ORLANDO, Fla., Dec. 08, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BlueToad, a leading content delivery platform, today announces a new partnership with the Mark Allen Group, a leading publisher in the United Kingdom. The publisher selected BlueToad to create digitally responsive editions that will include brand-new and engaging content for readers.

Founded in 1985, the Mark Allen Group started with just two magazine titles but has since grown to be a diverse media organization boasting hundreds of print publications. With one of the largest portfolios in the media landscape, the publisher is now the go-to source for unique and inspiring content with clients ranging from healthcare to aviation, and everything in between.

The Mark Allen Group chose the BlueToad platform after a thorough investigation of digital publishing services on the market. BlueToads responsive solution offers a mobile-friendly layout that is both easy to use and visually appealing. The customization options for each magazines menu, as well as branding opportunities, allows the publisher to improve its audience reach and brand engagement.

Our content experience platform gives publishers extra bells and whistles to work with in order to define and enhance their brands, said BlueToad CEO, Paul DeHart. Having been in business for 35 years, the Mark Allen Group has grown tremendously and is clearly continuing to evolve to meet readers needs. The introduction of a solid digital offering was a clear next step as more and more people are consuming trustworthy magazine content through phones and tablets.

BlueToad allows publishers to incorporate media, such as audio and video to accompany articles. The Mark Allen Group is using Amazons Polly text-to-speech technology in order to give readers another way to enjoy content on the go. BlueToad has also made the process easy for Mark Allen by leveraging their print files and minimal other assets to create rich and engaging editions.

With so many readers using their phones to engage with our brands, we needed a solution that would provide a top of the range mobile experience, said Paul Creber, Director at Mark Allen Group. BlueToad has provided us with a partnership that allows us to get the most out of our content. While we started with just 17 of our titles, we quickly accelerated the transition of other titles and already have over 40 brands taking advantage of the BlueToad Platform with more to come.

For more information on BlueToad, please visit http://www.bluetoad.com.

About BlueToadBlueToad was launched in 2007 and provides publishers of all types a content experience platform for creating beautifully responsive digital editions and web content. It is a proud partner of some of the largest printers in the world and trusted to handle the important content of thousands of content creators across the globe. The companys goal is to make it easy for partners and customers to upload their content for a digital experience that works on all modern phones, tablets, and desktops.

About Mark Allen GroupThe Mark Allen Group is a family-owned private company, which was founded in 1985. The company employs more than 400 staff in five locations Herne Hill, Dartford, Guildford, Sutton and Wiltshire. Its 100 magazines and journals are published in a broad range of sectors, including: healthcare; dental; social care; education; farming; music; manufacturing and engineering; aviation; print; human resources; the built environment; technology; auto, transport and entertainment. It organises up to 250 exhibitions, conferences and awards every year. Flagship brands include: Farmers Weekly, Gramophone, Dental Update, British Journal of Nursing, Community Care, Nursery World, The Engineer, Machinery, Aircraft Interiors and Ground Handling International.

Media Contact:Alyssa CohenUproar PR for BlueToadacohen@uproarpr.com(321) 236-0102 x233

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Mark Allen Group Partners with BlueToad to Create Digital Editions for Dozens of Industry-Leading Magazines - GlobeNewswire

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The 63rd GRAMMY Awards are right around the corner, airing Sunday, Jan. 31, on CBS, but the nominations are here now! Find out who is nominated in each of the 83 categories in the full nominees list below. Use the links to jump to a desired field.

1. Record Of The YearAward to the Artist and to the Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s) and/or Mixer(s) and mastering engineer(s), if other than the artist.

2. Album Of The YearAward to Artist(s) and to Featured Artist(s), Songwriter(s) of new material, Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s), Mixer(s) and Mastering Engineer(s) credited with at least 33% playing time of the album, if other than Artist.

BLACK PUMAS (DELUXE EDITION)Black PumasAdrian Quesada, producer; Adrian Quesada, engineer/mixer; Eric Burton & Adrian Quesada, songwriters; JJ Golden, mastering engineer

FUTURE NOSTALGIADua LipaLorna Blackwood & Koz, producers; Josh Gudwin & Cameron Gower Poole, engineers/mixers; Clarence Coffee Jr. & Dua Lipa, songwriters; Chris Gehringer, mastering engineer

3. Song Of The YearA Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

THE BOXLarrance Dopson, Samuel Gloade, Rodrick Moore, Adarius Morag, Aqeel Qadir Tate & Khirye Anthony Tyler, songwriters (Roddy Ricch)

4. Best New ArtistThis category recognizes an artist whose eligibility-year release(s) achieved a breakthrough into the public consciousness and notably impacted the musical landscape.

5. Best Pop Solo PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental pop recordings. Singles or Tracks only.

6. Best Pop Duo/Group PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental duo/group or collaborative pop recordings. Singles or Tracks only.

7. Best Traditional Pop Vocal AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new traditional pop recordings.

8. Best Pop Vocal AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new pop vocal recordings.

9. Best Dance RecordingFor solo, duo, group or collaborative performances. Vocal or Instrumental. Singles or tracks only.

10. Best Dance/Electronic AlbumFor vocal or instrumental albums. Albums only.

11. Best Contemporary Instrumental AlbumFor albums containing approximately 51% or more playing time of instrumental material. For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new recordings.

AXIOMChristian Scott aTunde Adjuah

CHRONOLOGY OF A DREAM: LIVE AT THE VILLAGE VANGUARDJon Batiste

12. Best Rock PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental solo, duo/group or collaborative rock recordings.

13. Best Metal PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental solo, duo/group or collaborative metal recordings.

14. Best Rock SongA Songwriter(s) Award. Includes Rock, Hard Rock and Metal songs. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

15. Best Rock AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new rock, hard rock or metal recordings.

16. Best Alternative Music AlbumVocal or Instrumental.

17. Best R&B PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental R&B recordings.

18. Best Traditional R&B PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental traditional R&B recordings.

19. Best R&B SongA Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

20. Best Progressive R&B AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded progressive vocal tracks derivative of R&B.

21. Best R&B AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new R&B recordings.

22. Best Rap PerformanceFor a Rap performance. Singles or Tracks only.

23. Best Melodic Rap PerformanceFor a solo or collaborative performance containing both elements of R&B melodies and Rap.

24. Best Rap SongA Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only..

25. Best Rap AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new rap recordings.

26. Best Country Solo PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental solo country recordings.

27. Best Country Duo/Group PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental duo/group or collaborative country recordings.

28. Best Country SongA Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

29. Best Country AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new country recordings.

30. Best New Age AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental new age recordings.

31. Best Improvised Jazz SoloFor an instrumental jazz solo performance. Two equal performers on one recording may be eligible as one entry. If the soloist listed appears on a recording billed to another artist, the latter's name is in parenthesis for identification. Singles or Tracks only.

32. Best Jazz Vocal AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal jazz recordings.

33. Best Jazz Instrumental AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new instrumental jazz recordings.

34. Best Large Jazz Ensemble AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new ensemble jazz recordings.

35. Best Latin Jazz AlbumFor vocal or instrumental albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded material. The intent of this category is to recognize recordings that represent the blending of jazz with Latin, Iberian-American, Brazilian, and Argentinian tango music.

36. Best Gospel Performance/SongThis award is given to the artist(s) and songwriter(s) (for new compositions) for the best traditional Christian, roots gospel or contemporary gospel single or track.

37. Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/SongThis award is given to the artist(s) and songwriter(s) (for new compositions) for the best contemporary Christian music single or track, (including pop, rap/hip-hop, Latin, or rock.

38. Best Gospel AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded, vocal, traditional or contemporary/R&B gospel music recordings.

