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Advantages of BGW Delivery Method for Church Building, by Don Mahoney - Video

A Willis church will have a double celebration on July 4 as it also hosts the official opening of a 15,000-square-foot Family Life Center.

The Light Community Fellowship of Willis will open the Family Life Center at 13145 I-45 North. The new facility boasts a gymnasium, a lobby, restrooms, four classrooms and a full commercial kitchen, church administrator Ava Bates said. The opening will coincide with the groups July 4 Family Celebration starting at 6 p.m. that day.

Were going to be utilizing all that extra space for a variety of different events and services, Ava Bates said.

The church will use the new center for outreach programs, Sunday school classes and womens and mens ministries, among others, she said.

Construction of the Family Life Center began in early 2012. Part of the reason for building the new facility has been the need for more space.

We didnt have any more room in the current youth auditorium, Ava Bates said. We want to be able to have youth nights and coed volleyball games. We want to offer more opportunities for the community to come together.

The church also is seeking to apply with the American Red Cross to become a certified emergency shelter, she said.

Along with the opening of the new center, the Light Community Fellowship will also be hosting its Fourth of July celebration. The event will feature all-American fare and fun such as apple pie, hot dogs and games, Senior Pastor Ron Bates said.

We call the celebration Dependence Day, Ron Bates said. Even though were independent, were all still dependent on God.

In all, the facility cost more than $733,000 to build, and the church was able to cover costs without going into debt, obtaining funds entirely through donations from members, Ava Bates said. Construction was completed with the help of specialists, but much of the work was completed without an outside contractor.

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Willis church celebrates July 4, new Family Life Center

NEW BRUNSWICK One of the oldest and most historic churches in New Brunswick and Middlesex County is getting a facelift.

St. Peter the Apostle Roman Catholic Church, on Somerset Street across from Rutgers Universitys Old Queens building, is having its stones re-pointed with new mortar. Others stones, dating back more than 150 years, are being replaced.

The Rev. Thomas Odorizzi, the church pastor, said the work is the second part of a three-phase, 15-year-plan to restore the church and rectory which, over time, have taken a beating from the elements.

Odorizzi said the first phase of the work included a new roof, gutters and downspouts to "make it watertight."

"This is an old church," he said. "There was significant water damage on the inside, caused by leaks from the gutters and probably the roof."

For the second phase, all of the stones have to be re-pointed or replaced and the pinnacles on the bell tower need to be rebuilt.

"Theres an additional issue," Odorizzi said. "In the 1970s, they put a coating on the stone under the theory that it would keep the water from coming in. The problem is that if water gets in, the coating wont let it get out. The stones have to breathe."

The rectory, which is older than the church, is also undergoing preservation work.

"The facade is being restored to its original clapboard and its getting a new roof and gutters," Odorizzi said. "This is basic preservation."

The third phase restoration of the inside of the church will have to wait until the parish raises enough money to pay for it, he said.

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New set of stones: Historic New Brunswick church set for renovation

Ed Friedrich / Kitsap Sun Traffic continues to flow on Newberry Hill Road and Silverdale Way despite skinnier lanes and construction of a roundabout.

Ed Friedrich / Kitsap Sun Christ the King Lutheran Church has blocked traffic from detouring through its parking lot by placing landscape boulders and orange barrels.

SILVERDALE There'll be no more cutting through the parking lot.

Christ the King Lutheran Church became an unofficial detour after Chico Way was closed at Newberry Hill Road and Silverdale Way last month for roundabout construction, but a few hot rods ruined a good thing.

"Sadly, we are going to have to close off the parking lot to through traffic as a select few and oft-seen drivers have felt fine speeding through with little to no regard for children or members who are playing or trying to get to their cars after midweek church events," Pastor Andy Schwartz said.

Stan Palmer Construction of Port Orchard began work on the $2.1 million roundabout May 14. Vehicle access was maintained on Silverdale Way and Newberry Hill, but blocked to Chico Way. Kitsap County set up a detour over Highway 3 via Eldorado Boulevard to Provost Road. It will remain in place until the job is completed at the end of the year.

The church, with entrances on both Newberry Hill and Chico Way, was a handy get-around for many, the congregation realized, and it tried to accommodate them. Christ the King, which has a school, blocked traffic with big orange barrels only while classes were in session. After they let out for the summer, access was closed only during church events. That didn't stop drivers from getting out of their cars to move the barrels and open the gate.

