from $425 to $875 per month, which includes all utilities except for phones, cable and Internet service.

“Our office staff is happy to assist residents with finding local services for meals and home health agencies,” said Miller. “It addition, we schedule health and educational talks and social activities.”

Social activities include bingo, movie and game days, Saturday morning coffee talks and potluck meals, she said.

For information about available apartments or a tour, call 330-745-7040 or email info@annadeanonline.com.

For more information about the Village at Anna Dean, visit http://www.annadeanonline.com.

The rest is here:
Village at Anna Dean offering senior lifestyle living