39. Best Contemporary Christian Music AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded, vocal, contemporary Christian music, including pop, rap/hip hop, Latin, or rock recordings.

40. Best Roots Gospel AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded, vocal, traditional/roots gospel music, including country, Southern gospel, bluegrass, and Americana recordings.

41. Best Latin Pop or Urban AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new Latin pop or urban recordings.

42. Best Latin Rock or Alternative AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new Latin rock or alternative recordings.

43. Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano)For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new regional Mexican (banda, norteo, corridos, gruperos, mariachi, ranchera and Tejano) recordings.

44. Best Tropical Latin AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new tropical Latin recordings.

45. Best American Roots PerformanceFor new vocal or instrumental American Roots recordings. This is for performances in the style of any of the subgenres encompassed in the American Roots Music field including Americana, bluegrass, blues, folk or regional roots. Award to the artist(s).

46. Best American Roots SongA Songwriter(s) Award. Includes Americana, bluegrass, traditional blues, contemporary blues, folk or regional roots songs. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

47. Best Americana AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental Americana recordings.

48. Best Bluegrass AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental bluegrass recordings.

49. Best Traditional Blues AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental traditional blues recordings.

50. Best Contemporary Blues AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental contemporary blues recordings.

51. Best Folk AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental folk recordings.

52. Best Regional Roots Music AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental regional roots music recordings.

53. Best Reggae AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new reggae recordings.

54. Best Global Music AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental Global Music recordings.

55. Best Children's Music AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new musical or spoken word recordings that are created and intended specifically for children.

56. Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling)

57. Best Comedy AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new recordings.

58. Best Musical Theater AlbumFor albums containing at least 51% playing time of new recordings. Award to the principle vocalist(s) and the album producer(s) of 51% or more playing time of the album. The lyricist(s) and composer(s) of a new score are eligible for an Award if they have written and/or composed a new score which comprises 51% or more playing time of the album.

JAGGED LITTLE PILLKathryn Gallagher, Celia Rose Gooding, Lauren Patten & Elizabeth Stanley, principal soloists; Neal Avron, Pete Ganbarg, Tom Kitt, Michael Parker, Craig Rosen & Vivek J. Tiwary, producers (Glen Ballard, composer; Alanis Morissette, composer & lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast)

59. Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual MediaAward to the artist(s) and/or in studio producer(s) of a majority of the tracks on the album. In the absence of both, award to the one or two individuals proactively responsible for the concept and musical direction of the album and for the selection of artists, songs and producers, as applicable. Award also goes to appropriately credited music supervisor(s).

A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD(Various Artists)Nate Heller, compilation producer; Howard Paar, Music Supervisor

BILL & TED FACE THE MUSIC(Various Artists)Jonathan Leahy, compilation producer

EUROVISION SONG CONTEST: THE STORY OF FIRE SAGA(Various Artists)Savan Kotecha, compilation producer; Becky Banthem, music supervisor

FROZEN 2(Various Artists)Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez, Tom MacDougall & Dave Metzger, compilation producers

JOJO RABBIT(Various Artists)Taika Waititi, compilation producer

60. Best Score Soundtrack For Visual MediaAward to Composer(s) for an original score created specifically for, or as a companion to, a current legitimate motion picture, television show or series, video games or other visual media.

61. Best Song Written For Visual MediaA Songwriter(s) award. For a song (melody & lyrics) written specifically for a motion picture, television, video games or other visual media, and released for the first time during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

62. Best Instrumental CompositionA Composer's Award for an original composition (not an adaptation) first released during the Eligibility Year. Singles or Tracks only.

63. Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A CappellaAn Arranger's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

64. Best Arrangement, Instruments and VocalsAn Arranger's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

65. Best Recording Package

66. Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package

MODEJeff Schulz & Paul A. Taylor, art directors (Depeche Mode)

ODE TO JOYLawrence Azerrad & Jeff Tweedy, art directors (Wilco)

67. Best Album Notes

68. Best Historical Album

69. Best Engineered Album, Non-ClassicalAn Engineer's Award. (Artists names appear in parentheses.)

HYPERSPACEDrew Brown, Julian Burg, Andrew Coleman, Paul Epworth, Shawn Everett, Serban Ghenea, David Greenbaum, John Hanes, Beck Hansen, Jaycen Joshua, Greg Kurstin, Mike Larson, Cole M.G.N., Alex Pasco & Matt Wiggins, engineers; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer (Beck)

70. Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical

August (Taylor Swift) (T)Gaslighter (The Chicks) (A)Holy Terrain (FKA Twigs Featuring Future) (T)Mirrorball (Taylor Swift) (T)This Is Me Trying (Taylor Swift) (T)Together (Sia) (S)

Cypress Grove (Jimmy "Duck" Holmes) (A)El Dorado (Marcus King) (A)Is Thomas Callaway (CeeLo Green) (A)Singing For My Supper (Early James) (A)Solid Gold Sounds (Kendell Marvel) (A)Years (John Anderson) (A

Backbone (Kaleo) (S)The Balladeer (Lori McKenna) (A)Boneshaker (Airbourne) (A)Down Home Christmas (Oak Ridge Boys) (A)The Highwomen (The Highwomen) (A)I Remember Everything (John Prine) (S)Reunions (Jason Isbell And The 400 Unit) (A) The Spark (William Prince) (S)You're Still The One (Teddy Swims) (S)

It Is What It Is (Thundercat) (A)

Break My Heart (Dua Lipa) (T)Me And My Guitar (A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie) (T)Midnight Sky (Miley Cyrus) (S)Old Me (5 Seconds Of Summer) (T)Ordinary Man (Ozzy Osbourne Featuring Elton John) (T)Take What You Want (Post Malone Featuring Ozzy Osbourne & Travis Scott) (T)Under The Graveyard (Ozzy Osbourne) (T)

71. Best Remixed RecordingA Remixer's Award. (Artists names appear in parentheses for identification.) Singles or Tracks only.

72. Best Immersive Audio AlbumDue to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Best Immersive Audio Album Craft Committee was unable to meet. The judging of the entries in this category has been postponed until such time that we are able to meet in a way that is appropriate to judge the many formats and configurations of the entries and is safe for the committee members. The nominations for the 63rd GRAMMYs will be announced next year in addition to (and separately from) the 64th GRAMMY nominations in the category

73. Best Engineered Album, ClassicalAn Engineer's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.)

74. Producer Of The Year, ClassicalA Producer's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.)

Aspects Of America - Pulitzer Edition (Carlos Kalmar & Oregon Symphony) Blessed Art Thou Among Women (Peter Jermihov, Katya Lukianov & PaTRAM Institute Singers) Dvok: Symphony No. 9; Copland: Billy The Kid (Gianandrea Noseda & National Symphony Orchestra) Glass: The Fall Of The House Of Usher (Joseph Li, Nicholas Nestorak, Madison Leonard, Jonas Hacker, Ben Edquist, Matthew Adam Fleisher & Wolf Trap Opera) Kahane: Emergency Shelter Intake Form (Alicia Hall Moran, Gabriel Kahane, Carlos Kalmar & Oregon Symphony) Kastalsky: Requiem (Leonard Slatkin, Steven Fox, Benedict Sheehan, Charles Bruffy, Cathedral Choral Society, The Clarion Choir, The Saint Tikhon Choir, Kansas City Chorale & Orchestra Of St. Luke's) Massenet: Thas (Andrew Davis, Joshua Hopkins, Andrew Staples, Erin Wall, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir & Toronto Symphony Orchestra) Smyth: The Prison (Sarah Brailey, Dashon Burton, James Blachly & Experiential Orchestra) Woolf, L.P.: Fire And Flood (Julian Wachner, Matt Haimovitz & Choir Of Trinity Wall Street)

