Houston, TX (PRWEB) February 14, 2012

EPM Architects announced today that they will be exhibiting at the Microsoft Project Conference 2012 in Phoenix, Arizona from March 19-22, 2012. EPM Architects will be available at their exhibition booth to meet conference attendees, answer questions about Microsoft Project and Project Server functionality, discuss best practices, and talk about their world class line of services that make them one of the premier Microsoft EPM consulting companies in the world. In addition, they will also be giving away one registration for any of their Microsoft Project or Project Server training classes in their training facility in Houston, Texas.

Michael Samadi, President and CEO of EPM Architects said, “Since the last Microsoft Project Conference was in ’09 (prior to the company being established), we are very excited that Microsoft has selected EPM Architects to present at the Microsoft Project Conference 2012.”

For more details on EPM Architects’ products and services, please visit their website at http://www.epmarchitects.com or call them at their Houston office at 713.400.9200 or toll free at 1.888.444.3762.
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Microsoft Project Conference 2012 is the premiere Microsoft-led event to share the latest Microsoft Project and Portfolio Management tools and best practices with over a thousand members of the Microsoft Project community from across the globe. It will feature high-impact keynotes, breakout sessions, training sessions and networking opportunities to learn how to be more successful with Microsoft Project and Project Server.

Microsoft Project Conference 2012 is the event for the Microsoft Project Community. With attendees from all across the globe, you will connect with over a thousand passionate members of the Microsoft Project Community - project professionals, business decision makers, certified partners and the Microsoft Project team. Immerse yourself and take your success to the next level. Microsoft Project Conference 2012 focuses on you and what you can accomplish with Microsoft Project 2010. Through the high-impact keynotes, breakout sessions, trainings and networking opportunities, you will learn how Microsoft Project 2010 and Microsoft Project Server 2010 can transform and accelerate your success.    
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About EPM Architects

EPM Architects is an Enterprise Project and Portfolio Management consulting and training firm focused exclusively on the Microsoft EPM solution with a Microsoft Certified Gold Competency in Enterprise Project and Portfolio Management.

With clients from Global 50, Fortune 50, 100 and 500 companies, as well as small to mid-sized companies in several industry verticals, they provide unparalleled services in EPM Implementation, Solution Design, Envisioning, Custom Development, and 24/7 Support. Additionally, EPM Architects has a complete curriculum of hands-on open enrollment training courses in Microsoft Project and Microsoft Project Server which are provided at their state of the art Training and Solution Center in Houston, TX. Any training curriculum can also be custom tailored and delivered onsite to meet client needs.

EPM Architects’ mission is simple: To be the leading and most respected Microsoft Enterprise Project Management consulting company in the world by providing outstanding Enterprise Project Management services and solutions through dedication, passion, and excellence.

For further information please contact:

Lauren Skidmore
EPM Architects, Inc.
713.400.9200 ext. 103

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EPM Architects to Exhibit at the Microsoft Project Conference 2012

Randhurst Still Growing By RICHARD MAYER Assistant Managing Editor Journal & Topics Newspapers |

The main man in charge of redeveloping Randhurst Village in Mt. Prospect is beginning to separate himself from the project to focus on other projects regionally and nationally.

James Conroy, director of development for Casto Lifestyle Properties said since most construction at the new outdoor "lifestyle center" is complete, and the focus is shifting more toward signing leases, he is relocating elsewhere in the country to work on other Casto projects that are in early stages.

"I will stay 25%-30% involved once there are additional tenants," Conroy said.

According to Conroy, overall construction of new stores, buildings and parking areas at Randhurst is 85% complete. He expects remaining portions to wrap up by June.

He said leasing the remaining empty stores will be determined by the overall economy.

"If you look at Main Street from Sports Authority to Old Navy and all the way around to the center's anchor being AMC Theatre, the center is about 85% occupied, if you also consider the Hampton Inn Suites, which is expected to open mid to late March," Conroy said.

According to Conroy, main areas that are still vacant are smaller shops ranging from 2,500 sq. ft. to 5,000 sq. ft. He said there are some smaller and larger spaces that are also vacant, but very few.

Conroy said there have been some parking lot modifications completed and a more that still need plan approval such as traffic flow near Pei Wei Restaurant and Costco.

