The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authoritys (MARTA) development partners for the King Memorial Station transit-oriented development (TOD), Place Properties and H.J. Russell Company, have closed on financing to begin construction.

With $6 million in grant funding from Invest Atlanta, the $62.5 million project is a collaboration that will create 100 affordable housing units of 300 total units and complement development efforts occurring along Memorial Drive and the surrounding historic community.

The King Memorial Station development will offer affordable housing alongside the public transit-focused lifestyle TOD seeks to facilitate, said Jeffrey Parker, MARTA general manager and CEO. We are excited about the partnership with Place-Russell and Invest Atlanta. With one-third of the units being affordable, we have been deliberate about supporting the mayors affordable housing goals.

Located on approximately 4.4 acres of underutilized parking space on the south side of the station, the King Memorial TOD, which seeks to increase riders at a station with the second lowest ridership system-wide, is a part of MARTAs broader TOD initiative. The development plan also includes ground floor retail and an arts project for the Grant Street Tunnel.

Were going into the new year with the prospect of bringing 100 affordable housing units and 10,000-square feet of retail space to the King Memorial Station. Thats exciting, said H. Jerome Russell, president of H.J. Russell & Company.

Cecil Phillips, Place Properties CEO, added, This is a transformational development for MARTA and this part of the city. It is indeed a project that we can all be excited about.

The site is conveniently located between the neighborhoods of Old Fourth Ward, Grant Park, downtown and Cabbagetown. The station, just two stops from downtown Atlanta, is in the historic Grant Park neighborhood and due west of Oakland Cemetery. The station serves the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site and Ebenezer Baptist Church. It is approximately three blocks south of the Atlanta Streetcar.

Adding affordable housing along Atlantas transit lines is a key part of economic mobility by providing easier access to employment centers and reducing transportation costs for more city residents, said Eloisa Klementich, Ph.D., president and CEO of Invest Atlanta. On average, 63 percent of a familys income is spent on housing and transportation. Making an impact on this through transit-oriented development like at King Memorial station helps to drive investment while decreasing a familys spending, allowing them to focus on other family needs.

This marks the second multifamily development project financed this year on MARTA land with set aside for affordable housing. The Link development at Edgewood-Candler Park station was the first.

See more here:
MARTA and partners move forward on King Memorial Station TOD construction - MassTransitMag.com

Autoplay

Show Thumbnails

Show Captions

The past year saw development again a key talking point in Granville. The year also saw construction or openings of new structures including a new medical center at the east end of the Village, and the launch of the Michael D. Eisner arts center at Denison University.

Following, are some of the most significant events making Granville news in 2019.

January

The Village of Granville, Granville Township Trustees and officials from Denison University discussed partnering to help fund enhancements to the new, wider Ohio 37 bridge, construction of which is slated to begin in 2020.

Also in January, Granville Township officials were expressing doubt that an existing service contract to provide fire and EMS services to Union Township had much future left as Union and Hebron discussed forming a new fire district.

During one of its first meetings of the year, Granville Council also heard the first pitch for a new cidery to be located in a downtown barn, a proposal that would eventually find approval later in 2019.

February

Granville Council approved a tax subsidy or TIF for a new medical complex currently nearing completion at the east end of the village, close to the Newark border. The medical center being constructed by Hplex Solutions was described as a $5.3 million state of the art orthopedic center, expected to result in a $2.5 million payroll.

Council also approved an 18-acre annexation to establish the Glenshire residential development on Newark-Granville Road.

March

Granville Township Trustees, working with Kendal, announced a new traffic light at Ohio 16 and Kendal Drive. That signal went live the week of Thanksgiving.

Granville Schools announced a plan to partner with a community group to begin work on field improvements at Granville High School. The district also hired a new district treasurer, Brittany Treolo.

Granville police began enforcement of the villages new Nathans Law, prohibiting use of mobile communication devices while driving in the Village.

April

April brought announcement of plans by Welsh Hills Schools to construct a new high school, and the first home in Granvilles solar community, Village Roots, was completed and showcased with an open house. The community is located on Old Sycamore Lane in Granville.