Beethoven: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 9 (Jonathan Biss) Gershwin: Porgy And Bess (David Robertson, Frederick Ballentine, Angel Blue, Denyce Graves, Latonia Moore, Eric Owens, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus) Gluck: Orphe & Eurydice (Harry Bicket, Dmitry Korchak, Andriana Chuchman, Lauren Snouffer, Lyric Opera Of Chicago Orchestra & Chorus) Holst: The Planets; The Perfect Fool (Michael Stern & Kansas City Symphony) Muhly: Marnie (Robert Spano, Isabel Leonard, Christopher Maltman, Denyce Graves, Iestyn Davies, Janis Kelly, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus) Schubert: Piano Sonatas, D. 845, D. 894, D. 958, D. 960 (Shai Wosner) Shostakovich: Symphony No. 13, 'Babi Yar' (Riccardo Muti, Alexey Tikhomirov, Chicago Symphony Orchestra & Chorus)

Gunn: The Ascendant (Roomful Of Teeth) Harrison, M.: Just Constellations (Roomful Of Teeth) Her Own Wings (Willamette Valley Chamber Music Festival) Hynes: Fields (Devont Hynes & Third Coast Percussion) Lang, D.: Love Fail (Beth Willer & Lorelei Ensemble) Mazzoli: Proving Up (Christopher Rountree, Opera Omaha & International Contemporary Ensemble) Sharlat: Spare The Rod! (NOW Ensemble) Soul House (Hub New Music) Wherein Lies The Good (The Westerlies)

Adams, J.: Must The Devil Have All The Good Tunes? (Yuja Wang, Gustavo Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic) Cipullo: The Parting (Alastair Willis, Laura Strickling, Catherine Cook, Michael Mayes & Music Of Remembrance) Ives: Complete Symphonies (Gustavo Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic) LA Phil 100 - The Los Angeles Philharmonic Centennial Birthday Gala (Gustavo Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic) Langgaard: Prelude To Antichrist; Strauss: An Alpine Symphony (Thomas Dausgaard & Seattle Symphony Orchestra) Nielsen: Symphony No. 1 & Symphony No. 2, 'The Four Temperaments' (Thomas Dausgaard & Seattle Symphony)

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GRAMMY U: College Grads, Looking For A Job? Music Industry Professionals Share Their Insights On How You Can Get Hired During Uncertain Times -...

A concept that previously garnered attention with activists andselect government agencies, environmental justice (EJ) is nowregularly discussed in corporate boardrooms and among C-suiteexecutives.1 This is for good reasonEJ hasrisen to prominence in recent years and months, buoyed by currentsocial justice efforts, the recognition of health disparitiesunderscored by the COVID-19 pandemic, and a presidential campaignin which EJ has taken center stage.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines EJ as the"fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all peopleregardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respectto the development, implementation, and enforcement ofenvironmental laws, regulations, and policies." In the UnitedStates, EJ is arguably seeing the most significant progress sinceits outgrowth from the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. In addition toincreased EJ advocacy in 2020, newly proposed federal legislationseeks to reframe the way in which the law addresses andincorporates EJ into existing systems for environmental protection.At the state level, new legislation and guidance set the tone forsignificant reform, with states like New Jersey and Connecticutpassing historic measures to build EJ requirements into permittingand remediation procedurespotentially serving as models forother jurisdictions to follow.

These converging trends signal what will likely be a notableshift in the status quo, with potential for exponentialamplification by the presidential and congressional electionoutcomes. The Democratic Party presidential nominee, former VicePresident Joseph R. Biden, Jr., has released dedicated climate andEJ policy proposals, promising sweeping changes to federal EJpolicy and prioritization should he and his running mate, SenatorKamala Harris (D-CA), win the White House. In addition,congressional election results could shift party dynamics such thatthe recent increase in EJ-related bills could have a strong chanceof becoming law. Regardless of election outcomes, the Bidencampaign's forceful prioritization of EJ has spurred those onboth sides of the aisle to take a stand. As such, the federaldiscussion on advancing EJ is likely to continuealbeit indifferent wayseven under a second Trump term.

Although the most significant EJ activity has occurred at thestate level, federal-level changes may be on the horizon, with muchat stake in the 2020 presidential and congressional elections.Indeed, during the last presidential debate of this election cycle,the moderator asked a question about EJ and Biden responded byacknowledging the importance of protecting fenceline communities.Should he take office, all indicators suggest that EJ will be agovernment-wide priority. Not only has Biden released the mostcomprehensive EJ platform of any presidential candidate, but hisselection of Senator Harris, a longstanding EJ advocate, as hisrunning mate signals his commitment to follow-through on hiscampaign promises. In his July 2020 Plan to Secure Environmental Justice and EquitableEconomic Opportunity, Biden advocates for such far-reachinginitiatives as: establishing an Environmental and Climate JusticeDivision of the U.S. Department of Justice; instructing theAttorney General to implement Senator Cory Booker's Environmental Justice Act of 2019 throughexecutive action; and overhauling EPA's program responsible forenforcing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act (Title VI).

A second term of the Trump Administration may also usher in anew wave of EJ prioritization. EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler ina recent public address declared that"community-driven environmentalism" will be a focus of asecond Trump term and is "the best opportunity in at least ageneration to solve the environmental justice issues we facetoday." He retorted that community-driven environmentalism"will do more for environmental justice than all the rhetoricin political campaigns."

Beyond the White House, shifts in Congress's composition mayhave similarly significant impacts on EJ policy given a recentspike in EJ-specific legislative proposals. After co-sponsoring theGreen New Deal, Senator Harris introduced two EJ bills in August2020: the EJ for All Act (S.4401; H.R.5986) and the Climate Equity Act (S.4513; H.R.8019). Theformer is a sweeping overhaul of federal EJ policy, calling forexpanding National Environmental Policy Act requirements forcommunity engagement; amending the Clean Water Act and Clean AirAct to require consideration of cumulative impacts in permittingdecisions; and expanding the private cause of action under Title VIby explicitly prohibiting discrimination based on disparateimpacts. The latter requires Congress to consider the impacts oflegislation, regulation, or investments on EJ communities in itsdecision-making, in addition to creating a Climate andEnvironmental Equity Office within the Congressional Budget Office.After introducing the Environmental Justice Act in 2019, SenatorBooker released the Environmental Justice Legacy Pollution CleanupAct (S.4617; H.R.8271) in September 2020, which increasesfunding for cleanup of legacy pollution and amends the Clean AirAct to prohibit issuance of new major source air pollution permitsin overburdened communities. Additional recent EJ-related billsinclude the Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act(H.R.4447), which the House passed in September and features asection on EJ that incorporates the Environmental Justice for AllAct's key provisions, and the Public Health Air Quality Act of 2020 (S.4369;H.R.7822), which would require facility-specific fencelinemonitoring of air pollution in certain communities. These billsforeshadow EJ legislation that may be passed by the nextCongress.

In recent years, several states have enacted or proposedlegislation that strengthens existing civil rights laws andestablishes new EJ-specific laws. As a result, the vast majority ofstates now address EJ in some fashionvia legislation, agencypolicy and guidance, or advisory groupswith fewer than fivefailing to mention the concept at all. While there has been recentEJ activity in states from coast to coast, the extent to which aparticular state addresses EJ varies widely. Some states, likeCalifornia, have robust EJ schemes, while others make only passingreference to the concept. Overall, since 2017, the TrumpAdministration's deregulatory environmental agenda has inspiredgreater state activity, including concerted efforts to promote EJon behalf of their most vulnerable residents.

