MORRIS Preliminary work continues at the Morris Municipal Airport in preparations for its runway extension.

The Morris City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved contracting with Homer Tree Service for removal of 18 trees on airport property for $5,400. Airport liability insurance also was bought from Global Aerospace for just less than $13,800, the lowest bid.

The city plans to extend its north-south runway and taxiway to the north by 500 feet, making it 5,500 feet, to accommodate larger aircraft. Precision lights to make landings easier also is planned. After the north-south runway is extended, the project includes widening the runway from 75 to 100 feet and overlaying it with more asphalt to accommodate heavier aircraft.

The runway extension is the first of many improvement projects scheduled in the next five years aimed at making the airport more compatible for corporate jets.

The tree removal approved Tuesday will clear more space for the required runway protection zone, which is a larger area required with the increased length in the future runway, Mayor Richard Kopczick said Wednesday.

Were going to an instrument approach and a larger runway, and the trees pierce the approach pattern, he continued.

More than 30 trees already been have removed; Tuesdays action by the council approved working with Homer Tree Service to remove 18 more.

Were happy to have Whitman Road done and the new bridge, Alderman Julian Houston, chairman of the Airport Committee, said Wednesday.

As part of this project, the city had to obtain numerous parcels of land to accommodate the expansion. Whitman Road had to extended west of Ashley Road with a bridge and roadway, to provide residences on that road new access since the airport work no longer allows them direct access to Route 47.

Construction on the runway extension is expected to begin once the weather warms up, Houston said.

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Morris airport preparing for runway extension

On a back street in Napa, amid the sounds of hammers and saws, workers are putting the final touches on space that could well represent a new era for the arts in Napa.

The Lucky Penny Community Arts Center opens on Friday night with a production of the joyful musical Oliver!, itself a tale of trials and tribulations that all come right in the end.

To say there is a flurry of activity in the new space now would be an understatement more of a blizzard than a flurry as we get ready to welcome the first audiences, said Barry Martin. He, along with Taylor Bartolucci, are the founders of Napas Lucky Penny Productions, and the driving force behind the new venue.

The facility will not be fully completed, but all the necessary elements will be ready, and were excited, nervous and a little dazed, Martin said.

Just six months ago, Bartolucci and Martin announced their plans to transform a former tile showroom into an arts center, but the project has been in the dreaming stage for a long time.

From the very beginning, back in 2009 when Barry and I founded Lucky Penny, we had a dream and goal of one day having our own facility, Bartolucci said. Performance space in Napa was so limited and costly, and the more productions we produced, the harder it was to find a venue.

Over the past few years, Barry and I have encountered so many different people, and we realized there was a greater need in our county, and that need was a community arts center. As a county that prides itself on tourism, music, arts and culture, its crazy that we dont have a location for our artistic residents to gather, she added.

Yes, we have the Lincoln Theater, City Winery at the Napa Valley Opera House and the Uptown Theatre, but there is no facility in Napa that not only acts as an arts presenter, but also an arts creator and incubator.

Hence, our dream: a facility that brings all art disciplines together. Visual and performing arts, music and dance, and more. An affordable, accessible creation space was not only desperately needed in Napa, but desperately deserved.

The duo were used to dreaming big on a budget. They had, after all, begun Lucky Penny by each contributing $200. They set out on a search throughout high-rent Napa until they finally found a space that could work.

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By dint of donations and hard work, community arts center opens Friday

8x10 Gable Shed - Shed Plans - Stout Sheds LLC
8x10 Gable Shed with Shingle Roof, Custom Barn Style Doors and Treated Ramp. http://www.stoutsheds.com/shedplans http://www.stoutsheds.com.

By: Stout Sheds LLC

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8x10 Gable Shed - Shed Plans - Stout Sheds LLC - Video

VIDEO: Dublin teenager sheds 3.5 stone after cyber-bullying incident
Conor Doyle enter the W82Go programme after a stranger posted his image to an embarrassing night club photo-sharing site.