Village Manager Steve Pyles resigned his position in April, and Kim Keethler Ball became the new owner of Readers Garden Book Store.

May

Granville Township Trustees announced plans to break ground for a new fire station at 1833 Lancaster Road, estimated to cost approximately $6 million.

Actress and Denison University grad Jennifer Garner delivered the 2019 commencement address at her alma mater, telling students, You are responsible for your own happiness, so attack it!

Lt. Suzie Dawson announced she was retiring from the Granville Police force to accept a position as an Ohio Senate Sergeant at Arms.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to the Newark Advocate today to access all of our content online at offers.newarkadvocate.com.

June

Granville Council approved emergency funds for dental repair of a K-9 officers teeth, as well as allocating money to contribute to the repair and partial replacement of a bulging Old Colony Burying Ground Cemetery wall in danger of collapse. That work was completed in July.

The Granville Kiwanis announced that the years annual July 4 festival would be built around a moon landing theme.

July

Denison unveiled its nearly completed Michael D. Eisner Center for the performing arts. The 108,000, structure is the first Denison building to front the villages main thoroughfare, as pointed out by DU President Adam Weinberg.

Longtime Granville Village Clerk of Council Mollie Prasher announced she was leaving Granville for a similar post in Reynoldsburg.

The Granville Library announced that in answer to public requests, it would begin to offer Sunday hours.

August

The Village of Granville held an open house for its newly completed service department headquarters at 1552 Columbus Road. The old service complex on Lancaster Road was to be razed shortly after to clear the way for a new Granville Township Fire Department.

Granville Boosters held a special community event to reveal the intended name of its new stadium The Walter J. Hodges Stadium in honor of a 1951 GHS graduate, as well as to announce its funding goals.

After a number of Licking County-area candidates petitions were rejected by the Licking County Board of Elections, including those of incumbent Granville Township Trustee Dan Van Ness and his intended challenger, it was announced the seat would be decided by write-in vote.

September

Dan Finkelman resigned his post as Granville Council member during the Sept. 4 meeting. He had earlier made clear his intent not to seek re-election in the looming November races.

Ann Lowder also announced she would be retiring from her position as executive director of The Robbins Hunter Museum.

Granville Schools scored nearly straight-As on the annual state report card, the only district in Licking County to receive an overall A-grade.

October

The Village of Granville seated a new council member by appointment, selecting Laura Mickelson to fill the seat earlier vacated by Dan Finkelman. The Village also hired Herb Koehler to become the communitys new village manager.

The United Church of Granville marked its 200th year.

Bryn Du Mansion welcomed its first artist in residence, Poet Jennifer Hambrick, who was provided living space in the newly restored former laundry house located at the rear of the mansion.

Union Township and Hebron official voted to form a fire district, despite opposition from Union residents served under contract by the Granville Township Fire Department. Those opposing the new fire districts formation soon announced an effort to try and move a portion of Union into Granville Township.

November

Granville Schools began demolition of its high school stadium to prep the site for construction of a new complex expected to be completed in time for the start of the 2020-21 school year.

Granville Council saluted longtime member Jackie OKeefe, who began serving in 2003 and chose not to seek office again in the fall 2019 elections.

December

Granville Council approved a tax incentive or TIF agreement aimed at simulating development in the area of Weaver Drive and River Road on Dec. 4.

On Dec. 7, The Granville Area Chamber of Commerces annual Christmas Candlelight Walking Tourblessed with warmer weather and sunny skies once more filled the downtown with shoppers and sightseers.