Notably, New Jersey's landmark EJ law, signed into law in September,promises to have wide-reaching effects. Under the legislation,applicants seeking new or renewed permits for specific categoriesof facilities sited in "overburdened communities" mustsubmit an "Environmental Justice Impact Statement" thatevaluates the potential cumulative environmental and public healthstressors associated with the permitted activity. New JerseyDepartment of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), in accordance withthe law, has published a list of "overburdenedcommunities," defined as any census block group withsignificant low-income, minority or non-English speakingpopulations (approx. 310 municipalities). The legislation empowersNJDEP to impose conditions on or deny a permit in its entirety,based on the agency's review of the applicant'sEnvironmental Justice Impact Statement. The law also introducessignificant public engagement and public notification mandates onapplicants. These requirements apply to permits for a wide range offacilities, including but not limited to: anything defined as a"major source" of air pollution under the Clean Air Act;resource recovery facilities or incinerators; sludge processingfacilities, combustors, or incinerators; sewage treatment plantswith a capacity exceeding 50 million gallons per day; and certainkinds of landfills. The new legislation goes further than any otherstate EJ law and may serve as a model for other similarly inclinedjurisdictions in the future.

Beyond the Garden State, other states have developed a host ofstrategies in recent years to further their EJ objectives,including establishing EJ oversight and advisory committees,identifying EJ communities statewide, and expanding publicengagement requirements. Recent examples include:

With few laws directly addressing EJ, activists have foundlittle success attempting to vindicate EJ communities' rightsin the courts.3 After the Fourth Circuit's recentopinion in the Friends of Buckingham case, however, thattide may be changing.4 In that case, the Virginia State AirPollution Control Board (Air Board) granted a permit to construct acompressor station that would have been part of the now-abandonedAtlantic Coast Pipeline in Union Hill, a predominantly AfricanAmerican community established during the Civil War.

Plaintiffs' challenged the Air Board's decision arguingthat it failed to perform its duties under Va. Code (Ann. 10.11307(E)) to consider the potential for disproportionatehealth impacts from the compressor station and made an incompleteand misinformed site suitability determination. The Fourth Circuitagreed, concluding that the Air Board (1) failed to make findingsregarding Union Hill's demographics, (2) failed to consider thepotential air pollution impacts regardless of compliance withapplicable air emissions standards, and (3) relied on an incompletefactual record in assessing site suitability. As such, it vacatedthe issuance of the permit and remanded the matter back to the AirBoard.

The Friends of Buckingham case is particularlysignificant because, although the proposed compressor station wouldhave met applicable air quality standards, the Fourth Circuitdetermined that compliance with environmental thresholds alone wasinsufficient to account for EJ concerns. In fully embracing theimportance of EJ, the Fourth Circuit explained that "[t]heBoard's reliance on air quality standards led it to dismiss EJconcerns. . . . But environmental justice is not merely a box to bechecked, and the Board's failure to consider thedisproportionate impact on those closest to the Compressor Stationresulted in a flawed analysis."5

While Friends of Buckingham is persuasive precedent, EJlitigants generally do not prevail in traditional litigation andoften turn to administrative remedies, primarily Title VI of theCivil Rights Act, as well as creatively using other civil rightslaws. For example, in Illinois, a coalition of environmental groupsfiled a complaint with the U.S. Department of Housing and UrbanDevelopment in August alleging that the City of Chicago violatedthe Fair Housing Act and the Housing and Community Development Actof 1974. The alleged violations stemmed, in part, from thecity's decision to approve the relocation of a recyclingfacility with high toxic air pollution from a wealthy neighborhoodto an EJ community.6 Undoubtedly, EJ activists will continueto find creative ways to assert EJ claims.

The breathless pace with which EJ developments continue toemerge leaves many stakeholdersincluding the regulatedcommunityanxiously wondering how they should mitigate risk,reform their practices, and proactively incorporate EJ bestpractices. This is particularly true given that despite its renewedmomentum, EJ remains difficult to define. Notably distinct fromother environment, health, and safety compliance areas, EJ lacks adedicated, overarching federal statute mandating specific actionsand remedies. That may not be the case for long. As these changescontinue to emerge, industry actors, in particular, will do well tofollow the current state of play in the EJ spacepayingparticular attention to state activity and creative litigation byEJ advocatesto understand how such developments can affectcontinuity of operations and compliance in the coming months. Caseslike Friends of Buckingham are reminders that it isintegral for industry stakeholders to assess the EJ implications inareas in which they operate, understand the impacts of theiroperations on vulnerable communities,andultimatelyshow themselves to be goodneighbors.

Stacey Sublett Halliday is an Independent Consultant forBeveridge & Diamond

This article was re-published as an "ExpertAnalysis" by Law360 (subscription required).

Footnotes

1. For example, Duke Energy Corp.'sCEO recently discussed the company's development of EJprinciples "to be sensitive to how a project might affectresidents closest to a facility and be more proactive onstakeholder engagement."

2. "Affecting facilities"include certain electric generating facilities, certain sewageplants, waste incinerators, certain processing or recyclingfacilities, medical waste, landfills, and any major source of airpollution.

3. See e.g., Town ofWeymouth v. Mass. Dep't of Envtl. Prot. (1st Cir. 2020)(rejected plaintiffs' claim that the Massachusetts Departmentof Environmental Protection failed to comply with the MassachusettsEnvironmental Justice Policy in review of air permit for compressorstation).

4. Friends of Buckingham v. State AirPollution Control Bd., 947 F.3d 68 (4th Cir. 2020).

5. Id. at 91-92.

6. https://aboutblaw.com/SzR

The content of this article is intended to provide a generalguide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be soughtabout your specific circumstances.

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The Evolving Landscape Of Environmental Justice In 2020 And Beyond - Environment - United States - Mondaq News Alerts

Aman Kyoto sits within 3.2 hectares of secluded forest, softly illuminated by sunlight through overhead foliage and low-lying mist, silent except for birdsong, mountain streams and the occasional frog croak echoing in the stone wells and culverts. And, of course, your own footsteps on the stone paths, along which you encounter huge, moss-covered boulders embedded in the undulating ground, or flat clearings defined by geometric patterns of gravel and stone paving. Indeed, traditional Japanese stroll gardens are designed so as to balance natural serendipity and artificial precision. Every detail is considered, every sightline composed.

As you walk, the elements of the garden are revealed, concealed, then revealed again from different angles and in different relationships. Each step produces a new vista. Its impossible, if not meaningless, to separate the human interventions from their natural surroundings. The compression and variety of incident create illusions of scale and evocations of other places, whether real or mythical. This is nature enhanced, landscape intensified.

Located at the western edge of Kyoto, this hidden valley is nestled within a larger hidden valley the city itself is set in a basin ringed by mountains. Though it took almost a quarter of a century from architect Kerry Hills first, rapturous encounter with the site until the opening of the resort, the forest had been under development for many decades previously. It was once the property of a textile magnate from Kyotos garment district, who intended to build a private museum for his collection of fabrics from Japan and elsewhere. Working with local garden designers, he began subtly modifying the topography and waterways, creating clearings, laying out broad paths of enormous, irregular flagstones, and building high retaining walls of natural rocks in order to produce flat platforms in the foothills at the west edge of the site. He judiciously located trees, shrubs, ferns and moss, as well as picturesque compositions of huge boulders the Japanese term for garden design is literally the setting of stones.

The owner passed away with the museum still unbuilt, inspiring Hill to treat the place as a found object, or perhaps an imaginary ruin. Working closely with famed garden designer Akihiro Shimoda, Hill extended and complemented the existing landscaping with utmost care the moss was moved to a nursery then fastidiously replanted when construction was complete and located his new buildings in response to the implicit and explicit paths, ridges and planes of the site.