Permits, Conroy said, are close to being completed to construct a new 7,000 sq. ft. outlot building that will include a Panera restaurant with a drive-through. Panera will occupy approximately 4,000 sq. ft. of the new outlot, located just north of the existing Pei Wei restaurant with a single drive-through lane wrapping along the west side of the building parallel to Elmhurst Road. The remaining vacant space next to Panera will be retail, but is not yet announced.

With this winter so far being unseasonably warm, Conroy said the weather helped when it came to constructing PetSmart and World Market. PetSmart opened a couple weeks ago and World Market is expected to open by the last week of March or first week of April.

"Because of the good weather, we were under roof of those two stores by mid fall," Conroy said.

In recent weeks, delivery trucks clipped one of the canopies at the new Hampton Inn Suites Hotel, which is expected to open by mid March.

Conroy said the canopy is being modified and is in the process of being replaced. He added the installation of hotel furniture is starting this week.

According to Conroy, there is some interest to take over vacant office space on the second floor of Main Street in the heart of Randhurst Village.

The nearby three-floor, 550-space parking deck is being utilized more and more, Conroy said.

"I was there a few weeks ago and the entire first floor and part of the second floor was being used on a Friday night," Conroy said.

BlackFinn American Grille is expected to begin interior build out soon and should open sometime this summer. Other stores expected to open in the coming months are Menchie's Yogurt, Pigtails & Crewcuts Hair Salon for kids, and Phenix Salon Suites.

Conroy said there are four other letters of intent waiting to be finalized. He said all of those consist of retail/apparel stores.

In terms of the former Border's bookstore building at Elmhurst and Rand roads, Conroy said different concepts are being considered including tearing the existing building down and constructing restaurants in its place, or reusing the building for retail.

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Randhurst Still Growing

13-02-2012 13:47 Hi, my name is Oxi Moron and welcome to my first ever YouTube broadcast. This live recording was shot on location in 'Perseverance Mill', in the shadow of India Mill's chimney, somewhere up North! I am no engineer. I just enjoy 'playing' with old and broken equipment which I attempt to breathe life back into. It keeps me out of the Pub, out of trouble and Mrs Oxi always knows where I am! If you would like any information on this project or can offer any tips or advice, please drop me a line. " We don't know what we can't do until we have tried! "

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1964 Edgar Westbury Vertical Milling Machine Restoration Pt.1 (Dore Westbury) - Video

13-02-2012 21:25 Quality Plus Construction

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Quality Plus Construction Roseville CA - Video

13-02-2012 21:31 Three bedroom double fronted, bluestone Victorian home, rich in renovation/restoration potential. http://www.fletchers.net.au

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Fletchers - 49 Osborne Street, Williamstown - Nick Fletcher

14-02-2012 08:56 She's all good now. Enjoy playin' her John A youtuber named John, said his girl friend's banjo was in their family and wanted to know if I could restore it. I don't restore banjos, but I told him to send it and I'd see if I could get it to play. The banjo belonged to John Reed Durham, born 1917 was a teacher in Kentucky. He inherited the banjo from family members, unknown, so the banjo is older than that, and as I understand it Sears stopped using the Supertone brand about that time. Anyway, I figured that by fixing the banjo I would not only be doing them a kindness, but I could answer questions people have asked me about how to fix and repair a banjo. Hope you enjoy it.

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John Durham's Supertone Banjo going home! - Video

By MARY POLETTI

Herald-Whig Staff Writer

CLARKSVILLE, Mo. -- Richard Cottrell is living in a time capsule, a fact that overwhelms even him sometimes.

"Sometimes, when I come down from upstairs in the morning, I look around and I can't believe this is my house," Cottrell says.

At such moments, though, there are reminders of reality -- such as the distinctly 2011 dog toy lying discarded on the floor of a pristine, ornately decorated 1860s ladies' parlor.

As owner, curator and inhabitant of the Elgin/Cottrell House on the Clarksville riverfront, Cottrell shares his mid-19th-century mansion not only with his beloved beagle, Sissy, but also with tourists from all over the Midwest and historic preservation enthusiasts from all over the country.