Read or Share this story: https://www.newarkadvocate.com/story/news/local/granville/2019/12/28/new-granville-construction-tax-incentives-among-top-stories-2019/4410785002/

Read the rest here:
New Granville construction, tax incentive agreements among top stories of 2019 - The Newark Advocate

Walking into the green campus of the All Saints Church on 1, Hosur Road, Richmond town, Bangalore, which lies at one of the busiest intersections in town, is like stepping into a time machine. Traffic noises fade away, muffled by the leaves and trailing branches of the over 100 trees some over 150 years old that fill the space. A lawn glows green under the sun-dappled shade. The quaint, steeply-gabled, tiled church with rubble stone masonry walls rising just seven feet to meet the roof, the typical arched windows transport you into an earlier century. As you step into the carpeted interiors, the roof, resting on artistically-wrought iron trusses, attracts the eye upwards, the carved teak pews, woodwork, the pipe organ all take us to a time when the world was a calmer, more serene place. The air is filled with birdcalls of dozens of the species, some rare, which live in the precincts. Church records say that the land was gifted by the Maharaja of Mysore, Chamaraja Wodeyar, and later expanded to include space for an orphanage.

It was completed in 1870 by Rev. Samuel Pettigrew who was an important institution builder in Bangalore those days. He was the chaplain at St. Marks Cathedral at the time, and also warden of the Bishop Cotton Boys School. Estimated to cost Rs 10,000, its original design was rejected by the Church Building Society of Madras, as being unsuitable for a church and too small. The present building was then designed by well-known government architect Robert Chisholm, who is famous for pioneering the Indo-Saracenic style of architecture, which incorporates Indo-Islamic decorative and design elements with western styles. But All Saints Church has none of those elements in its design. Two earlier ones submitted by Chisholm were rejected and only the third was accepted. Rev. Pettigrew for his part struggled to collect the funds for its construction. The foundation stone was finally laid down in 1869.

See original here:
End of road for 150-yr-old Bangalore Church? - National Herald

LESS WHITE, LESS MODERN ON LISPENARDCityLand reports that the new building proposed for the corner of Church and Lispenard has been approved by the Landmarks Commission originally for being too white and too modern: At the November 12 public hearing, David Gross of GF55 Architects presented the modified design for the building. In the modified design, the front faades color was toned down and changed from white to limestone. The horizontal bands were replaced with horizontal reveals carved into the building. Gross stated that the framing of the building was changed to have more symmetry and the height of the buildings base was increased to make the building appear wider at the base.

VINOLY BUILDING ON GREENWICH NEARLY COMPLETEWork is almost entirely complete on the reflective curtain wall of 125 Greenwich Street, number 14 in [New York Yimbys] countdown of the tallest projects under construction in New York City. The only sections awaiting faade work are the podium and the portion where the exterior hoist is still mounted. Designed by Rafael Violy and developed by Bizzi & Partners and Vector Group, the slender 88-story residential skyscraper stands 912 feet tall over the Financial District.

MOTHER CABRINI COMING TO BPCBecause I cant resist quoting The Tablet, the Brooklyn and Queens Roman Catholic Dioceses newspaper that has been around since 1908: St. Frances Xavier Cabrinis statue will be built in Battery Park City on a spot facing the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, a fitting place for the Italian-American saint, known as the patroness of immigrants. The Dec. 13 announcement from Gov. Andrew Cuomo came months after campaigning by local Catholics for a public monument for Mother Cabrini. The funding and construction of the $750,000 project is being overseen by the Mother Cabrini Memorial Commission, a 19-member committee that includes Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, John Heyer of the Diocese of Brooklyns Italian apostolate and Joseph Sciame, president of the Sons of Italy Foundation.

INSIDE THE TREE BUSINESSInside Edition interviews the Scott Lechner, who founded the Christmas tree vendor SoHo Trees in 1982 and now has eight locations in the city.

See the original post:
In the News: Landmarks approves building on Lispenard - Tribeca Citizen

The Herald

Court ReporterBISHOP Tudor Bismarks New Life Covenant Churchs bid to construct a state-of-the-art building on a wetland in Newlands has been thwarted after a civil society organisation, Harare Wetlands Trust (HWT), successfully contested its legality.

The church intended to build the structure along Boundary Road, but residents and environmental rights campaigners objected.

Newlands Residents Association and the HWT opposed the move and sought the intervention of the High Court.