By: Newstalk 106-108 fm

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VIDEO: Dublin teenager sheds 3.5 stone after cyber-bullying incident - Video

Cabin owned by lottery millionaireGeorge Traykov set to be destroyed Council officers raided 290,000 property and obtained demolition order Building, including kitchen and heating, was being rented for 200 a week But Mr Traykov said the house was merely used for 'storage and parties'

By Thomas Burrows for MailOnline

Published: 12:27 EST, 22 January 2015 | Updated: 03:44 EST, 23 January 2015

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A backyard cabin owned by a lottery millionaire is set to be destroyed in a council crackdown on 'beds in sheds' landlords - despite him insisting it is used for parties.

George Traykov, a former member of the Bulgarian skydiving team, who has scooped more than 1.1million in EuroMillions wins, was investigated by Hounslow council for allegedly renting out unauthorised dwellings.

Council officers raided the 290,000 property in Feltham, south west London, last week and have now obtained a demolition order.

They say the building, which has a kitchen and central heating, was among a number of beds in sheds being rented out for up to 200-a-week.

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Lottery millionaire's cabin in Feltham, London, to be demolished

WASHINGTON The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched the Water Infrastructure and Resiliency Finance Center today to help communities across the country improve their wastewater, drinking water and stormwater systems, particularly through innovative financing and by building resilience to climate change. The center was announced as Vice President Biden and EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy toured the construction site for a tunnel to reduce sewer overflows into the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. by 98 percent. The center is part of the White House Build America Investment Initiative a government-wide effort to increase infrastructure investment and promote economic growth by creating opportunities for state and local governments and the private sector to collaborate, expand public-private partnerships, and increase the use of federal credit programs.

Infrastructure is central to the Presidents plan to build on the progress the U.S. economy is making by creating jobs and expanding opportunity for all Americans, said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. By modernizing the nations infrastructure we can protect our drinking water sources and enhance resilience to the impacts of climate change by avoiding financial and water supply losses from leaking pipes and reducing pollution from sewer overflows and wastewater discharges.

Key Points

EPAs center will serve as a resource for communities, municipal utilities, and private entities as they seek to address water infrastructure needs with limited budgets. EPA will help explore public-private partnerships and innovative financing solutions. Aging and inadequate water infrastructure hinders the ability of communities to provide clean drinking water, manage wastewater, reduce flooding, and provide recreational waters that are safe to swim and fish in. Impacts of climate change including intense and frequent storms, drought, floods, sea-level rise and water quality changes create challenges for communities as they prepare water infrastructure that can withstand these impacts.

By the Numbers

More than $600 billion is needed over the next 20 years to maintain and improve the nations water infrastructure. State-by-state breakdown of funding needs: http://water.epa.gov/infrastructure/upload/clean-water-and-drinking-water-infrastructure-needs-by-state.pdf

Audio

Administrator McCarthy discusses EPAs new center:

http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/bd4379a92ceceeac8525735900400c27/28ce3f2fe7f9df5285257dcf00577798!OpenDocument

Photos

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EPA Finance Center helps improve water infrastructure, resiliency.

Don't wait until you sell your house to find out what's wrong with it or how to make it safer. How old is too old for a furnace? What should, or shouldn't, go down a garbage disposal? Should you have ductwork cleaned? Photoelectric or ionization smoke detector? What's an AFCI outlet?

It might take a home inspector to figure it out. So here's Frank Lesh, executive director of the American Society of Home Inspectors, an organization that, like the National Association of Home Inspectors, certifies home inspection professionals. (Lesh is not just an administrator: He owns Home Sweet Home Inspection of Indian Head Park, Ill.)

In Connecticut, don't hire inspectors without first checking at http://www.elicense.ct.gov that they're registered with the state.

TBL: A few things that might alarm people: Hairline cracks in the basement, horizontal or vertical. Or both. What exactly do they mean?

A: Just a small vertical, hairline crack is not a big deal. It's very common. But a horizontal crack, for sure. And if there are lot of cracks, it shows something wasn't done right. A floor crack, other than just a little unsettling, has no structural significance.

TBL: How about a crack on an interior wall?

A: Depends on the age of the home and whether you have plaster or drywall. Typically, interior cracks are not as significant as exterior.

TBL: If someone has a 20-year-old furnace, can he assume it will have to be replaced soon?

A: It depends on the heating climate, but between 15 and 25 years is a normal life for a furnace. Today's furnaces don't seem to last quite as long as furnaces did back in the '50s.

TBL: Should people drain their water heaters or leave them alone and wait until they self-destruct?