The Elgin/Cottrell House will be featured in the March issue of Victorian Homes magazine, a national publication, for the second time in less than a year. It previously was the subject of a 12-page spread in the magazine's June 2011 issue.

Built in 1845 and expanded in 1860, the home has been lovingly restored and decorated in what might have been the 1860s splendor of a Southern plantation home, albeit on the banks of the Mississippi River in a slave state that never formally seceded from the Union during the Civil War.

Cottrell's is an interpretive restoration, derived from the study of books, magazines and other materials on what a home in the antelbellum period might have resembled. It's somewhat rare in that it incorporates not only 19th-century furniture, but also scores of beautiful antiques as decorative items, most from the 1860s and most collected in Cottrell's many years as an antiques dealer.

Although there are numerous historic homes open for tours in Northeast Missouri, the Elgin/Cottrell House is the only one in the quaint historic enclave of Clarksville, which prides itself on its image as an eclectic step back in time.

It's also something more personal to Cottrell, who grew up dreaming of calling a Southern plantation home his own.

"My vision is more Southern than this part of the world," he says. "My first love of historic homes was when I saw ‘Gone With the Wind for the first time. I wanted a house like that."

Although the Elgin/Cottrell House isn't quite Tara, nor were the Elgins quite the kin of Scarlett O'Hara, their heritage is rooted deeply in that of the nation.

Hazekiah Elgin, who owned the house, was a descendant of a Mayflower pilgrim, of a Revolutionary War soldier, of a cousin to John Adams. He came to Missouri in 1817 to claim a land grant from then-President James Monroe. Although Elgin prospered as a trader, with a trading post and his own riverboat, he came into far greater wealth when he married a widow who owned 25 slaves and 125 acres of land, along with personal wealth totaling $100,000 in 1860 dollars.

The Elgin home likely would have been palatial, Cottrell says.

"Mr. Elgin had a riverboat parked out front, and he had access to all the ports of the world," he says. "He could have had fine things like these."

The house stayed in the Elgin family for more than a century, until 1949. After changing hands a few more times, it became Cottrell's in 2006.

A Clarksville native, Cottrell already had lived in and restored five other houses. A former schoolteacher and florist, he was the curator of Hannibal's Garth Mansion in the late 1970s and early 1980s, planting the house's well-known rose garden and hosting Christmas tours. He also owns Richard's Great Stuff antiques shop on the historic Clarksville strip. But he had long dreamed of owning a museum house, ever since visiting Natchez, Miss., as a college student.

The Elgin legacy would be his final project, Cottrell decided.

"I figured this would be my swan song, so I went all out," he says. "I did a lot of things I never was able to afford before."

Cottrell spent three years restoring the house, living in it only on the weekends because of its lack of modern amenities, before he moved in full time in 2009. He refers to it now as a living restoration because it has modern bathrooms and a modern kitchen, although most of the house is period-appropriate -- complete with its lack of modern heating and cooling.

The Elgin/Cottrell House has had about 3,000 visitors in the years since its newest owner opened it to the public, and Cottrell received a bit of a boost and a lot of response from an unlikely step into the national home restoration spotlight last year.

A crew from Victorian Homes was photographing a historic house in the Chicago area and rented furniture for the shoot from an antiques shop owned by a friend of Cottrell's. When the crew asked whether there were any other homes in the region that they could document while they were there, the friend suggested they call Cottrell.

A writer and photographer visited last spring, and 12 pages of tribute to Cottrell's swan song appeared in print in June. And that was only for the first floor, with its formal dining room and traditional men's and ladies' parlors.

A follow-up in the March issue will take a closer look at the bedrooms, which feature such loving and unusual touches as a 19th-century rocking horse and a collection of Victorian wedding veils.

As Cottrell stands in the middle of his time capsule, he knows there's something special about his Southern house in the North, even among other historic homes. He's heard that from plenty of visitors, he says.

"Mine is their favorite because it has so many beautiful things," he says of some visitors. "They've seen houses bigger and prettier than this, but they don't have the treasures this one has."

-- mpoletti@whig.com/221-3385

Link:
Quincy Herald-Whig | Illinois & Missouri News, SportsUnique restoration efforts in 1840s house land Clarksville man in ...