They argued that the structures were being built on a wetland and that the church had not complied with environment regulations.

Justice Webster Chinamora heard the dispute in which New Life Covenant Church, the Harare City Council, the Minister of Local Government and Public Works, the Environmental Management Agency, the Minister of Environment, Climate Tourism and Hospitality and the Upper Manyame Catchment Council were listed as respondents.

He found that the church had not complied with the law after it failed to apply for a permit from Upper Manyame Catchment Council

Justice Chinamora declared the construction of a church by New Life Covenant Church on the wetland as unlawful and ordered the church to stop all developments.

The first respondents ongoing development on Stand 1892 Boundary Road, Harare . . . be and is hereby declared unlawful, said Justice Chinamora.

The first respondent shall immediately cease all developments and remove all machinery on Stand 1892 Boundary Road, Harare.

The church resisted the application insisting it had the necessary permit to proceed with the development.

It also produced a letter written by the local authoritys director of works as the authority upon which it acted.

But after examining the letter, Justice Chinamora formed the view that it was not a permit within the contemplation of Section 24 (1)(d) of the Regional, Town and Country Planning Act.

In their application, the HWT and residents wanted the High Court to issue an order stopping the work and directing the removal of all the construction machinery on site.

Advocate Fadzayi Mahere, who acted for the applicants argued that the church did not obtain the requisite permits for the development of the property in terms of the Regional, Town and Country Planning Act and Section 46(2) of the Water Act.

Government in 2016 partially allowed the church to construct the structures on the site on condition that the structures only covered land of up to 0,8 hectares.

However, the residents argued that the church exceeded the 0,8ha limit in violation of the ministerial directive and they wanted the church to stop the construction.

It was further argued that the stand fell under an area declared to be a wetland and the church should comply with the stipulated pre-conditions to lawfully erect structures.

It was also feared that constructing the church on the wetland would result in irreparable harm to the environment.

Read more:
High Court stops churchs wetland construction works - The Herald

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 07: Josh Jacobs #28 of the Oakland Raiders runs the ball in for the winning touchdown against the Los Angeles Chargers in the fourth quarter at RingCentral Coliseum on November 07, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Josh Jacobs has been the glue to the Raiders offense right out of the gates, rushing for 86 yards and two touchdowns in his first NFL game against the Denver Broncos. In Week 17, the Raiders will once again take on the Broncos, but this time without their star running back.

In the first quarter of the Raiders Week 7 against the Green Bay Packers, Jacobs fractured his shoulder during an attempt to fight for extra yards. Since then, he's been limited in many practices throughout the season, but has just missed two games.

Unfortunately for the Raiders, those two games have come within the last three, as the team has been very careful with their prized running back. Jacobs has been an incredible addition to this offense even with his hurt shoulder, and many believe he will run away with the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

On Saturday, the Raiders officially ruled Jacobs out (shoulder/ illness) for Sunday's Week 17 game against the Denver Broncos with playoff implications in sight.

Josh Jacobs (shoulder/illness) has been downgraded to OUT for Sundays game at Denver. #OAKvsDEN

As the season inches closer to the finish line, Jacobs will have a lot of hype surrounding his name as a nominee for theoffensive rookie of the year. He'll finish the season carrying the ball 242 times for 1,150 yards and 7 touchdowns. In the passing game, Jacobs caught 20 passes for 166 yards.

Next: What does this mean?

View original post here:
Oakland Raiders need all hands on deck with Josh Jacobs out - Just Blog Baby

Starting Monday at 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET, fans can click on to Marvel HQ to take in the special holiday takeover, featuring festive episodes starring their favorite superheroes. Watch online here!

Guardians of the Galaxy: Jingle Bell Rock.When the Guardians realize theyre on the wrong side of a bounty, they stage a Christmas Carol-inspired con job to frighten a superstitious despot out of his ill-gotten riches and free his enslaved people.

Marvels Avengers Assemble: Under the Spell of the Enchantress. Captain Marvel and Ms. Marvel travel to an icy asteroid to rescue Thor from the Enchantress.

