WHEN Lauren Harrison Short moved into a Hugg home at Chapel Riverside in Southampton following the breakdown of her marriage, the last thing she expected to find was love. But the she fell for neighbour Craig Lindley who was also renting there, and the couple now live together in Craigs Hugg.

The first pop-up housing scheme from Hugg Homes offers 22 high-spec modular mixed tenure homes. Private rents are below local market rates, making them an attractive alternative to over-crowded shared houses.

Lauren (pictured below with Craig), who works as an accountant for a cruise company in the centre of Southampton, needed an affordable place to live after separating from her husband.

She was looking for somewhere convenient and budget-friendly, so when she came across Chapel Riverside she knew straight away that it would be perfect.

Since moving into my Hugg, I have turned my life around, continues Lauren. I found an affordable place to live, which was an important factor given that I suddenly found myself living alone. The location, price and the fact that it was fully furnished all made it ideal.

It is spacious, high quality and a great design and all feels very well put together.

I have also just passed all my accountancy exams, and, most excitingly, I unexpectedly found love with Craig. I introduced myself to him in May last year and we met up for a drink with one of our other neighbours. We soon found that we had lots in common and we started dating. Craig is in a similar position, going through a divorce and living in a Hugg because of the great location and the reduced rent.

We decided to move in together when the contract on my Hugg came up. We both like the location and particularly love the great community atmosphere that has evolved here. Craig works as a health and safety manager, often commuting up the M3, and has two children who regularly stay over and enjoy sleeping in their bunk beds in the second bedroom.

Hugg homes are designed as a temporary, rather than a long-term, housing solution, and are erected on land thats lying dormant while going through the planning process.

Affordability is such a buzzword but the costs here are a significant saving on renting elsewhere in the locality, says Lauren. We are hoping to live here for the next year to 18 months, which will enable us to build up savings and then buy somewhere on our own. But for now it is perfect. We love our Hugg.

Hugg Homes is an innovative temporary solution to local housing needs, brought to the market by housebuilder Inland Homes. It aims to utilise land thats inactive while awaiting planning consent a process that can take years to create pop-up, developments for social and private rent in locations across the South and South East.

These are let in line with local housing allowance, offering low-income households accommodation that doesnt compromise on quality, space or design.

The developments consist of containerised modular units, which are manufactured to order, and arrive on site kitted out with kitchens, integrated appliances, tiled shower rooms, flooring and electric heating. The homes can be reused and moved easily.

A choice of one, two and three-bed Huggs means they can accommodate single occupants, couples and families, and some are let fully furnished. Each is carefully designed to maximise space. Residents also benefit from secure external storage and parking, and landscaped courtyards and play spaces. Rents start at 656 per month for the Southampton development, and Hugg Homes is working to deliver another 65 units across three new schemes in the next six months.

hugghomes.co.uk

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Lauren and Craig found more than just a bargain when they discovered their Hugg home - Metro Newspaper UK

Modular, recycled-shipping-container homes may be widely thought of as a practical and sustainable, but also temporary and often unattractive, living solution perhaps best suited for housing short-term workers or transitioning homeless people into long-term housing.

But this myth is being gradually busted, as such homes can be beautiful as well as extremely long-lasting, according to modular home company Honomobo.

The firms co-founder Daniel Engelman told Glacier Media in an interview, Its a new type of home, so theres still sometimes that psychological mindset that its a shipping container, so its meant to be shipped, its a temporary thing. But our clients no longer come to us with that mindset were past that. These homes are incredibly durable they can last hundreds of years, as opposed to the less-sustainable, 100-year lifespan of a typical wood-frame home.

Shipping-container homes represent a housing opportunity thats just as real as any house or condo, says Engelman, with banks willing to offer mortgages, and CMHC backing them as certified steel-framed modular homes. And, although this has not happened yet, Engelman says it will also be possible to resell the homes and the land they sit on in the usual way on the MLS.