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On arrival, guests first enter the reception. Aman Kyoto is located within an established 3.2-hectare garden setting surrounded by mature forests on the outskirts of Kyoto.

Image: Nacasa & Partners

Hills first architectural gesture was the living pavilion (a restaurant, bar and outdoor seating area with a fire pit) set at the south edge of the main garden. The spaces are accented with commissioned ceramic artworks and paper light fittings designed by the architects, and the cuisine served here is, needless to say, as exquisite as the surroundings. Sadly, Hill did not live to see construction fully completed, but the garden has been named in his honour, and a small stone set in the ground is engraved with a poetic memorial. Guest rooms are contained in two-storey blocks along the east boundary, with larger suites placed on higher platforms to the west. The architectural language is the same throughout: rectangular pavilions faced with vertical slats of dark-stained wood, sheltered by zinc-clad, low-gabled roofs.

The public areas also have dark-stained wood interiors, producing a typically Japanese ambiguity between interior and exterior, but the guestrooms are lined with pale, lacquered tamo (Japanese ash) and have full-height windows facing the garden. Aside from a slightly raised wooden bed instead of a futon on the floor, every element you might expect in a traditional inn is present sliding screens and tatami mats, a tokonoma alcove for displaying an ikebana flower arrangement and a kakejiku hanging scroll but abstracted to an extraordinary level of refinement and elegance. Immaculate surfaces, concealed connections, soundless movements, recessed joints and delicate shadow lines make every element appear simultaneously integrated and independent, visually weightless. With almost the same floor area as the bedroom, the bathroom is finished in frosted glass and stone tiles, and contains a freestanding bathtub made of hinoki (Japanese cypress), a wood chosen for its beauty and durability, and the scent that suffuses the room when it is filled with water.

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The guest bathroom design is formal and centred around a hinoki (cypress) ofuro , or bathing tub.

Image: Nacasa & Partners

Bathing is central to Japanese culture and the resort experience. A spa elsewhere on the site contains communal (though gender-segregated) indoor and outdoor baths that use geothermal spring water, further heated as necessary. You sit in the outdoor rock pool, sedated by the rising steam and gentle sound of water pouring from a stone spout, looking across a narrow moss garden screened by a bamboo fence. Though the surroundings are designed to showcase the cycles of nature the gradually shifting sunlight and shadow, the changing colours of maple leaves and cherry blossoms here, you feel suspended in time and space. If only that were true.

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Suspended in time and space: Aman Kyoto - Architecture AU

Someone had to spoil it. That could be the motto of the social media age when things that begin as wonders become mere memes. Now our inability to let well alone is turning the most mysterious art happening of 2020 into another tedious prank.

Strange metal monoliths are materialising everywhere, in California, Romania, the Isle of Wight and, according to the latest reports, the Netherlands, Germany and Spain. Their rate of appearance is quickening: barely 24 hours separate photos of the lone sentinel on the Isle of Wights Compton Beach and the new European manifestations. As these silent messengers follow those seen at wider intervals in Utah, California and Romania it seems that their message is becoming more urgent, the time of their revelation imminent.

Except no one believes that. They are certainly a great global diversion at the end of a wretched year. But as with a brilliant stunt by Banksy, we are all in on the joke. Theres even speculation Banksy is behind them, naturellement. And he might as well be, for all the apocalyptic terror the monoliths arouse. The social media chat is about aliens, not aliens.

It would be ironic if these structures really are the work of highly intelligent extraterrestrials trying to make first contact but were so jaded by art pranks and sci-fi cliches that were taking it for an elaborate stunt. Earthlings, we wished to impart the secret of the universe, but you are too cynical, theyll lament as they obliterate us.

Everyone recognises the monuments similarity to the Sentinels in Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C Clarkes 2001. If they really were like those slender black plinths that change the course of human history, they might be our much-needed salvation.

The similarity between the new sentinels and the ones from 2001 is sadly the most damning evidence that these are made by mere human artists. As they crop up all over the place, its also becoming clear their construction is all too earthly no unrecognised metals or inexplicable manufacture. The National Trust said the object on its land on the Isle of Wight seemed secure on a wooden plinth and that it was made from mirrored sections of plastic or Perspex material. Thats a bit ordinary. And to add another banal twist an organisation called The Most Famous Artist claims authorship of the columns in Utah and California, offering replicas for $45,000 (34,000) .

Its a shame to see a magic trick exposed, in a year when we could all do with believing in miracles. For the discovery of the first monolith on 18 November was truly uncanny. Biologists surveying sheep in the red rock country of Utah spotted a shiny object from their helicopter and went in for a closer look. The monolith was far from human habitation or hiking trails and is thought to have gone unnoticed in the wilderness since being erected in summer 2016. So a very patient artist must have been content to let this monument go unseen for years, until it finally happened to be found. That does create mystery and awe. It even makes you question common-sense explanations.

But the people who removed it by night on 27 November were perhaps art critics making an aesthetic judgment. For this and all the monoliths have a big weakness as art. They look good, with their smooth, reflective surfaces coolly mirroring nature: the red landscape caught in the glossy shine of the Utah pillar and the Isle of White sculptures reflections of beach and sea are alluring in photographs. Yet theres something tacky about placing a synthetic metal or plastic object in a wild location. Its not an alien mystery, just human pollution.

Since the 1960s, land artists have tried to make monuments that are ecologically sensitive and more truly poetic. In Utah itself, Robert Smithsons Spiral Jetty is a giant arrangement of stones that disappears and reappears depending on how much water is in the Great Salt Lake. If you are ever hiking and come across a small cairn or just an arrangement of sticks, it may mean the artist Richard Long has walked that way. Even Wiltshires crop circles, a hoax that has gone on since the 1970s, are sensitive to their location: they get ploughed again and wont leave a trace to confuse future archaeologists.

Compared with these modern masterpieces of land art, the shiny monoliths are unmysterious and becoming less so by the day. Their global proliferation is ingenious but as art they are derivative, even kitsch parodies of modernist sculpture. They echo, but in a cheap and shallow way, Barnett Newmans Broken Obelisk or the steel walls of Richard Serra.

Weve never needed mystery more. And for a moment there, for all their faults when you scrutinise them as art, the sentinels were sublime. Please, whoever is responsible, stop now while theres still a shred of the marvellous in this diversion from our mundane apocalypse.

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Mystery of the monoliths: if only it were aliens - The Guardian

Former President Obama tookaim at the threat of online misinformation in a recent interview, but he stopped short of casting blame entirely on the heads of tech companies for the rising threats.

Obamasadministrationhad a much friendlier relationship with Silicon Valleythan President TrumpDonald John TrumpRomney on Trump election tactics: 'Difficult to imagine a worse, more undemocratic action' by president New York expands Trump tax fraud investigations to include writeoffs: report Biden promises federal government will pay for National Guard coronavirus work: 'That should be paid for' MOREs. But the former presidentpointed to a shifting online landscape, telling The Atlantic in an interview published Monday that misinformation is the single biggest threat to our democracy.

I dont hold the tech companies entirely responsible, because this predates social media. It was already there. But social media has turbocharged it, Obama said.

He did voice support for some form of increased regulation and further accountability for tech companies, though he did not detail what that reform should look like.

The degree to which these companies are insisting that they are more like a phone company than they are like The Atlantic, I do not think is tenable. They are making editorial choices, whether theyve buried them in algorithms or not. The First Amendment doesnt require private companies to provide a platform for any view that is out there, Obama said.

At the end of the day, were going to have to find a combination of government regulations and corporate practices that address this, because its going to get worse, he added.

Obamas comments more broadly addressed the political media landscape, which he said has had a pretty drastic change since his 2008 election.