Marvels Spider-Man: Spider-Man on Ice. When Blizzard steals new technology and freezes New York, an unprepared Spider-Man has to upgrade his gear to stop the villain before the city is put into a new Ice Age.

Ultimate Spider-Man: Nightmare on Christmas. Spider-Man sees what the world would be like without him when Nightmare takes the web-slinger on a journey through his past, present and future.

Ultimate Spider-Man: The Moon Knight Before Christmas. While house sitting for Dr. Strange on Christmas Eve, Spidey teams up with the mysterious moon knight to confront his own Ghost of Christmas Past.

Marvel Super Hero Adventures: The Toys are Back in Town. Spidey teams up with the famous Captain America to track down a toy thief known as the Tinkerer! As our heroes rescue the stolen toys, Captain America reminds Spider-Man that being a hero means doing the right thing, no matter what.

Marvel Funko Presents: Cosmic Sleigh Ride, The Collector sends Taserface to re-capture Groot and his collection and ends up on a slippery snow chase on a frozen alien planet with Groot & Star-Lord.

Marvel Mash-Ups: Spider-Man & Amazing Friends: Burrito. In this Spider-Man Marvel Mash-Up, Ice Man is dangerously good at a game of freeze tag against Spider-Man and friends.

Marvels Avengers Assemble: Under the Spell of the Enchantress

Marvels Spider-Man: Spider-Man on Ice

Marvel Funko Presents: Cosmic Sleigh Ride

Read more from the original source:
Holiday Takeover Decks Marvel HQ Halls with Toons - Animation Magazine

Throughout the autumn as the project dragged on though false starts, do-overs and delays, I was hatching a plan. I would very carefully catalog and annotate everything that had gone wrong, sit down with the contractor and negotiate a smaller number on the bottom line.

The facts were not in dispute. Id have him over a barrel. I would sleep well at night knowing I had been wronged and I had made it right. (Spoiler alert: Take note of the half-dozen Is in the first two grafs of this column).

In our household, CY 2019 evolved rapidly into the Year of Home Improvement. It started innocently enough as my wife and I sat in our living room on New Years Day a year ago and decided we should paint one living room wall. It escalated quickly. All the living room, dining room, hallway walls painted, along with the ceiling, new furniture, new carpeting, new appliances, new artwork, purposeful purging of all manner of household accoutrements that, it turns out, we could live without, a partial kitchen remodel, etc., et al, ad infinitum.

Like many homes in Manhattan, ours is built into a Flint Hill, with the front and back doors opening to divergent elevations, bringing not only enhanced aesthetic real estate value, but real-world practical attributes to a deck.

We bought the house on the day of our wedding 21 years ago. Its a mid-century home, but the deck was 1970s vintage. Over the decades, as the deck began listing to starboard, our time-buying and resuscitation efforts eventually and finally expired. The clincher came when, shopping for contractors, one pro gave it a hard look, offered, Im not walking on that thing, turned on his work boot heel, mounted his half-ton and drove away into the sunset.

Hmmph. Thanks for nothing.

Everything felt right with the contractor we landed on. As we traversed our way around the existing rickety deck, he offered creative design thoughts and we each visualized the bright and shiny end game. Sold. Firm handshake. Direct eye contact. He would start the first week of October and be done in a week and a half. Two months later, on our wedding anniversary, December 23, the last screw was turned.

When the problems started cropping up, the man did everything right. When there was a mistake, he acknowledged it, owned it and made it right. That did not stop my seemingly innate tendencies to believe I had been wronged, to seek an edge, and the mental setback cataloging began.

Throughout the fall, my wife and I would compare notes and waffle between hoped-for outcomes. Negotiate or suck it up? Weve each lived long enough to know outcomes hoped for can become outcomes delivered with careful planning and execution. Frustrated over the fits and starts, but our frustration never spiraled up (or down) to anger with the contractor.

In hindsight, those were two significant data points: No outcome consensus and no anger.