Honomobo is only five years old, and interest in the company blew up about four years ago when it hit local media headlines for its innovation and flexible range of home models, and the story got picked up by some top architectural magazines. The interest from the public really hasnt let up since then, said Engelman.

The models range from the M-1 one-bedroom/one-module unit priced at $157,772 (not including land costs, consultation fees and construction fees) all the way up to the six-module/four-bedroom, 1,920-square-foot HO6 model, which has a base cost of $499,362. The M1 will be featured at the B.C. Home and Garden Show, along with a smaller studio unit that Engelman says is popular as a guest or office space.

There are a number of suppliers of shipping-container homes across North America, but Engelman says what makes Honomobo stand out is primarily the design. With the choice of one entire wall made up of glass, and two walls in the larger units, the homes look more like contemporary architecture than recycled shipping containers. And yet, says Engelman, the design of the home embraces its roots, with a minimalism and authenticity that he says is appropriate to the shipping container shell.

The glass wall also allows for indoor-outdoor living, and these huge windows can be upgraded to sliding doors which makes the homes live larger than they actually are, says Engelman.

As well as being durable, modular homes are extremely sustainable. These particular homes are highly energy-efficient and run 100 per cent off electricity, so they can be carbon-neutral if the owner runs it off solar power or hooks up to a green hydro supply.

Although Honomobo is based out of Edmonton, most of its customers are in B.C. and the Western United States. Engelman said there tends to be two kinds of customers. The first are those who choose smaller one- and two-module units as laneway homes (known in the States as accessory dwelling units or ADUs) placed in urban environments. The second are those who own land, often in somewhat more remote or island locations, and want an easy-to-build home for that site, either as a permanent residence or a vacation property.

Of the first type, Engelman said that most of his customers are in California, in pricey cities such as San Francisco, or in areas close to Metro Vancouver. He said, The smaller modules are often used by multi-generational families, where either the kids or the parents are moving into the ADU and the other part of the family is moving into the main house. It really helps with affordability and helps people stay in their neighbourhood, which in turn keeps neighbourhoods vibrant.

Engelman added that he was disappointed Honomobo has not yet been able to do this in the City of Vancouver, which has the same affordability issues as cities like San Francisco. The regulatory environment of Vancouver is really difficult to get anything done, so it just hasnt been possible for us yet, which is sad, he said. Instead weve done laneway homes in places such as Whistler, Squamish, and Port Coquitlam.

Also being featured at the B.C. Home and Garden Show is Honomobos Honomobar, which is a bar made out of part of a shipping container. Engelman says this "fun side project" has been a hit in areas where it has been placed as a pop-up bar in public plazas and in restaurant patios, and has prompted customers to order them for their own backyards or mini-businesses.

The B.C. Home and Garden Show runs from February 19-23 at B.C. Place Stadium. For more information, go to bchomeandgardenshow.com

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Shipping-container homes becoming a beautiful and permanent living solution - Vancouver Is Awesome

Thousands of Canadian veterans are homeless or without stable housing. Homes for Heroes, a charity, is trying to use construction and urban design to solve the problem.

The charity has begun building affordable urban villages in major cities across Canada where homeless veterans will be assisted in transitioning back into civilian life.

The villages consist of 15 to 25 individual tiny homes arranged in a park-like setting. All homes face inward to facilitate peer-to-peer support. Each home is less than 300 square feet in size, but fully equipped with all the features of a larger home. Each village also incorporates a central resource centre, counselling office, community garden and other amenities.

The charity completed its first village in Calgary last year and has a zoning application being processed for another one in Edmonton.

We saw this growing problem year after year, said David Howard, who co-founded Homes for Heroes with Calgary philanthropist Murray McCann. While its great to come up with an idea, we needed to make sure it is practical.

The team spent time meeting with more than 200 veterans living on the streets or in poverty. In doing that it really became clear that they want to be in a community of peers, said Howard. The barracks-style format really fits that. They can look out for one another while also having privacy.