I think Donald Trump is a creature of this, but he did not create it. He may be an accelerant of it, but it preceded him and will outlast him, Obama said.

Part of the common narrative was a function of the three major networks and a handful of papers that were disproportionately influential,he added. You cant put the genie back in the bottle. Youre not going to eliminate the internet; youre not going to eliminate the thousand stations on the air with niche viewerships designed for every political preference. Without this it becomes very difficult for us to tackle big things.

Tech giants have faced increased scrutiny from both sidesof the aisle in recent years.

Republicans havemade allegations that tech companies have an anti-conservative bias andaccused companies ofcensorship, while Democrats' criticism has largely targeted companies for not doing enough to tackle misinformation or the spread of hate speech online.

Trump issued an executive order in May targeting Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which grants a legal liability shield for companies against third-party content posted on their platforms.

Democratic President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenRomney on Trump election tactics: 'Difficult to imagine a worse, more undemocratic action' by president Biden promises federal government will pay for National Guard coronavirus work: 'That should be paid for' House committee chairs demand briefing from GSA head on presidential transition MORE earlier this year said Section 230 should be revoked immediately, though he has argued against the law for vastly different reasons than Trump. Biden, like other Democrats, has argued tech companies have not done enough to fight misinformation on their platforms.

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Obama says social media 'turbocharged' threat of misinformation | TheHill - The Hill

With voters approval and the bond process set in motion, the Saginaw Public Schools athletic department is ready to plan for a new athletic landscape for the 2023-24 school year.

But Saginaw athletic director Mit Foley says the district does not want to wait until 2023 before making some changes.

If the Michigan High School Athletic Association grants a waiver, the Saginaw High and Arthur Hill varsity football teams will merge to form a co-op program for the 2021-22 season.

Weve already begun the process, Foley said. Were already co-oping baseball, bowling, cross country, golf, softball, tennis and wrestling. We did a co-op for the JV football team for the 2020 school year.

Were trying to ascend back to exceptional levels for our athletic programs. We want to make sure we have the numbers. Were trying to build our programs. We want our kids to be safe when theyre out there playing. A lot of the numbers were not where we wanted to them to be. We want to be competitive. We want to give our kids every conceivable opportunity to compete. Thats why were accelerating this.

There are some roadblocks to approval. The MHSAA allows co-ops with few restrictions for every sport but basketball and football. The association does not allow co-ops for varsity football and basketball if the combined enrollment of the schools eclipses 1,000 students.

In the current count, Arthur Hill has 757 students with Saginaw High adding 456 for a total of 1,213. The next count date is Feb. 10, 2021.

But the potential merger has some extenuating circumstances that could help its case. The Saginaw Valley League, which includes Saginaw High and Arthur Hill, unanimously approved the co-op and sent a letter to the MHSAA in support of the merger.

Also, the planned, eventual merger of the teams in 2023 could also help convince the MHSAA executive council to grant a waiver for 2021, as could the inability for either school to field competitive teams in their current situations.

In the past 10 years, Arthur Hill is 11-77, including three winless seasons. The Lumberjacks have not had a winning season since 2008. In the past 10 years, Saginaw High is 19-69, with two winless seasons. The Trojans last winning season came in 2003.

Our goal is to get the co-op approved for next year, even though when you get to football and basketball and you get to enrollment over 1,000, they generally dont approve, Foley said. Were hopeful that theyll look at it in the light that we werent competitive and that the SVL voted unanimously and wrote a letter of support for our co-op.

Saginaw Public Schools director of facilities Tim Furtaw said that little construction or physical work will begin for the next six to eight months.

At this point, with the bond just passing, were in the planning stages, Furtaw said. In the first six to eight months, we will be planning, finalizing the designs and things like that so blueprints can be drawn up. There will be six to eight months of planning before any shovel goes in the dirt.

We expect to be able to move kids within the buildings for the remodels that will take place at Saginaw High and Arthur Hill. As far as the new high school being built, we anticipate there will be room for the students at SASA.

Plans are to build a new high school for Arthur Hill and Saginaw High students at the current Saginaw Arts & Sciences Academy campus at 1903 Niagara. The plans include a new football stadium and gymnasium.

The current Arthur Hill campus at 3115 Mackinaw will house a new school for SASA and for Handley Elementary, with Arthur Hill Memorial Stadium remodeled for soccer and lacrosse.

Memorial Stadium will be restored, Furtaw said. It will be converted for use for SASA, so it will more than likely be a soccer field and lacrosse field but it will be restored.

The plans call to convert Saginaw High, 3100 Webber, into a middle school.

The facilities will be converted over to middle-school usage, Furtaw said. The bleachers at the football field need to be replaced or torn down and set up for middle-school size. Plans are to refurbish a couple of the ballfields. Were still in the planning stages, but it will probably include demolishing some of the high school.

Foley said there have been no decisions made as far as colors, coaches and names for the new school and teams.

The basketball teams will remain separate until the 2023-24 school year, although this season will create some challenges for fans because of COVID-19 restrictions. Foley said the district installed Pixellot cameras in the Saginaw High and Arthur Hill gyms, giving fans the ability to stream the games live on the National Federation of High Schools network.

Plans are for the completion of the new buildings and fields when students report for the 2023-24 school year.

The goal will be that all students move at the same time, Furtaw said. It will be a day for every Saginaw supporter and resident to come out and cheer.

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Saginaw High, Arthur Hill hope to form varsity football co-op before 2023-24 merger - mlive.com

When an excited member of her faculty came to the president of St. Marys College with slave shackles donated to the school, Tuajuanda C. Jordan paused, her heart heavy.

You always know that theres that history here, said Jordan, the first Black woman to serve as president of St. Marys College of Maryland. But, in my heart of hearts or naivete I had hoped that St Marys did not have an association with slavery.

Then, in 2016, the college discovered the remains of slave quarters on campus during an archaeological dig ahead of constructing a new stadium.

It was a sad day, but it also occurred to us that it was an opportunity to do something special because St. Marys does have an involvement with slavery, she said. It became clear to me that there was a piece of the narrative missing.

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That piece will be revealed Nov. 21 during a virtual dedication of the new Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland. The memorial, titled "From Absence to Presence," features erasure poetry when a poet takes existing text and erases or obscures portions of the text, creating aentirely new work from what remains including historical documents related to the Mackall-Broome plantation, one of three known plantations near St. Mary's City on a structure inspired by "ghost frame" cabin architecture.

Its a deliberate invocation, a call to remember that there were those who walked this land before we did and that their lives should be memorialized, that their suffering should be understood, that their contributions should no longer be invisible, said Garrey Dennie, an associate professor of African and African Diaspora studies.

The findings didn't come as a complete surprise to Julia King, a professor in the anthropology department, considering the history of the area. Many residents of Southern Maryland supported the Confederacy during the Civil War, despite the state siding with the Union, and the region had a sizable population of enslaved people in addition to a free Black population. About20 miles north of St. Mary's is the historic Sotterley Plantation.

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But not much was known about the lives of enslaved people in St. Mary's, which is known for being the birthplace of religious freedom, and the recent findings revealed a deeper diversity in the lives of enslaved people than previously understood.

"Slavery and enslavement had been erased from this landscape and this archeology actually jumpstarted that conversation in a way that became really productive," King said. "Slavery was really what underpinned the development of this region and there is no real monument, no real public monument" to enslaved people, she added.

The site, which appeared to be abandoned by the 1820s, also correlates with an interesting chapter of the country's history, according to King. During the War of 1812, British Admiral George Cockburn sailed along the East Coast near the British-occupied Chesapeake Bay, encouraging enslaved people to defect in return for their freedom. About 19 enslaved people from the St. Marys area reportedly defected, raising the possibility that these abandoned quarters were once their home.