The last straw came when somebody opened the swinging steel-tube gate at Newberry Hill and didn't close it after going through. A woman pulling into the parking lot from Newberry Hill rammed it through her windshield like a jousting pole. The driver wasn't hurt, but the gate was damaged.

Drivers also were making illegal left turns from the parking lot onto Newberry Hill and from Newberry Hill into the parking lot. Church officials called the sheriff's office, but don't expect to divert deputies from more important tasks.

"Last Sunday, we got together as a congregation and said for the safety of the good drivers and members and construction site employees, who've had a couple close calls as well, we have to close the parking lot to through traffic," Schwartz said.

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Church shuts off unofficial shortcut at roundabout because of danger

By KATHY STEELE | The Tampa Tribune Published: June 27, 2012 Updated: June 27, 2012 - 12:00 AM

Two more apartment buildings planned at the Encore site northeast of downtown are fully funded with construction scheduled to begin by the end of this year, Tampa Housing Authority officials say.

Funding for The Trio, a $26 million multifamily apartment building, fell into place recently with approval of more than $8 million in bonds provided through the Housing Finance Authority of Hillsborough County. A funding agreement for The Reed, a $29 million senior apartment building, was reached in recent weeks with a closing anticipated in October.

Money for the two buildings and The Ella, a third apartment building now under construction, has come from federal, state and local sources, including federal stimulus grants, tax credits and bond financing.

The Ella, intended for seniors, is expected to have its first tenants in November. It will be the first completed building of a nearly $450 million urban community planned on the former site of the Central Park Village public housing apartments. Encore will have apartments, shops, a hotel and a black-history museum.

Central Park was torn down nearly five years ago and its nearly 1,300 tenants moved elsewhere. The 28 acres are bordered by Nebraska Avenue, Cass Street and Interstate 4.

In December the housing authority will learn if the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will award the agency as much as $30 million to help pay for more construction at the Encore site.

With or without that grant, The Trio and The Reed are headed for groundbreakings, said Leroy Moore, the housing authority's chief operating officer.

The Trio likely will be first, with a construction start by early September and a planned 12-month completion schedule; The Reed would follow sometime after October and take about 18 months to complete.

A statewide court decision regarding how tax dollars are spent in designated areas of blight, along with the poor economy, at times delayed the project. So far, no retail development or hotel construction has been announced.

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Two more Encore housing projects acquire funding

LEWISTOWN - Every construction project offers unique challenges and Mann Edge Terrace, the new apartment building for the elderly in Lewistown, is no different.

Despite comprehensive planning, testing, and budgeting, issues developed once construction was under way. Everything has been resolved, however, and the 31-unit building at the corner of Dorcas and Water streets is expected to welcome its first tenants early next year.

As the home of the former Mann Edge Tool Company, the property was known to be a "brownfields" site. The SEDA-Council of Governments Housing Development Corporation, developers of the project, worked closely with the Mifflin County Industrial Development Corp. and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to ensure the site's environmental safety. Test borings of the soil were taken and water samples were tested from the several wells that were dug. Permits were granted and ground was broken in November.

MCIDC has been pursuing the project for several years as a means of reusing the industrial site and creating a significant addition to downtown Lewistown.

Soon after excavation on the site began, large slabs of concrete rubble were found, unrelated to the old tool company. It appeared to be pieces of an old bridge, with twisted remnants of rebar winding in and around them. As contractors took the concrete away to be disposed of properly, they removed much of an earthen bank, revealing part of the old factory that had stood on the site. It had to be removed, and clean fill was brought in to level the site.

Disposal costs were about $80,000; new clean fill costs were around $24,000. In all, there have been approximately $240,000 in unbudgeted costs, significantly more than the amount in the project's contingency fund.

The HDC has also taken steps to save money on the project, particularly in the matter of a sewer line in poor condition, which ran under the site. After reconfiguring the building's design, there was no need to remove the line, but its condition did have to be addressed. The matter was resolved, with Lewistown Borough Council's cooperation, through the use of "slip line" technology, i.e., essentially fortifying the line from inside the sewer pipe.

The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency has come forward with $170,000 in additional funds for the Lewistown project, recognizing both the difficulties inherent in a brownfields site, and the HDC's efforts to control costs while resolving environmental concerns. It was PHFA's approval of two zero-interest loans, plus federal tax credits last July that originally allowed Mann Edge Terrace to move forward. The tax credits enabled the HDC to raise $4.6 million from the Juniata Valley Bank, which is a limited partner in Mann Edge Terrace.