Howard also explained that some who have lived on the street for a long time can feel a need to fill up a new space with possessions, leading to hoarding. He said this can impact their confidence and lead to further problems.

The whole program is to build a community and family of veterans who share the same experiences, and look out for one another, he said.

Howard noted that the groups first project in Calgary wouldnt have been possible without assistance from the construction community. ATCO a builder with expertise in designing, building delivering modular construction projects- built the 15-unitproject and donated $1.5 million to the charity.

These tiny homes showcase ATCOs urban design capabilities and will provide a home our military heroes will be proud to call their own a small gesture when measured against their herculean sacrifice, read a statement from the company.

Howard said the charity has also received massive support from PCL Construction and CP Rail. CP helped fundraise $900,000 for the charity and PCL has connected the project team with suppliers and contractors willing to donate or discount supplies and services.

Having those leaders in the construction industry is such a key to this success, said Howard.

Howard explained that modular construction allows the units to be prefabricated off-site while the site is being prepped. The method means a quick project delivery and minimal disruptions in the urban areas the charity plans to target.

In addition to assisting veterans, Howard sees the villages as opportunities to connect with the community and educate them about veterans. Veterans from the Calgary village are already out volunteering in the community. The village features park space that is open to the public and each unit is named after a fallen Canadian.

Howard explained that while the Canadian government estimates the country has 3,500 homeless veterans, he suspects the number is much higher. Those figures are from one-time counts done at homeless shelters where the respondents identify themselves as veterans something many veterans may not do for a variety of reasons. There are also many without homes who are only on the street part of the time or couch surf. He believes the number is closer to 5,000 or 6,000.

We are confident that a program like ours can end this issue in ten years, said Howard.

When veterans enter the village, a plan to transition back into housing and society is developed for their specific needs.

We are so grateful for Canadians and how they have shown respect for those who served, said Howard. Projects like this do not happen without their generosity.

Howard said the charity is currently in discussions to plan villages inB.C., Manitoba and Ontario.

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Homes for Heroes tackling veteran homelessness with clever construction - Daily Commercial News

GOSHEN This short session of the Indiana Legislature is getting the reputation for bipartisanship and getting work done quickly. But Sen. Blake Doriot, R-Syracuse, the lone legislator at Friday mornings Advocate@8 at the Goshen Chamber of Commerce, said speed and cooperation were out of necessity.

Some longtime legislators have commented to Doriot, They have never seen anything like this, he told the group of about 15 people. It is moving so fast. Weve got pressure from the outside to finish early. Its called the NCAA. We will be without rooms if we do not get done. If youre in a hotel youre gone because the big money is coming to town.

One of the big items on everyones mind at the Statehouse is education, he said, adding legislators are decoupling teachers from iLEARN, the statewide student assessment testing.

Ill be honest, in my opinion, and probably the man in the downstairs office probably wont be happy with what Im saying, but testing is a mess in Indiana. I think there are more viable options to what we are doing. I have learned so much. I appreciate the Red for Ed people well most of them, Doriot said, causing the group to laugh. Some of them came down and talked with us. I was very appreciative. Dwight Moudy, who does a program Cowboy Ethics, he scheduled the best teacher meeting I have ever had with Elkhart teachers.

Doriot met with the teachers in the library and talked about how they have students who are coming in January in shorts or ragged sweatpants and Crocs or flip flops. Its terrible, he said. The teachers are ending up having to be parents to these kids.

Doriot said there was an option for teacher pay this year that was shot down over one simple reason: they were taking money from the teachers retirement fund for older retired teachers and wanting to move it over to fund the pay raise. In the meantime, he said, the state is trying to pay down the debt and get the retirement fund more solvent.

Were not going to jeopardize the retired teachers retirement fund to do this, he said. We will be looking at teacher increases in the budget year, where we should be.

In this short session, Doriot has proposed nine pieces of legislation.

