The Salvation Army is expanding its services, planning to create a Sarasota park called Club Hope for the homeless at 911 Central Ave.

SARASOTA - It seemed simple enough. Redo the aging basketball and volleyball courts across from the Salvation Army. Lay sod on the scraggly grass and gravel, add benches, little gardens and a gazebo where the homeless could relax.

Create a place where everybody will be able to spread out a bit more; get their exercise, said David Clements, a Salvation Army resident.

On the weekends, Clements said it would provide a safe place to avoid the synthetic marijuana that permeates the streets. Or escape the Salvation Army patio, where another resident, Michael McMullen, said, You hear so much negativity that it starts invading you.

But confusion over the permitting process has slowed the effort to improve 911 Central Ave. though the Salvation Army is determined to continue with the changes, starting with an ice cream social at 1 p.m. Sunday on the property, where they will debut and discuss plans for what they call Club Hope.

Initially, members of the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce's Leadership Sarasota class, who do an annual community service project, decided to help with the effort. They gathered in-kind donations and planned to use $5,000 from the Chamber of Commerce to complete it by their May 31 deadline.

But after meeting with Sarasota officials Thursday, leadership class member Tim Self said turning the lot into Club Hope is not the rubber stamp process they anticipated.

Instead, the Salvation Army, which owns the site, has to request a major conditional use approval. It could take four to six months to go through the process, which includes a neighborhood workshop, planning board and City Commission approval, said Tim Litchet, Sarasota's director of Neighborhood and Development Services.

That timeline would not work for the leadership class, which has to pick a new project.

Moving forward

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Effort to improve site near Salvation Army grows complicated

What you probably didn't know about Monday's Bowl Championship Series championship is that it will be played on an entirely fresh field, placed directly atop the one you saw Wednesday at the Rose Bowl. Like a blanket over another blanket.

Senseless, right?

By all accounts, that Rose Bowl field was still nearly flawless after Wednesday's game, but that didn't stop groundskeepers. Foolish perfectionism is a Pasadena birthright and one I don't condone. Yet that's exactly what is behind this all-new grass, which requires a Herculean effort on a frazzled five-day time frame.

Sure, they have modified forklifts that unspool the sod in giant swatches. But in the end, laying a new field requires nearly 75 groundskeepers to push the puzzle together, starting work as soon as the Rose Bowl ends, blowing away the confetti, marking the sprinkler heads, then as midnight approaches then passes, then sunup comes laying down this magic carpet, by many estimates the finest playing field in the country.

Add six pockets and you've got yourself a very nice pool table.

As is my nature, I pitched in on this transformation. It really began a month ago. Soon as the last UCLA game ended Nov. 23, I joined Rose Bowl groundskeepers as they scraped out the old field and began to put in a new one.

I was there from the beginning, digging out clumps of old sod, thick and stubborn, like thatches of Einstein's hair. Wouldn't budge, most of it, till you got your mitts into it good clawing, pulling and twisting.

When that didn't work, I'd attack the stubborn turf with a shovel, chased with a couple of Tylenol.

A shovel, by the way, is this giant spoon you use to move dirt and sand. Many of you have never touched one. More of you prefer not to.

But I did. Just to take you inside the ultimate L.A. makeover. A blanket over another blanket. A Rembrandt over a Vermeer.

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Rose Bowl's grass act: A new field in time for BCS title game

Dear Neil: We have an aerobic septic system, and we've had trouble with roots growing into it. There were three yaupon hollies about 5 feet from it, and I had them removed. I also have two mountain laurels on the other side, about 3 feet from it. Do you think their roots will cause a problem, and if so, can I move them to another location? I've had them about 10 years.

A. You might want to discuss this with the company that did the original installation or the person who services the system each year. There should be a way to install a root barrier between plants and the system. Better yet, there may be a way to open the tank enough to remove any roots that have penetrated it. Your problem is unusual. There may be a problem within the system itself or the connecting pipes that is allowing this to happen. You need the help of a professional in that field. Hopefully you can find a way to solve the problem without having to move large mountain laurels. That would be a laborious task.