One way to think about it is that the archeology revealed with a kind of texture, things which we already knew but not in that level of detail, said Dennie. A crucial point is that to a significant degree the African American experience disappeared from the consciousness of following generations and the archeology revealed it.

The structure, designed by Shane Allbritton and Norman Lee, incorporates poetry by Quenton Baker that includes language from slave property advertisements, runaway slave advertisements, newspaper articles and slave depositions of the Mackall-Broome family. At night, the words, etched in glass, will be illuminated by light from within the structure and the poetry will be projected onto the ground in a star-like pattern found on some of the ceramic artifacts recovered from the site.

It is like nothing you have ever seen before, it's also like nothing you've ever seen in St. Marys County before, said Jordan.

This year, the Black Lives Matter movement and demonstrations against police violence have reignited conversations around the countrys history of slavery. Now, after statues of racist slave owners and Confederate leaders were taken down around Maryland and the country, a memorial will go up, representing the millions of Africans torn from their homes and enslaved in the United States and other parts of the world.

"I hope that it makes people think about what does that mean for our history and how is this perpetuated in what goes on today and how can we compel the country to be better," said Jordan, pointing out the power of the memorial's design. "It is made out of polished steel. It reflects. It reflects yourself and history and makes you look at yourself."

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See the first memorial to the enslaved peoples of Southern Maryland in St. Mary's | TheHill - The Hill

There is a shutdown scheduled for a portion of the Metro Silver Line this weekend. In Virginia, overnight roadwork will cause stops on Interstate 66 and lane closures on the Beltway. And in the District, there will be a closure this weekend on South Capitol Street and the Suitland Parkway.

There is a shutdown scheduled for a portion of Metros Silver Line this weekend. In Virginia, overnight roadwork will cause stops on Interstate 66 and lane closures on the Capital Beltway. And in the District, there will be a closure this weekend on South Capitol Street and the Suitland Parkway.

Heres what to know about transit in the D.C. region this weekend.

Virginia

At night on the Beltway between Route 7 and Route 29 (Lee Highway), there will be three lanes closed for bridge construction and lane shifts, which are scheduled through 5 a.m. Saturday, weather permitting.

In Fairfax through Prince William counties, motorists continue to weed through the ever-changing landscape of roadwork and ramp reconfigurations that make up the Transform 66 Outside the Beltway Project.

This week is no different, but with help from the Virginia Department of Transportation, were going to simplify these changes as much as possible.

Starting out in Fairfax, there has been overnight work this week thats scheduled into Saturday morning and will reduce travel on I-66 before and after Route 123 to a single lane, with periodic stops of 10 minutes at a time.

The work, which is weather-dependent, is scheduled to continue nightly until about 4:30 a.m. Saturday.

Also, the new permanent ramp from Route 28 north to I-66 east will open on or about Friday morning. Drivers on Route 28 north will stay to the right to access I-66 east using the new ramp.

There will also be a temporary new ramp implemented on Saturday for drivers exiting I-66 east at Nutley Street northbound. This change will allow pavement rehabilitation to advance for the new I-66 east general-purpose lanes while crews prepare to reconstruct the Nutley Street interchange.

In Gainesville through 8 a.m. Saturday, I-66 east between Route 29 (Lee Highway) and Route 234 (Prince William Parkway) will have three right lanes closed overnight for barrier relocations.

The ramp from I-66 east to Route 234 will be closed, with traffic diverted farther east for a detour at Route 234 (Business Sudley Road). This ramp closure is scheduled to happen again overnight Saturday into Sunday as well.

Also, with this work into Saturday morning, the ramp from Route 29 north to I-66 east in Gainesville will be reduced to one lane as crews implement a traffic shift.

For travel on I-66 west overnight until 9 a.m. Saturday, there will be only a single lane getting by between Bull Run and Route 234 (Business Sudley Road) for pavement markings and lane shifts.

And the ramp from I-66 west to Route 234 (Sudley Road) will be closed, with a detour posted for traffic to head south for a U-turn. In both directions of I-66 between Cub Run and the Manassas Rest Area, two lanes will remain closed overnight through 6 a.m. Saturday for bridge work.

In Centreville, I-66 east near Compton Road, just west of Route 29, will have scheduled overnight lane closures through about 5 a.m. Sunday for bridge work. The ramp from I-66 east to Route 29 will be closed and detoured farther east to Route 286 (Fairfax County Parkway).

There is also overnight work scheduled for Route 28 through Saturday morning between I-66 and Ellanor C. Lawrence Park, with lane and ramp closures for bridge work.

Motorists can expect a single lane open through 6 a.m. near the Braddock-Walney Road overpass and northbound from Old Centreville Road to I-66. The northbound closure is scheduled overnights through 6 a.m. Sunday as crews implement a new ramp opening.

The ramp from Route 28 north to eastbound I-66 is closed nightly through 5 a.m. Sunday, with a detour that takes motorists farther north turn around at Westfields Boulevard.

The ramp from Route 29 (Lee Highway) to Route 28 north will also be closed overnight and detoured through Sunday morning, with motorists pushed farther south to the I-66/Route 29 interchange.

As always, not all work associated with these extensive projects will be listed here. Be sure to stay tuned to WTOP with traffic on the 8s. And if you see something thats not being reported, you can call us at 866-304-WTOP.

Maryland

The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration will be detouring travel off MD-355 Urbana Pike for a bridge replacement on Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Crews will switch traffic from MD-355 between Campus Drive and Big Woods Road to a new temporary roadway for work over Bennett Creek in Frederick County. Motorists can expect single-lane closures during the switch, and there will be flaggers directing the alternating, single lane of traffic.

In Baltimore, theres a new configuration to the ongoing rehabilitation of the I-895 Harbor Tunnel Thruway.

This weekend will see yet another change to the project with a switch to having two-way traffic on the new southbound bridge at Holabird Avenue as the northbound bridge joints are finished before the four-lane reopening.

Weather permitting, of course, this switch is scheduled to happen Friday, Nov. 20. As part of the transition, the Holabird Avenue exit ramp from the northbound bridge will be temporarily closed.

The ongoing 24/7 two-way traffic pattern in the southbound tube of the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel will be lifted on the evening of Nov. 24 for Thanksgiving weekend.

In Anne Arundel County, the work on I-97 in both directions between MD-3 and MD-174 for pavement repairs will continue to see lane shifts and closures overnights between 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., Sunday through Thursday nights; and daily single lane closures from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

On the Baltimore-Washington Parkway at MD-410 Riverdale Road, inside of the Beltway, there is ongoing work scheduled, with possible lane closures and ramps affected daily between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. This is work connected to the construction of the Maryland Transit Administrations Purple Line.

Crews will also be resurfacing Riverdale Road (MD 410) between the Baltimore-Washington Parkway (MD 295) and Veterans Parkway (MD 410) daily from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with temporary lane closures possible.

In Frederick, there will continue to be work on southbound I-270 between CSX railroad bridge and MD-80 (Fingerboard Road) for patching. There is scheduled to be single lane closures overnights from 7 p.m. to 4 a.m. from Sunday night through Friday mornings through the end of the month.

The off-peak weekend work is scheduled to continue on the Capital Beltways Outer Loop over the Northwest Branch Bridge between MD-650 New Hampshire Ave and MD-193 University Boulevard in Montgomery County.

The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA) is scheduling this work, weather permitting, into the end of the year.

Motorists through this stretch of the Beltway could see intermittent closures of one, two and three lanes during off-peak hours, which will cause delays.

Monday through Thursday, 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Weekends from 9 p.m. on Friday through 5 a.m. Monday.