Senate Bill 187 would relocate all of Elkhart Countys courts into one place, but it would not have to necessarily be in the county seat as state law mandates. This legislation would allow Elkhart County to build the courts building outside of Goshen if the County Commissioners so decide. Currently the courts are located in downtown Goshen and Elkhart. That bill passed out of the Senate by a vote of 48-1 and will now be considered by the House of Representatives.

Senate Bill 146 concerning sexual assault victim rights creates the right for a sexual assault victim to have a counselor present before and during a forensic medical exam or an interview with law enforcement or defense attorney. This has been referred to the Senate Committee on Corrections and Criminal Law.

Doriot said this bill is a result of activism by actress Mariska Hargitay, who is making a nationwide push. It gives victims more rights during the process, he said. Legislators talked with prosecutors and believes they have made the bill better so victims of sexual assault dont feel so alone in the process. I cannot imagine the trauma [being alone] puts on an individual. There will be a hearing on that bill next week. So hopefully we can get that passed and get these victims some more help as they go through this traumatic time, he said.

Railroad crossing safety is another issue Doriot is addressing this session.

Currently Senate Bill 54 has been referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Transportation. Doriot said his bill would require additional lanes and signs to be constructed at dangerous railroad crossings on state highways.

Senate Bill 100 would protect property owners whose homes are nonconforming to local zoning regulations and are then damaged by a disaster. He said, those homeowners could then rebuild their homes on the same footprint with less hassle with this bill. Building codes would still need to be observed.

Senate Bill 148 would protect housing affordability by limiting local regulation of modular homes in mobile home parks, according to information provided by Doriot. This just basically says that modular homes are a viable construction, he explained. The bill passed out of the Senate Committee on Local Government and will now move to the full Senate.

Senate Bill 55 seeks to reduce the cost of public works projects by allowing competitive bidding on piping materials for construction. This was referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce and Technology. There were groups lobbying against this, Doriot explained. Its probably not going to go this session, he said. It will probably come back next year.

A number of residents had questions and comments for the legislator.

Moderator Vince Turner asked if there was any action on transparency in hospital billing.

Doriot, who is not in health, has not seen any of those bills yet concerning that issue, but they are moving through.

He and Sen. John Ruckelshaus have filed bill SB 232 that eliminates the property tax exemption for property owned by an Indiana nonprofit corporation and used by that corporation in the operation of a hospital.

Doriot said that when nonprofit hospitals buy private practices, those practices can become part of the nonprofit system. Then, if a city is jammed up against tax caps, its losing money. Maybe next year, he said, the legislators will look at the effect of expansion of nonprofits on local government.

Goshen Mayor Jeremy Stutsman addressed the issue of trains parking in Goshen.

What were seeing in Goshen now is weve become the parking ground for the Elkhart rail yard, he said.

Aware that no one can put a stop to trains parking and blocking intersections after a federal ruling, Stutsman would like to see the railroad contact Elkhart County dispatch to tell them which roads are being blocked. That would allow dispatchers to give an alternate route to people or ambulances that are trying to get to the hospital.

Doriot said he thought that was a great idea. Although it would be impossible to write an amendment to a bill at this point, he would contact the railroad to see if they would be on board with the idea.

Continued here:
Bills quickly making their way through short session - Goshen News

Over 50% of our members provided detailed financial information to support the MPBAs survey report commissioned through the University of Salford. Using this market intelligence from 20182019, turnover in the modular and portable building sector exceeded 2,956m.

This figure excludes the turnover from the major players who have recently entered the volumetric modular arena, including banking giant Goldman Sachs investing 75m into modular housing business TopHat, as well as Japans biggest housebuilder striking a multimillion-pound deal that will see Sekisui House partner with Homes England and Urban Splash. This agreement will also see a 55m investment into Urban Splash but the largest deal by far was revealed by ilke Homes involving a 100m agreement with Places for People.

As volumetric modular systems make up 60-70% of offsite construction, these solutions arguably form a Modern Method of Construction (MMC) that is experiencing entirely different growth trends than other offsite approaches.