Dear Neil: My 419 bermuda lawn has suffered serious trampling from the neighborhood kids. They now play in a park nearby, and I want to replace my lawn with new turf and build up the thin underlying soil while I'm at it. When should I do it, and what type of soil should I spread? Do I have to remove the old grass first?

A. This is a big task that is best accomplished in April or May. You do need to remove the old grass first. The easiest way would be to spray with Round Up or one of the other glyphosate herbicides. They will kill the old bermuda without contaminating the soil. After two weeks you can rototill and rake out the old debris, then bring in your new loam topsoil. Your local nurseryman can suggest the best source, or you can work with a landscape contractor to do the entire job for you. They will know sources of "safe" soil, that is, soil that is free of nutsedge and other potential problems. After you get the new soil in place, tilled and raked smooth, you can plant your new sod. Let your local sod yard work with you on selecting the best type for your needs. In fact, it's probably a good idea to involve them in this entire process from the outset. If you decide to choose another type of bermuda, you must be completely sure that the remnants of the 419 have all been eliminated.

Dear Neil: How can I kill ajuga that has jumped from my beds into my St. Augustine without hurting the grass?

A. Apply a broadleafed weedkiller spray containing 2,4-d with a pump sprayer directly to the ajuga at a time when it is growing very actively. April or May would be ideal. Keep the spray away from groundcovers, low shrubs, flowers and other non-grassy (broadleafed) plants.

Dear Neil: I have a non-bearing grapevine. I grow it for its leaves, which I use in cooking. Most years I don't prune it, but now it's grown too tall and wild. When should it be pruned?

A. Grape pruning, whether to tidy your plant or to keep a fruiting type in peak production, is done in late January or early February. You may be surprised by the improved quality of the foliage you get after the pruning.

Dear Neil: We have a young pecan (I don't remember the variety name) with very good pecans. Could we graft a Burkett onto one side?

A. You probably could, but you shouldn't. Burkett is a very old variety (100 years old), and it is not nearly as dependable a pecan variety as many of the newer hybrids. What you have is probably better. Plus, you'd have a mismatch of the two halves of your tree. That could lead to problems.

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Best to keep track of roots in septic system

Borough officials are moving forward with a plan to install artificial turf on a local athletic field using open space funds and grant money.

Resolution 2013-335, passed unanimously by the council during its Dec. 17 meeting, authorizes Borough Clerk Kelley Rohde and Borough Manager Scott Heck to apply for funds from the 2014 Passaic County Open Space Farmland Preservation Trust Grant program in order to cover the cost of bringing turf to the borough.

Both Heck and Rohde expressed the importance of passing the resolution before 2014 to meet the grant application deadline.

"We have to hold public hearings to start this process," said Heck.

"It's a short timeline," Rohde said. "The entire thing has to be submitted before March 14."

In order to meet the March 14 deadline, she said, it would be necessary to schedule a public hearing on the turf project at the scheduled Jan. 21 council meeting. That would leave just enough time to approve minutes from that session at a February council meeting, notify nearby property owners of the borough's intention to build a turf field, and obtain letters of support for the project from various borough entities, including the Open Space Advisory Committee and the Recreation Commission.

Once all those steps are completed, Rohde said, "The council will have to pass another resolution in February," authorizing the submission of the final application to Passaic County.

Heck said he has already let county officials know of the borough's intention to apply for grant money to fund the venture, which is being called the Redevelopment and Rehabilitation for Ringwood Turf Field Project.

The public hearing is scheduled for the Borough Council meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 21 at 8 p.m.

"Kelley (Rohde) and I will be really busy in January to get this ready," Heck said, "but we're going to do everything we can."

Continued here:
Ringwood moving ahead with plan to install faux turf using grant money

The Underwood Pool garnered the lions share of Community Preservation Act (CPA) funding in a recommendation made recently by the Community Preservation Committee (CPC). In all, over $2.73 million in CPA monies were allocated over seven projects. Two million of that was designated for helping to rebuild the pool.