The Mifflin County Commissioners, which had put $100,000 toward the project, is considering an additional contribution, and the contractor and HDC continue to seek means of reducing costs.

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Edging forward

Steven Klinshaw uses his life experiences as grist for his songs, tapping into the emotions of a breakup or an overheard conversation between a bickering husband and wife to craft country-western tunes with his band Paper Street.

Late last year, the 34-year-old U.S. Navy supply officer sat down to write and the inspiration was the city of Temecula: its warm summer nights, flying high overhead in one of the area's hot air balloons and hitting it big at the Pechanga Resort & Casino.

"I tried to fit everything in," he said during a phone interview.

The end result was a song called "True Love Temecula," a tune that Paper Street performed at a recent city event at The Promenade mall.

Paper Street scored an invitation to perform at the event, the Mayor's Beach Ball Block Party, after Klinshaw performed the song for city officials at the Civic Center.

Explaining the song's genesis, Klinshaw said he has grown to love the Temecula area after moving here three years ago and he plans to be here for the foreseeable future.

"We've put down roots," he said.

The home he bought abuts the backyard of his longtime friend's place, and they have modified their shared fence for a stairwell, a feature that allows the buddies and their children to pop back and forth between the properties.

"We call it the compound," he said, laughing. "We're talking about putting in a big pool and a lazy river around the whole complex."

Before moving to Temecula, Klinshaw, lived what he called a nomadic life, spending time in various cities and traveling to far-flung locales during his 17-years-and-counting career in the Navy.

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TEMECULA: Life in Temecula celebrated in song

More and more restaurants are staying open, serving desert lovers who enjoy the warm nights on misted patios with chilled soups, fresh cocktails and delicious deals.

Even restaurants that have never closed during the summer Melvyn's Restaurant at the Ingleside Inn has been open every day for the past 37 years say more and more residents and visitors are sticking it out through the heat.

A lot of people will not travel overseas or make other expensive trips since the economy is still not as good, she said. Since we have great hotel packages and good restaurants with affordable prices in Palm Springs, visitors love to come here during the summer time.

Pinocchio's boasts cheap eats and drinks all year-round, with bottomless champagne at $3.95.

Bargain hunters should also watch for special prix fixe menus.

The three-course menus at Escena Lounge & Grill in Palm Springs, at Acqua Pazza California Bistro in Rancho Mirage, and at Pacifica Seafood in Palm Desert are a great excuse to get out of the house.

Here's a taste of The Desert Sun's favorite summer offerings throughout the valley:

Johannes, while closed on Mondays, will be open all summer long with deals like a three-course $34 prix fixe menu or $28 two-course summer menu.

Eat at the bar for schnitzel starting at $10.