Respondents to the lack of government contracts with offsite components awarded in 2019 included Miles Rowland, chairman of the Construction Leadership Council (CLC), who stated that government departments must align with offsite construction methods if we are to improve productivity, overcome the skills shortage and reduce carbon footprint.

Despite the research, there is balancing evidence to suggest that that the government remains supportive of Modern Methods of Construction. For instance, Mark Farmer, who leads the governments MMC plans, has announced the upcoming launch of the hi-tech construction corridor, which is set to generate 40bn annually and employ 80,000.

Esther McVey, the minister of state for housing and planning, has emphasised that its vital that we invest in new technology to get Britain building. Homes built using modern methods can be of higher quality, greener and built to last.

The MPBA report shows that the volumetric modular industry is thriving across all sectors. For example, at the heart of the education sector, the Priority School Building Programme (PSBP) requests 450 new school facilities per annum. Modular construction has proven to be best-suited to meet such a demand due to its repeatability of units, environmentally conscious methodology and minimal disruption to existing school facilities.

Meanwhile, complex construction projects throughout the leisure sector require developers to cut costs, improve timelines and reduce onsite risks while maintaining building quality and durability. Modular construction is again best positioned to achieve this through its high performance, timeline savings of up to 25% and net savings of circa 7%.

Perhaps most challenging, the housing sector relies on modular and volumetric construction to work towards solving the housing crisis. Law firm Pinsent Masons reports that 15,000 modular homes are already built every year. The Guardian reports that the government proposes to make modular construction key to the build of 300,000 new homes per year by the mid-2020s. We can see that volumetric modular is already core to government plans for the future.

Many contemporary architects are embracing volumetric modular to achieve striking facades with bespoke designs hugely beneficial across all sectors. If we take a wider viewpoint on the adoption of Modern Methods of Construction, it is clear that many project developers are already making good use of volumetric and modular technologies to achieve productive, successful outputs and only plan to build on this.

Jackie Maginnis

Chief executive

Modular & Portable Building Association

Tel: +44 (0)870 241 7687

mpba@mpba.biz

https://mpba.biz

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Limited offsite take-up? The modular industry is thriving - Planning, BIM & Construction Today

The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) announced financing of 793 new affordable homes in the Downtown Far Rockaway area of Queens.

The homes add to the 590 new construction units financed in the area since the New York City Council voted in favor of a neighborhood rezoning in Far Rockaway in September 2017.

The newly financed affordable housing units will be spread across three projects RadRoc, Beach 21, and Rockaway Village Phase II. Upon completion, the units will be affordable to households earning a wide range of incomes, including the formerly homeless, extremely low- to moderate-income New Yorkers.

Downtown Far Rockaway has been overdue for strategic investments and careful planning for far too long. Today we announce the coming of nearly 800 new, true affordable housing opportunities. This is in addition to the 590 affordable homes weve financed since 2017, and will go hand in hand with economic and structural developments led by EDC and informed by the community, said HPD Commissioner Louise Carroll.

I want to thank Council Member Donovan Richards for his enthusiastic leadership, as well as our colleagues at NYCEDC for their partnership, and I look forward to seeing a new future in the Rockaways unfold.

The RadRoc development will be constructed on a private site and will include a total of 253 new affordable apartments across two 10-story buildings in Downtown Far Rockaway.

Financed through the Extremely Low- and Low-income Affordability (ELLA) program, 10 percent of these units will be set-aside for formerly homeless households. 133 units will be affordable permanently.

19-38 Cornaga Avenue will be a steel and plank building with a total of 173 rental housing units, including one superintendents unit, and over 14,400 square feet of commercial space.

10-18 Beach 20th Street will be a modular construction building that includes 80 rental housing units, approximately 5,600 square feet of commercial space, and 3,400 square feet of community facility space.

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HPD hails rezoning that will add over 1000 homes to Rockaways - Real Estate Weekly

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Four burglaries in four years have cost a few their small housing company and they have struggled to finish their clients houses.