"Three years ago when citizens worked to encourage the voters to adopt the [CPA], one of the projects that was an example of the use of the CPA funds was the Underwood Pool," said Underwood Pool Building Committee Chairman Anne Paulsen. She added that the total cost of the pool rebuild is estimated at $4.5 million, so that the $2 million in CPA funding will greatly reduce the amount of debt exclusion that Town Meeting will have to approve next spring.

The six other approved projects are:

According to CPC chairman Paul Solomon, the "seven projects approved by the CPC and recommended to the May Town Meeting met the criteria for funding listed in at least one of the areas designated by the CPA: Historic Preservation, Community Housing, Open Space and Recreation."

JV field irrigation project

Money to provide better irrigation to the JV field was requested by Belmont Soccer Association (BSA) so that the field may be converted from grass to sod. This is needed because the field, which is currently grass, is used by more than four times as many children as when it was first built and "it is no longer possible to plant grass and hope for it to grow fast enough," according to Jim Fitzgerald of BSA. The JV field is used by the high school track, lacrosse, and soccer programs as well as by community sports programs. If town meeting approves the $8,700, the project will be done in June 2014.

Belmont Housing electrical upgrade

Belmont Village, the low income housing maintained by the Belmont Housing Authority (BHA), was built in 1949. The apartments electrical service has not been updated since. The $165,000 requested would be used to replace the electrical panel and wiring in each of the Belmont Village apartments. The current wiring is a fire hazard, according to the CPA application, and the upgrade will also better meet the electrical demands of a modern household.

Butler School playground phase II

The money for the Butler School Playground would be used to finish upgrades to the recently completed new playground at the school. The $66,000 requested would be used to pay for more lighting and signage, more trash receptacles, stump edging around the perimeter, repainting of the basketball courts and hardtop, an outdoor classroom, and improvements to the back field.

Continued here:
Applications approved for seven projects at $2.73 million

Notre Dame Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick says Notre Dame will decide in the next two months whether it will go with Field Turf at Notre Dame Stadium or stick with natural grass.

No matter the decision, Notre Dame Stadium will either feature Field Turf or a completely new natural grass surface for the start of the 2014 season, Swarbrick says.

Swarbrick says if the Irish stick with natural grass, they will completely overhaul the system not just replace the first six inches of sod as they have done recently. The Irish AD says staying with natural grass would result in Notre Dame uprooting the entire surface and starting over from the drainage system up.

"One of the reasons it's been so bad, we take off one layer of sod and put down another layer of sod," Swarbrick said. "We haven't addressed the real issues we have to address."

He says the cost for a hybrid system like the Packers have is too much to explore but the costs of going with field turf or overhauling the natural grass will be about the same.

The big issue remains time as the project for overhauling for natural grass will take considerable work. Complicating matters is that Notre Dame plans to hold Commencement in the Stadium in May.

Swarbrick says the surface debate is a separate one from the Notre Dame Stadium renovations plans, which are calling for a complete redesign to make the Stadium the central hub of the university.

Swarbrick said he was very pleased with the progress that's being made and if they receive the go ahead for the Stadium renovations, construction would begin after the 2014 season and take two additional years to complete.

"You don't get a lot of opportunities to do something like this at a university where you have a project that touches almost every element of it," Swarbrick explained. "So you've got the academic units who will be in the building, very engaged, the academy who is playing a big role, student affairs, rec sports, digital media, athletics, the administration. All of these functions will be incorporated in these buildings as currently conceived. This has been really fun and exhilarating for everybody involved."

The possibility of a jumbotron being added are a part of the stadium renovations discussion.

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Field Turf or natural grass at Notre Dame Stadium? Decision Soon

Fulton Bank expects to have the excavated site of its future downtown expansion temporarily filled by late April.

The Lancaster-based bank announced the new timetable for the interim East King Street project on Wednesday.

Initially the fill-in project was to be done this fall. But devising a plan for the task took longer than expected, Fulton explained in a letter to neighboring property owners and businesses.