Heres a young man trying to build a livelihood in our community. He has skills, ability and a dream. He struggles with the same things all small business owners struggle with: Workforce issues, managing expectations, communication with clients/customers, relationships with regulators, the vagaries of subcontractors, etc., et al, ad infinitum. In short, human nature.

Our consensus began to emerge when my wife posited that maybe we were channeling her mother, a generous soul who died a year ago, the first of a dozen losses of loved ones and friends over a year. All those funerals, writ large, also proved valuable decision-making data, as it turned out. Life is short. Dont muck it up with anger. Walk a mile, or at least up and down a Flint Hill while envisioning a new deck, in the other guys steel-toed work boots.

There is also the First world problems argument which infuses some reality. If this is the worst of my problems

Some would argue it is human nature to take otherwise simple problems and make them difficult. Maybe. I do not believe it is human nature to seek an edge, to one-up to my benefit. Thats learned behavior that can become my nature, if I allow it.

Mike Matsons column appears every other Sunday in The Mercury. Follow his blog at mikematson.com

Continue reading here:
MATSON | Building a new deck leads to the autumn of my discontent - Manhattan Mercury

The Walt Disney Company is going to have a hard time living up to its record-breaking 2019.

First of all, there are no Star Wars or Avengers films on the docket in 2020. There are, however, two Marvel films: "Black Widow," a prequel about the super spy starring Scarlett Johansson and "Eternals," with Angelina Jolie and Kit Harington as immortal beings who shape the events of earth.

There will also be a live-action reboot of the animated classic "Mulan," two Pixar films "Onward" and "Soul" and a film based on the theme park ride "Jungle Cruise," starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Emily Blunt.

Its a lineup with a lot of potential but it could lead to a more subdued year at the box office, Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at Boxoffice.com, told CNN Business.

"Disney has a 2020 slate that most studios would kill to have, but by their own recent standards, next year is missing a big event film that everyone has to see," he said. "Sure, they have two Marvel movies and a few others that could be sneaky big hits, but there's no epic conclusion like 'Avengers: Endgame' or even a Star Wars movie."

This means other studios have a chance to topple Disney from its perch. So far, the competition is looking stiff: Warner Bros. is releasing "Wonder Woman 1984," "Birds of Prey" and Christopher Nolan's "Tenet" in 2020. Paramount has two big sequels with "Top Gun: Maverick" and "A Quiet Place Part II." And Universal is set to release "Fast & Furious 9" and the next film in the Halloween series, "Halloween Kills." There are also sequels for James Bond, "Ghostbusters," and "Coming to America."

A hard-to-top year

This has been a landmark year for Disney. In March, the company closed its $71 billion acquisition for most of 21st Century Fox. In July, it set the record for the highest-grossing studio in box office history. Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, the parks division's biggest expansion ever, opened to incredible fanfare. And Disney+, the company's first major leap into the streaming world, officially launched.

"When we look back in 20 years, I think people will say 2019 was one of the three or four biggest years in the company's history," Trip Miller, a Disney shareholder and managing partner at hedge fund Gullane Capital Partners, told CNN Business.

But next year will be focused on fine-tuning what Disney achieved this year, according to Miller.

"2020 is about tweaking the things that they acquired or launched in 2019," he said. "It's about refinement or making what they have better."

Robbins of Boxoffice.com said 2019 is a "capstone year after a decade-plus of strategic build-up." Bob Iger has been on shopping spree during most of his tenure as CEO, buying big brands like Pixar in 2006, Marvel in 2009 and Lucasfilm in 2012 before snapping up companies like BAMTech to build Disney+ and Fox to fill the coffers of that streaming service.

What ensued was a global box office windfall that surpassed the $10 billion mark in 2019, shattering Disney's 2016 record of $7.6 billion. The company released a record six films that made $1 billion or more with "Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker" potentially being the seventh. And as if that weren't enough, "Avengers: Engame" surpassed "Avatar" in ticket sales and grabbed the top spot as the highest grossing film in global box office history.