Paul and Pascale Hennessey founded Park Homes five years ago. They make small houses and modular houses with three employees of buildings in Kainga, just north of Christchurch.

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While the couple took a five-day vacation with their toddler son Kye, burglars escaped for $ 75,000 worth of goods from their buildings.

ALDEN WILLIAMS / STUFF

Pascale Hennessey and her husband Paul were shocked when they discovered that locks were broken and that containers in their Park Homes company were stripped of valuable things.

The trek included specialized tools and equipment, interior design and equipment, and items for their own home that they hoped to finish.

READ MORE:* Why we took out a $ 55K loan to build our own little house* Small houses score high on comfort, quality and value* Women admit to tidying up vacation homes in Christchurch * Fraudsters who target Facebook users who want small houses

At the same time, neighboring buildings of another construction company were broken into, while the shooting of an animal in an adjacent paddock was linked to the same offenders.

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Park Homes makes small houses and larger modular houses.

Although insured, the Hennessys will only be paid a third of their loss, partly because the goods were stored in sealed transport containers.

Pascale Hennessey said they would finish the two houses they are working on, but then they would close the doors despite the fact that they were ready for a year. She described the events as heartbreaking.

Since the start, we have been burgled at least once a year. We hope to cover the loss ourselves without corporate debt we will sell what we can to ensure that we can finish the houses we started.

ALDEN WILLIAMS / STUFF

One of the padlocks broke during the last attack.

But we realized that we just could not continue with the company without getting into a difficult financial situation.

This meant canceling the work that would have supported them and their staff, which they had to let go, Hennessey said.

Thats the worst part. Our employees all have to find work, and they have their own families. We both also have to find new work.

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A completed little cottage from Park Homes.

There is a lot of fall-out and many people have been affected. We hope that these people (the burglars) can be bought in court.

The couple received a lot of support from current and former customers and was also crowdfunding to finish the houses, she said. They also have a completed little house that they can sell.

The police said they had no clues, she said.

ALDEN WILLIAMS / STUFF

The Hennesseys were cleaned up when their Park Homes company was broken into at Christmas.

A police spokeswoman confirmed that break-ins of both properties were reported around Christmas time. She said the investigation continued after officers visited the scene and conducted forensic tests and asked anyone with information to contact the police.

Hennessey said the company had been a labor of love in many ways, and after three decades in the industry, her husband wanted to keep costs and margins low to deliver an affordable product.

They had managed to refine their product and she was doing very well, she said. The previous burglaries had been smaller, but this time they took everything they could.

We had security cameras and a secure garden and locked gates we really couldnt do much more.

Hennessey believed that the burglary was a professional task because the thieves could dodge the security cameras and had to make several trips.

We put our heart and soul into it and we loved it.

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Pascale Hennessey is preparing a house for display.

But we have experienced earthquakes and all kinds in this city and we will be fine as a family. If the worst comes, we can live in a caravan, so we still have a roof over our heads.

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The 'heartbreaking' loss of the small home business after a burglary - magviral

As more investment continues to come to Leeds, there are increasing property investment prospects in the city and wider region.

Leeds is slated for more investment and development in a range of areas, opening up opportunities for property investors. With transport improvements coming to Leeds, more businesses relocating and expanding there, and demand increasing for new homes, Leeds is set for an especially strong year in the property investment sector.

The first phase of the Institute for High Speed Rail and System Integration being established at the University of Leeds has been given planning permission. The proposals include theconstruction facility Centre for Infrastructure Materials and the Infrastructure Test Facility.

This is part of a wider plan to place Leeds as a centre for rail engineering, job creation and inward investment. The institute is expected to improve transport in the city, which will further boost the local economy and property market.

Leeds was recently named the best place to start a business in the UK. Following Channel 4 and Sky making the move to Leeds, more creative and digital jobs have followed suit, which is further opening up more investment opportunities and bringing more people to the city.