D.C.

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) will close all lanes on northbound South Capitol Street, SE at Potomac Avenue, SE this weekend. Northbound traffic crossing the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge will be channeled into the right lane before Potomac Avenue, SE.

All traffic will turn right onto Potomac Avenue, SE, then follow First Street, SE and M Street, SE back to northbound South Capitol Street, SE.

This closure is a result of the reconstruction of the I-295/Suitland Parkway interchange associated with the South Capitol Street Corridor Project, which includes construction of the New Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge.

There will also be full closures of the Suitland Parkway SE this weekend between Firth Sterling Avenue and South Capitol Street in the overnight hours into the weekend and on Saturday from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. weather permitting.

There will be detours posted, and if unforeseen issues arise, the Saturday full closure could be pushed into Sunday.

Metro

There will continue to be regularly scheduled routine maintenance on Metrorail on the weekends. This weekend will see a shutdown on the Silver Line and single tracking after 10 p.m. for the Green and Yellow Lines.

The Silver Line will have track tie work closing the Wiehle Reston East Station, with buses replacing trains between Spring Hill and Wiehle Reston East.

The Green and Yellow Lines will continue to see fire systems upgrades and implement single tracking between Fort Totten and Prince Georges Plaza nightly after 10 p.m.

There continues to be minimal impact work at Reagan National Airport for a platform rehabilitation project, which is scheduled through December.

Metrorail operates during its normal weekend hours, from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. until 11 p.m. on Sunday with trains servicing 90 of 91 stations.

Weekend service summary:

Red Line trains operate every 12 to 15 minutes.

Blue Line and Orange Line trains operate every 15 to 20 minutes.

Silver Line trains expected every 12 to 20 minutes between Spring Hill and Largo Town Center.

Wiehle-Reston East Station closed, free shuttles between Wiehle Reston East and Spring Hill.

Yellow and Green Line trains operate every 15 to 20 minutes.

Trains will single track between Georgia Ave-Petworth and Fort Totten stations after 10 p.m.

With continued health concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic, customers are required to wear face coverings or masks when using mass transit.

Read the original here:
Weekend road and rail: Shutdown on Silver Line and stops on I-66 - WTOP

One quarter of the first batch of units in the new Capitol Hill Stationmixed-use development have been leased, as of early this month, according to the complexs general manager.

The major project above the light rail transit station has been seen as a key development for the neighborhood creating hundreds of new homes and thousands of square feet of new commercial space on Broadway. The COVID-19 crisis has delayed construction but the new, mostly market-rate apartments are finally hitting that market.

110 affordable units in the Station House development on the northeast area above the station opened earlier this year and faced high demand.

More than two years after the projects groundbreaking across the street from Cal Anderson Park, which included a ribbon cutting from Mayor Jenny Durkan, the leasing process on the first 94 units of 400-plus on Broadway started in mid-September amid the coronavirus pandemic, general manager Kristin Lipp told CHS.

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The remaining units in the developments other buildings will be open for leasing in February, according to Lipp. One-bedroom market-rate units under 600 square feet are currently listed online for $2,150 per month.

UPDATE: CHS reached out to developer Gerding Edlen to ask more about the development and the impacts of COVID-19 and the ongoing unrest around Cal Anderson and the East Precinct but the Portland-based company did not reply to multiple inquiries. Lipp also declined to provide more information and context about the situation.

The project has had to adapt some of its leasing process in recent months, with staggered tours to allow more time in between for cleaning and virtual options to get a lay of the land. Individuals involved with the project did not answer questions on how the coronavirus pandemic has affected their leasing.

Coronavirus has shaken the local housing market, with rents down 14% since March, according to data from ApartmentList. The median one-bedroom apartment rents for just under $1,500 and two-bedrooms for $1,849. Rents have been going down for months and they were down 4.2% between September and October.

Seattle is obviously not alone in seeing rents plummet, with New York City down over 15% and San Francisco down a staggering 21.7% since March, according to ApartmentList.

Meanwhile, local apartment buildings are also giving more concessions to renters, such as a month of free rent. Over 70% of large Seattle-area buildings constructed since 2017 are giving such deals to leasers, according to The Seattle Times. For example, the Capitol Hill Station developers are advertising two months of free rent on some units to prospective tenants.

14th Aves REO Flats, for example, is touting two rent-free months, a waived deposit and application fee, and $500 off move-in costs. The Capitol Hill Station development is offering a similar deal on select units.

Gov. Jay Inslee, meanwhile, announced in early October that the statewide moratorium on evictions would be extended to the end of the year as financial pressures continue stemming from the pandemic. This updated order added a freeze on residential rents, but allows evictions for property damage to continue.

The City of Seattle, specifically, has its own moratorium similar to the one at the state level that Durkan extended in August through the end of 2020.

There were still 38 eviction filings in King County courts in October, according to the King County Bar Associations Housing Justice Project. Thats up from eight in April and 10 in both May and June. The number has been steadily rising in the summer months and into the fall, with October seeing the most filings, per the projects data. These figures have been previously reported by PubliCola.

Of the 145 evictions since the Housing Justice Project tracked pandemic trends, the zip codes with the most have been in suburbs like Kent and Auburn, but 98122 which includes the Central District, Madrona, and much of Capitol Hill has seen seven evictions. To its south, 98144 has also had six.

Of the eviction reasons, 83 were for tenants violating their lease or misbehavior, 43 were because the owner wanted to either sell the property or occupy it, seven were for unauthorized occupants, and five were for nonpayment of rent. Inslee added an exemption to his moratorium in June that allowed landlords to give 60-days notice to tenants that they plan to sell the unit or live in it.

So far in November, there have been 13 eviction filings in King County, according to the Housing Justice Project.

Sound Transitopened the U-Link extension and the new station below Broadwayin March 2016. In August 2016, Sound Transit signeda 99-year leasewith Gerding Edlen to developthe properties it had acquiredsurrounding the station.The Portland-based developer is leading the project with designs fromHewittandSchemata Workshop.Berger Partnershipis landscape architect for the entire site and part of the design super team working on the Capitol Hill Station development project.Community Roots Housing developed and operates the affordable housing component of the projects. CHS reported here on the20 years of community engagement it took to make the development a reality.

At Capitol Hill Station now, the marketing is focused on living in proximity to a bustling transit station in the middle of a busy neighborhood.

The smaller, building off Broadway and looking out into Cal Anderson Park is considered the luxury option and is being marketed as Park:

Welcome to Parka new look at luxury apartments at Capitol Hill Station. Park connects you to the vibrancy of Seattle, while giving you a thoughtfully cultivated escape from the hustle and bustle of city life. Parks studio, 1-bedroom, 2-bedroom, and 3-bedroom, pet friendly apartments reflect the sophistication, timeless beauty, and iconic landscape of Seattle and the Pacific Northwest. Call Capitol Hill Station home with the communitys most sought after and refined features, finishes, and amenities.

The larger, two-building Ander rises above Broadway:

Ander is pet-friendly, and people-friendly, with plenty of amenities and spaces for entertaining, exercising and lounging. With two, on-site light rail station entrances, transportation is a breeze and puts the excitement of Seattle in the palm of your hand. Explore the arts hub of Seattle and see all that Capitol Hill is made of with dozens of restaurants, venues and shops within walking distance.

Retail planned for the project including grocer H-Mart and The Exploration Academy daycare could also be a big plus for new tenants.

Its everything from a quiet night in, with a great book and takeout, to a fun night out with live music and craft cocktails, the copy reads. Welcome to Capitol Hill Station.

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A Broadway development more than 20 years in the making, the process to fill Capitol Hill Station's new apartments has begun UPDATE - CHS Capitol...