"All of our brands contributed to the success, whether it was Disney live action or Disney Animation and Pixar to Marvel Studios," Cathleen Taff, Disney's president of distribution, told CNN Business. "And that's really the only way you can get to sort of a number like that."

But Robbins said that to "expect that kind of recent blockbuster success to be sustainable year to year isn't realistic by anyone's standards, including Disney."

The company's dominance this year came with some setbacks. "Dark Phoenix," "Stuber" and "The Art of Racing in the Rain," films produced by its newly-acquired Fox studio, flopped at the box office and Disney+'s launch day was mired by glitches.

But the steaming service quickly recovered ended its first day with 10 million sign-ups -- the prize for years of work that Iger has repeatedly called his "highest priority."

Disney+ will prove to be the one thing that repositioned the company on several media fronts, Miller said. It will connect the company to the next generation of storytelling.

The-CNN-Wire & 2019 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.

View original post here:
Disney had a blockbuster 2019. Heres what it has on deck for 2020 - KSAT San Antonio

Below Deck fans know Captain Lee Rosbach as their steadfast leader on the soapy aquatic docudrama. He uses fast-thinking while keeping his cool under some pretty intense conditions.

But Rosbach recently revealed that his years before yachting werent always smooth sailing. He shared at a Stars Marketing Event in Florida that he was a little older than most crew members when he started in yachting. Plus, he said that he and wife Mary Anne were almost at their financial breaking point when he finally found his current career.

Rosbach told the audience that he dove into yachting while he was working in the restaurant industry on the west coast of Florida. He said even though he was close to being completely broke, he did whatever he could to spend time on yachts to earn his certifications. Thats because he was so passionate about the industry. Rosbach also revealed that he was a lot older than most crew members who reach the pinnacle of captain.

Rosbach clarified to the audience that he didnt see the ocean until he was 35 years old. Thats when it all started, he said. Wife and I, Mary Anne. I wanted to move to the Turks and Caicos islands and saw the ocean for the first time. Rosbach is originally from Saginaw, Michigan.

And through a series of bad decisions, we ended up almost broke, he recalled. No, we were broke. Almost broke is like being almost pregnant, he added with one of his typical Captain Lee-isms. But then he saw a small ad for a mate wanted.

The position paid $50 a day for the delivery of a sailboat. I needed the money, they needed a mate, so I signed up for it, he continues. Mary Anne told me that if I took the job, because it was in the middle of hurricane season, that she wouldnt be there when I got back. Well, being my usual self, it was like, well, you do what you gotta do and Im going to do what I gotta do.

Thankfully the couple reunited after Rosbachs maiden voyage. Thats when I decided it was time to make a career change. Just fell in love with the ocean, he said. But it wasnt all love at first.

Rosbach shared he was extremely seasick during those early days. I was so sick that whole trip, I was seasick, he recounted. Once you get out there and it happens, its like, OK, this is it. Stew Kasey Cohen from Below Deck Mediterranean shared that Rosbach was very supportive when she was horribly seasick.

Captain Lee said that he had gotten seasickness and the whole time he was on the bridge he had a bucket next to him, Cohen told Showbiz Cheat Sheet in June. He defended me, which was really nice.

Like Captain Sandy Yawn from Below Deck Mediterranean, Rosbach has a serious passion for yachting. I was so passionate about it, he recalled. I would beg people to let me go on their boat. I worked for nothing.

I was managing restaurants and bars and on the west coast of Florida, and I go out after work for nothing and work on boats just to build enough time so I could get my captains license, he said.

Rosbach said he was nearly 40 years old by the time he was able to become a captain. Not exactly a youngster by career standards as far as this industry goes, he added. Most people start at a young age. Youve got captains out there [ages] 24, 25. But once Rosbach latched onto yachting, he never looked back. So its an outstanding career choice. I mean, you get to see the world exotic locations. Plus he shared that yachties make bank too.

Follow this link:
'Below Deck': Captain Lee Reveals He Was Broke Before He Got Into Yachting (Exclusive) - Showbiz Cheat Sheet