There is a growing confidence in Yorkshires commercial property sector, especially in Leeds, as more businesses are expanding and relocating there. Even with a substantial amount of commercial development already in the pipeline in Leeds, many are expecting demand in new office space to grow.

Legal & General has even recently signed a long-term lease for a modular housing factory near Leeds, which is expected to initially employ between 400 and 500 people locally. As additional businesses open their doors in Leeds and Yorkshire, more people are likely to move to the city and region.

Leeds is seeing a significant amount of redevelopment and regeneration across the city centre, especially in South Bank. Many new housing developments will be brought forward through these regeneration projects. More than 8,000 new homes are expected to be created in the South Bank area alone.

In a report last year, Leeds City Council even suggested there is room for 20,000 more homes in the city centre, showing theres the potential for extensive growth. As Leeds sees more investment, demand for high-quality rental properties is expected to increase even more.

2020 is shaping up to be an exciting year for Leeds. With more investment, growth and demand coming to the thriving city, its expected to be a lucrative time to invest in Leeds, especially in buy-to-let properties.

If youre looking for your next property investment, check out BuyAssociations exciting investment opportunity in Leeds.

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Three reasons why Leeds is becoming a property investment hotspot - BuyAssociation

Hill, the family-owned developer, is to donate 200 homes for the homeless - a financial commitment of more than 10million - to mark the companys 20th anniversary.

The extraordinary donation, which is beginning with up to 20 modular homes in Cambridge, is borne out of the personal experience of Hill CEO and founder Andy Hill.

In 1999, when he had a young family, he was made redundant. The family feared they would lose their home.

Instead, he set up and began growing the business, which has flourished, and now has more 10,000 homes currently under construction or in the pipeline, including the Athena development in Eddington, Ironworks in Mill Road in Cambridge, and Marleigh, the new community being created on Marshall land off Newmarket Road.

Andy said: Homelessness is a growing crisis which I feel very passionately about and it is particularly bleak at this time of year.

Life-changing events affect us all in different ways and over the years I have learnt to appreciate it can affect more than those who come from deprived backgrounds in the first place.

After celebrating our 20th year of building homes at Hill, I want to give something back and create real opportunities for people who are living on the streets, to help turn their lives around.

The whole business is taking huge pride in delivering these initiatives, and while we will not solve the problem today, we are taking a big step in the right direction which we hope others will follow.

The pods being prepared to help tackle the homelessness problem in Cambridge are a kind of modular micro-home, or pod, which come factory-made and fully furnished, with white goods, soft furnishings, bedding and even plates and cutlery.

Other homes will be sited in London and Oxford, where Hill also operates.

The company will work in partnership with local authorities or housing associations, which will assume responsibility for maintenance and repairs, and with homeless charities on its initiative. Once ready, Hill will hand over the properties to one of the partners to manage the rehoming process.

Emma Fletcher, a director at Hill and lead for the delivery of the Foundation 200 homes project, said: Our pledge is to help rehome the homeless we are stepping up to be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

Gifting homes in this way has never been done before, so we are currently in the process of creating the blueprint and working out all of the details on a site by site basis with local charities, housing associations and local authorities on how to deliver these homes.

At last Wednesdays Cambridge City Council housing scrutiny committee, 140,000 was approved to facilitate the legal and practical arrangements for up to 20 pods, which can be relocated if required.

Potential sites for the pods have been identified in Abbey, Arbury and Kings Hedges wards, the council said, but precise locations have not been given.

The council said they are very small sites that have proved difficult to develop to date.

Mr Hill added: While we are only at the initial discussion stages of this initiative, conversations with Cambridge City Council are progressing well and the council have now put forward two suitable sites.

We are currently reviewing the number of homes which can be delivered on these sites and planning applications will be submitted shortly. We have been really touched by the amount of goodwill this project has brought in; everyone wants to help and get involved.