Then, Fulton elected to wait until Jan. 6 to start the process.

The bank wanted to avoid bringing hundreds of dump trucks laden with fill into downtown over the holidays, when the city has extra visitors and events.

Wednesday's statement marks the latest twist to Fulton's plan for constructing a significant center-city expansion.

The addition now on hold indefinitely could cost tens of millions of dollars, industry sources have said, and create hundreds of jobs.

The fill-in project is no small matter either.

It will take about 900 dump truck trips to bring the approximately 12,000 cubic yards of clean fill (clay and stones) needed to fill the hole.

The top six inches will be topsoil, said Jeremy Coble, project manager at Flyway Excavating, the general contractor for the fill-in project.

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Fulton Bank will fill excavated hole; time frame set

Drought Tolerant Sod

A stunning sod lawn is only a phone call away. Let us assist you in choosing the best lawn for your specific needs. Here at Barrows, SODLAWN we feature many strong and healthy varieties of sods, from the traditional fescue that has been so fabulous here in the heat of the northern California sun, the traditional bluegrass and rye grass blends, to our newest fine bladed dwarf fescue Bolero that promises that your lawn will be the finest looking on the block. Call us at 866-906-8873

For over three decades, DELTA BLUEGRASS COMPANY of California has been producing and installing the industrys highest quality peat grown sod. You wont believe how unbelievable the Bolero sod is, a fine textured soft bladed fescue.

The sod arrives within 24 hours of cutting to bring you the freshest sod on the market to your landscape project. We stack our sod on pallets and deliver your new lawn to your curb. If you need drought tolerant fescue grass, we have a blend that will work for you.

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Drought Tolerant Sod in Sacramento - Sod Lawn

Simple information on sodding your lawn.

NOTE: Seedland does NOT sell sod. We do sell 3" X 3" grass plugs for lawns, including Zoysia grass.

A New Sod Installation

If you want a nearly instant lawn and cost is no object, then sodding your lawn is the way to go. Good quality turf sod can form an established lawn in 3-8 weeks that can provide a long lasting and pleasurable lawn.

Grass sods are available for most all cool and warm season grasses. Sodding is many time described as being like installing a new carpet, with the exception that your new lawn will need to be tenderly cared for until it re-establishes itself in your soil.

The majority of sod grown today is harvested by expensive sod harvesting machines that cut the sod either into small squares (2 ft. x 3ft., 1x2, 1.5x3, etc) or into rolls that can be 2 to 5 foot wide and of different lengths (usually 10-30 feet). Probably over 2/3 of all lawns sodded today are installed by commercial grassing companies who have the equipment, experience, and manpower needed to install a lawn quickly. That doesn't mean you can't save money by sodding your lawn yourself. You can!

Your sod lawn should normally be installed within 24 hours of when your sod was harvested for optimum results. If you can schedule your sod needs with you supplier a week in advance, they can usually cut your order and deliver on a specific day. Sometimes it is not practical to locate freshly cut sod, but if you will examine the sod that is available, avoiding yellowing pallets, and looking for sod that was properly kept moist.. you can still successfully plant your lawn. If you can't plant it right away, you can spread out the sod on the ground and by keeping it watered daily it will live indefinitely. Do not leave sod on pallets for generally more than 48 hours, and even then you need to both keep the palleted sod moist and shaded to survive.

Sodding is not cheap. The expense of someone else growing your lawn on their property with all of the associated expenses that are involved in producing top quality sod along with a fair profit determine sod prices. Look through Sodding.com web site and familiarize yourself with the basic sodding principals of establishing a quality lawn from sod.

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Lawn Sod|Sod Vs. Seed Lawns Vs. Lawn Plugs|Sodding.com

Sod Removal 12/13/13
Gladiator Sod of New Port Richey, Florida removed our old grass (or what was left of it) and replaced it with new zoysia grass. I wanted to get a time-lapse ...

By: Ian Nerney

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Sod Removal 12/13/13 - Video