CLAIBORNE PARISH, LA (KSLA) -

UPDATE 2:30 p.m.: Crews have arrived from Arkansas to assist CenterPoint Energy with the process of getting gas service turned back on for business and residential customers in Haynesville.

As of Noon Tuesday, the system had been "purged" of air and tested to ensure the repaired line contains only pure natural gas. That was "phase 2" of the restoration process.

Phase 3 will be going door-to-door to re-ignite the pilot lights at each service address and make sure there are no leaks.

That process is expected to take be lengthy, as crews will need to make sure there are no leaks or problems with re-connecting service at each of the 1,114 addresses.

Right now, CenterPoint Energy says they are focused on restoring natural gas service to the impacted customers and getting things back to normal for them as safely and as quickly as possible. But, in a statement released early Tuesday afternoon, the company confirms, "We will conduct an investigation into how and why this occurred and will seek to recover our costs, if appropriate."  

UPDATE 10:30 a.m.: Haynesville Police Chief Anthony Smith says 1,114 gas meters were affected by the outage.

Crews repaired the leak about 1:30 a.m. but the town still is without gas service. CenterPoint called in 50 trucks from E. Texas and Arkansas.

Crews expect to start turning the gas back on and relighting pilot lights at homes and businesses around noon Tuesday, but critical facilities such as the hospital and nursing homes will be considered a priority.

Workers will need to go into homes and businesses to perform relights. If no one is home, a yellow slip will be left at the home and the relight will have to be rescheduled.

By 3 p.m. Tuesday, the town should know if they'll have to suspend school on Wednesday. 

UPDATE 8:30 a.m.: Crews with CenterPoint Energy have begun Phase One of their plan to restore power to the town of Haynesville.

After an early morning meeting at the Claiborne Parish Fair Building, crews have started to turn the gas valves off at all homes and businesses in the town.

KSLA News 12 is in Haynesville at this hour following the progress of the work. On KSLA News 12 at 9, we'll have more on the restoration process plus speak with CenterPoint Energy about how things are progressing. You can watch KSLA News 12 at 9 online at ksla.com. Click here to watch the program.

We'll continue to have updates throughout the day on ksla.com.

UPDATE 6:45 a.m.: School officials say all Haynesville schools will be closed Tuesday due to the gas outage.

CenterPoint Energy also says some Haynesville residents should have their gas service restored as early as Tuesday evening, the latest time estimate of when all gas service should be restored is Wednesday.

Center Point Energy Spokesperson Alicia D. Dixon says most Haynesville residents will not have gas service any sooner than midday Wednesday. Center Point Energy officials say the outage was caused when a piece of equipment hit a Center Point Energy natural gas line disrupting service.  

Haynesville Police Chief Anthony Smith says Arkla Gas mega crews and Center Point Energy crews along with crews from Arkansas, East Texas and other parts of Louisiana are working to locate the gas leak. Both crews will have to work to turn every meter off in the city including businesses. Smith says this is for precaution. The crews are setting up a command center in the city.

"CenterPoint Energy has begun the process of turning off the flow of gas to each customer's natural gas meter," says District Director for Center Point Energy Eric Barkley. "We will then work to ensure that the natural gas distribution lines are clear of air. Once the lines are clear, we will begin the process of going meter to meter to restore gas service to each customer." 

Smith says both Arkla Gas and Center Point Energy crews will have to work to turn off 3,000 to 5,000 gas meters.

"When we begin the process of relighting, we'd like to ask that customers be at home if possible so our employees can go inside to restore natural gas service. A customer needs to call us only if there is a door hanger at their home or business indicating that we've already been by to attempt to restore service. Please call the number on the door tag left by our service personnel," says Barkley.  

Smith says the city lost all gas service at about 6:30 p.m.

For safety reasons, the company urges customers not to turn any valves or tamper with the natural gas meter. Opening or turning any valves could allow air to enter the natural gas lines, which would hinder the re-pressurization process.

KSLA News 12 will have more details on this story as they become available.

Copyright 2012 KSLA. All rights reserved.