Where: Johannes is at 196 S. Indian Canyon Drive

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Summer dining in the desert

SAUGEEN SHORES-

In response to a growing number of inquires from local restaurants about placing tables, chairs or patios on public property in front of their businesses, town staff drafted a policy for council's consideration which was presented at the June 11 committee-of-the-whole meeting. Town clerk Linda White, who presented the information report, said the policy itself differentiates between a sidewalk patio and a sidewalk caf. A sidewalk patio is a fenced-in area on public land between the building facade and pedestrian sidewalk, a caf would also be located on public land between the building facade and the pedestrian sidewalk, but would not be fenced in. Further, where the sale and consumption of alcohol is allowed within the patio area, no sale of alcohol would be permitted on a sidewalk caf. Business owners who are interested in placing a patio or caf out front of their building would have to apply for an encroachment agreement and provide a blueprint of the proposed area. If met, the encroachment agreement would remain in effect provided the business is not transferred or sold, White continued. As outlined in the recommendation report, the Town or business owner has the right to terminate the agreement upon 10 days notice and the agreement gives the business owner the right to use the land for the purpose of a patio or caf and nothing more. Moreover, the current fees and charges by-law establishes a nonrefundable administration fee of $250 per application and an annual fee of $100. The sidewalk patios would have to follow certain requirements such as how far the patio can extend from the building to ensure a minimum two metre unobstructed pedestrian corridor is maintained; that it can only be open during regular business hours and no later than 11 p.m. unless granted by the town to operate until 1 a.m; that it can remain open from April 1 to Oct. 30 and that black iron fencing is required within those months and removed in winter months for snow removal. The requirements for the sidewalk cafs are the same as the patios with the following exceptions: no fence is required; no alcohol can be served; no umbrellas are allowed and furnishings must be removed from the area after regular business house. The sidewalk cafs are also permitted year round in compliance with snow removal. Vice deputy mayor Doug Gowanlock thought the recommendation was an excellent idea. "We have had a number of encroachments that we have dealt with bit by bit... and I think a policy provides our staff with the ability to get out there and deal with these as they come up," he said. "I think it's an excellent amenity in the town." Deputy mayor Luke Charbonneau agreed. "This is a great policy and we have had some great success, such as Allan's (Fireside Grill), a great patio," he said. "We have others that are on private property which is great now. I think this says to the community... this is something that the municipality is going to accept." One item however that did not sit well with Charbonneau was the suggested fence for a sidewalk patio and the instruction for it to be black iron. "I think if its tastefully done, and in keeping with the direction of the downtown areas, then it doesn't necessarily need to be black iron," he said. "It doesn't need to be mandated." When questioned on behalf of the Port Elgin BIA, president Jeff Carver said anything the town can do to assist businesses by easing fees and stipulations with regard to patios in the downtown is needed and welcome. "This could include waiving fees and removing guidelines and restrictions," he said. "Instead, the appearance of these patios should be governed by the concepts and designs put forth in the streetscape plan." According to Carver, the more activity on main street the better it is for all businesses. "The reality is, that patios and the restaurants attached to them, bring visitors and locals to main street creating positive economic spin-offs for the community at large," he continued. "The BIA welcomes anything the Town and council can do to make operating a business in Port Elgin more cost effective and less regulated." Councillor Diane Huber asked White about the coffee shops that currently exist on the main streets and whether they would be grand-fathered into the policy or not? "I would like to see them all treated the same under this policy," replied White. "There are some existing businesses that would be expected to put up the fee."Huber further questioned White on the need to charge participants $100 on an annual basis when a sign encroachment is only $50. Charbonneau echoed Huber's remarks, noting he would be fine waiving the fee as it does not offset any municipal expenses. Councillor Taun Frosst did not see it that way. "One hundred dollars is not a whole lot of dough, and if you support (development charges) you should support this fee," he said. Gowanlock was also reluctant. "I don't think $100 is out of line," he added, noting his concern was more concerned about liability. Huber also made it known there was no mention of smoking within the draft encroachment policy and said she would take issue if it enabled smoking areas outside restaurants and coffee shops. "I'm not so confident in my initial comments if patrons have to walk through smoke to gain entrance," she said. "I don't think we have to get into that now, this is economic activity on the main street, that's the long and short of it," Charbonneau rebutted. With respect, Huber said she would appreciate knowing what is acceptable, so council can share with the public whether it's in the policy or not. The recommendation that council adopt a sidewalk patio and sidewalk cafe draft encroachment policy was carried.

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News Local

At least 15 people were killed in landslides in Chittagong and Cox's Bazar districts in southeastern Bangladesh amid heavy downpour yesterday.

Much of the port city, Chittagong, went under knee-deep to waist-deep water.

Eleven of the victims -- five of them children aged between two and 12 -- died in separate landslides in different parts of Chittagong.

In Cox's Bazar, four persons were killed as large chunks of earth fell on their hillside homes in different areas of Maheshkhali upazila, police said.

Several people in the port city were reported missing following a number of avalanches at Uttar Pahartali and Banshkhali areas.

All domestic and international flight operations to and from Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport were declared suspended at 4:30 p.m. as the runway was inundated.

Train services on the Dhaka-Chittagong route were cut off as a railway bridge at Bhatiari collapsed around 8:00 p.m., presumably due to the downpour.

As the monsoon torrent kept lakhs of people stranded at home throughout the day since early morning, business in the country's commercial capital came to a near halt.

With most of the areas of the city submerged, at least 11 areas experienced total power blackout for about 12 hours since 8:00 a.m. Power connection was restored in some of the areas after 8:30 p.m.

The Power Development Board snapped the connections fearing accidents resulting from short circuits, said Md Moniruzzaman, public relations officer of Chittagong PDB.

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Landslides kill 15 in southeastern Bangladesh