A council officer said an awful lot of work has gone into the design of the pods. Discussing the size of the pods, the officer explained that engagement with people who have slept rough suggested in some cases as a stepping stone from a hostel or a difficult environment towards independence, a smaller unit is sometimes what people are looking for.

A support network and pathway to a permanent home will still be provided, the officer confirmed.

Claire Flowers, the head of the councils housing development agency, said: We see this as an opportunity to meet housing need and provide more housing in the city relatively quickly, and at a lower cost to the council than providing them ourselves.

Hill, which is delivering the initiative through a newly-formed charitable trust called Hill Group Foundation, intends all 200 of the homes to be completed and inhabited within five years.

They will have a 60-year life expectancy and be arranged in small groups, with no more than eight on one site and none higher than two storeys.

Additional reporting: Ben Hatton, Local Democracy Reporter.

Read more

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Hill CEO: The personal experience thats driven me to donate 200 homes for the homeless in 10million gift - Cambridge Independent

FOREST LAKES The Forest Lakes Metropolitan District Board of Directors will ask voters to weigh in on moving the districts office from Bayfield to Forest Lakes, one of La Plata Countys largest subdivisions with about 800 homes..

For months, the board has been mired in debate. The office relocation has sparked disagreements over budget priorities in the district, board statues and relocation project planning.

In my mind, (the vote) is the totally right thing to do, said Keith Roundtree, district manager. We are using the publics money, and they should have a say on how their money is being used.

The district currently rents office space in Bayfield. Last year, the Feasibility Study Committee found a modular building and foundation would cost about $265,000 to be paid over 15 years. Rent over 15 years would cost $359,000, the committee said. The new office would be at the entrance of the neighborhood.

If approved, the board plans to fund the project through a loan. The issue must be on the ballot because the Taxpayers Bill of Rights, or TABOR, says voters must approve any indebtedness that goes beyond 12 months, according to the district attorney. The measure would go on the ballot during special district elections, May 5.

Discord on the boardDuring recent months, the board and community members have disagreed over how to plan and fund the project.

Last year, the board voted to move the office based on a rate analysis, then disagreed about whether the analysis provided enough information.

During meetings, board members disagreed on vote outcomes and which statutes they were following to make decisions. In one meeting, residents and the board debated the project for 45 minutes.

Board members Dave Sheetz and Robin Kissell said residents will save on overall costs by building a new office in Forest Lakes. We put facts, figures and a cost analysis together and proved that it would be cheaper to own than it would be to rent, Sheetz said. Also, the current landlord kept his option to sell the property and did not guarantee the district a long-term lease, he said.

Other members, including Shauna Unger, Toby Schrier and Brien Meyer, have questioned the project. Unger said it would be irresponsible to tie up funds in the relocation project while Forest Lakes has other large capital projects to consider, like replacing dam infrastructure and aging snowplows, or funding a sewer system project that could cost millions.

Im not opposed to moving, I just dont think this is the right time, she said.

Meyer, board treasurer, said he would consider the idea if he had enough information. The initial cost analysis did not include moving expenses, utility expenses, maintenance expense, a line-item budget explaining the modular building cost estimate or other financial information, he said.

I find it very unfortunate that were making these big decisions and our manager doesnt have the information, said Meyer, who voted against the ballot measure and was absent for the boards first vote approving the project.

Race against timeNew district staff members are racing to learn their roles, get the district organized and provide information to the board.

Roundtree said the staff is working to establish a detailed cost estimate for voters before ballot language is due in March. The initial cost estimates were based on a floor plan, but those estimates did not reflect requirements for office sizes, architectural standards or the building site, he said.

He has requested proposals for conceptual designs for stick-built and modular buildings. The district will review the proposals, conduct cost comparison and negotiations, then use the final cost estimates on the ballot.

This is going to be speed-tracked in order to get this done, Roundtree said. I feel what were doing now is the proper way to do business.

smullane@durangoherald.com

Originally posted here:
Forest Lakes residents to vote in May on office move - Pine River Times