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UPDATE: Natural gas service restoration under way in Haynesville

WEST TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) – Work to clean up the Ottawa River in Toledo has entered a new chapter. On Tuesday, plans to restore the portion of the river that flows through the University of Toledo's campus were unveiled to the public.

Nearly three-quarters of a mile of the Ottawa River runs through the middle of UT's campus. For two years, a commission has been working to create a restoration plan using several grants.

"It's to create habitat in the river for fish and aquatic organisms, the critters and bugs that fish eat," said Patrick Lawrence, Ph.D.

Lawrence is the commission chairman and said restoration efforts will make the river cleaner. It has been home to contaminated sediments along with a lack of fish and wildlife for years.

The commission brought in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to design a plan of attack. Their plan includes building a number of structures in the river and along its banks.

"We're trying to recreate what nature would provide. Again, we're using all natural materials: stone and wood," explained Lawrence.

Hans Gottgens, an ecology professor at UT attended Tuesday's presentation. Gottgens said his students use the river as a lab and have found more than 40 species of fish in it.

"People were really surprised to see how much life and how much diversity exists in this river. It was always considered a dead ditch, but it's not," said Gottgens.

Gottgens even said one species was on a state list facing extinction.

The goal is to save more and Lawrence feels the Corps' plan will help.

"It looks interesting, a lot of unique ideas and I think we're well on the path to getting this work underway," said Lawrence.

The restoration plans are expected to be finalized in a couple of weeks. The first changes in the river could be notable by August.

Copyright 2012 WTOL. All Rights Reserved.

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Restoration plan unveiled for portion of Ottawa River in UT's campus

February 14, 2012, 3:39 PM EST

By Freeman Klopott

Feb. 14 (Bloomberg) -- New York state has applied for a $3 billion federal loan for construction of a $5.2 billion replacement for the Tappan Zee Bridge across the Hudson River, Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald said.

McDonald said state officials sent a letter of interest to the Federal Highway Administration and U.S. Department of Transportation, which administers a program that provides credit assistance for “regionally significant” infrastructure projects.

“They’re reviewing it now,” McDonald said in an interview today after leaving a Cabinet meeting with Governor Andrew Cuomo in Albany. “The application was for $3 billion, and everything is fluid right now.”

Replacing the 56-year-old bridge, which carries 138,000 vehicles a day between Rockland and Westchester counties as part of the New York State Thruway system, is a top priority for Cuomo. In his $132.5 billion budget, the governor didn’t identify a specific funding source, though said the new bridge would be financed with public money. The 54-year-old Democrat has compared building a new Tappan Zee to the construction of the Erie Canal in the 19th century.

The three-mile-long (4.8-kilometer) bridge is estimated to cost $5.2 billion, with the price tag rising as high as $16 billion if public transportation projects are included. Loans through the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, which McDonald said the state applied for in December, can be used only to pay for one-third of a project’s total estimated cost under current law. If New York is applying for the full amount, that would make the value of the project $9 billion.

Short List

Legislators in Washington are currently considering whether to increase the participation limit to about 49 percent of the total cost.

“We’re following what happens in Congress very closely,” McDonald said.

Fluor Corp., Bechtel Group Inc., Skanska AB and Grupo Dragados SA are part of four teams selected to bid on the project, the state said in a Feb. 7 statement.

State officials have mostly been mum on financing plans. At today’s cabinet meeting, Cuomo said only, “We’re working on a financial plan.”

New York’s Transportation Department hired Jeffrey A. Parker & Associates to develop a funding plan, according to a December announcement. The Philadelphia-based financing consultant specializes in public infrastructure projects and will help secure a federal loan, according to the firm’s website.

Tifia loans are generally used for projects costing more than $500 million, last about 35 years and have an interest rate tied to U.S. Treasuries. As of Feb. 10, Tifia’s interest rate was 3.14 percent.

Nancy Singer, a U.S. transportation department spokeswoman, said in an e-mail she couldn’t immediately comment.

--With assistance from Martin Z. Braun in New York and Carol Wolf in Washington. Editors: Mark Schoifet, William Glasgall

To contact the reporter on this story: Freeman Klopott in Albany, New York at fklopott@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Tannenbaum at mtannen@bloomberg.net

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New York Seeks $3 Billion Federal Loan for New Tappan Zee Bridge