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What's Wrong With Your Home? The Inspector Is In The House

The Harper Valley Waste Treatment Plant at the Harper Valley Subdivison in Kirtland will be decommissioned under a plan to send the waste it processes to another facility. (Jon Austria The Daily Times)

The Harper Valley Waste Treatment Plant is pictured Thursday at the Harper Valley Subdivison in Kirtland. (Jon Austria The Daily Times)

FARMINGTON Construction to disconnect the Harper Valley subdivision from a sewage plant out of compliance with Environmental Protection Agency standards may begin this fall.

EPA officials have said the wastewater treatment plant in the subdivision, now the main residential area of the town of Kirtland, needs to close in the next three years.

Earlier this month, the San Juan County Commission approved a Clean Water Revolving Loan Fund package from the New Mexico Environment Department to finance the project. The package is for $600,938, according to county documents. Of that, $248,281 will come from a grant, and the rest of the needed funds will be loaned, according to county documents. The county will administer the state funds.

The project is estimated to cost $676,290, but officials are also budgeting for approximately $100,000 more in contingency funds that would finance unexpected expenses, said Larry Hathaway, Harper Valley Homeowners Association president, and the county's general services and community development administrator.

"Hopefully, we'll come in around $600,000, but we'll just have to wait and see," he said.

New Mexico Environment Department officials are now writing an agreement for the County Commission and the department's cabinet secretary, Ryan Flynn, to sign. Once that is approved, and after the project is designed, which could take two to three months, construction could begin in September, Hathaway said.

The goal of the project is to decommission the wastewater treatment plant. To do that, crews will upgrade the sewage pumping station at the plant and lay pipe from the station to another pumping station where County Road 6100 meets U.S. Highway 64. From there, the subdivision's waste will be pumped into the Valley Water and Sanitation District's sewer system.

This project is one of many other wastewater system improvements included on the county's infrastructure capital improvements plan. It is the fourth priority. The first priority, a project costing approximately $9 million, is the first phase of connecting Flora Vista's wastewater system to Farmington's.

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Harper Valley sewage plant soon to be shuttered

Bubbles the Bunny Building a Room Addition
Mirza Landscaping installed a retainer wall for our new garden and I had to tell them not to destroy Bubbles #39; home. With all the new fresh and soft dirt Bubbles decided to add on an addition...

By: Malcolm Kimberlin

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Bubbles the Bunny Building a Room Addition - Video

Although major renovations to Sterling Memorial Library were completed earlier this year, a new construction project in the library has just begun.

Last month, refurbishment began on the Franke Family Reading Room, which was previously known as the Periodicals Reading Room, to convert the space into a interim reading room for the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. The project is slated to be completed by May 1 and will transform the room so that faculty, students and staff will be able to continue research with rare books and manuscripts throughout the Beinecke renovation, which is scheduled for completion by the fall 2016 semester. Despite the temporary loss of study space, E.C. Schroeder, director of the Beinecke Library, said the benefits of the project outweigh the costs.

The alternative [to the Franke Family Reading Room project] is that we dont have a reading room for the Beinecke during its renovation, he said. From my perspective and I am biased obviously that is a major concern for the University.

He said the renovation of the Franke room has three major components: dividing the space for faculty and staff, upgrading the electrical and security systems and improving the climate control of the room for sensitive materials.

The University plans to construct a wall to divide the room in half, which will allow both Beinecke staff and readers to have their own workspace, Schroeder said. The room will be able to house 15 staff members and 38 researchers.

In addition, the room is currently undergoing a security upgrade, which will include the installation of security cameras in the reading room and safety glass on the windows to prevent against break-ins.

The Franke was selected since it is the largest reading room space available; it was relatively easy to convert it into a temporary reading room and it is also convenient, Schroeder said. We needed it to be as easy as possible to bring material in because all the material is coming from outside Sterling.

Last spring, all of the periodicals previously in the Franke Family Reading Room were relocated to another room. This left the shelves of the Franke room empty during the fall 2014 semester.

Adjacent to the Franke reading room, the International Room is also undergoing a transformation of its own.

Schroeder said the space will be converted into a classroom for special collections, in which examples of books from Shakespeares time or other rare material can still be presented to students in a classroom setting.

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Construction begins on interim Beinecke reading room