I watched flames dance on the nearby ridge. The air was hot and dry, the night suffused with a red haze. Too tired and too hot to sleep, I lay atop my sleeping bag mesmerized by the fire. It had menaced the incident command post days before, nearly forcing relocation. We were wary. It was mid-October and I was seven days into a fire assignment on the 2003 Old Fire complex in the San Bernardino Mountains that lasted until Thanksgiving.

That year Southern California fires cost over $3 billion, burned more than 750,000 acres, destroyed 3,710 homes and killed 24 people.

Nearly 17 years later, not much has changed. Wildfires are still burning millions of acres each year, destroying homes, killing people, decimating economies and environments. And we continue to focus on trying to put them out rather than on helping communities prepare for wildfire. More funding and focus needs to go toward local communities in high-risk areas to help them build effective risk reduction programs.

Perhaps were missing the forest for the trees.

Does wildfire risk reduction work? As noted in the report Lessons Learned from the Waldo Canyon Fire (which I helped write), The cost benefit ratio for the mitigation efforts for the Cedar Heights neighborhood was 1/257; $300,000 was spent on mitigation work and $77,248,301 in losses were avoided. Combined cost benefit ratio was 1/517 for the three neighborhoods with the highest impacts.

Thats an impressive return on investment.

Wildfires arent going away, and we dont necessarily want them to. Small, low-intensity fires at regular intervals are critical to maintaining healthy forests.

But an array of forces Smokey Bears 75-year-old message about the importance of preventing forest fires, previous national policy to suppress fires, increased building in the wildland-urban interface and, yes, climate change have combined to produce the devastating fires we see today.

National and state land management and fire management agencies are changing their policies to allow good fires to burn for ecological benefits. They are also working to reduce the buildup of fuels near high fire-risk communities. But we wont catch up anytime soon.

A 2009 federal study concluded that creating fire adapted communities was the best hope to mitigate exponentially increasing wildfire costs. It stressed that pre-fire mitigation could help communities live safely with wildfire on the landscape without the need for extensive suppression efforts.

To be clear, not all structures can survive all wildfires. Most of the current West Coast fires demonstrate especially destructive extreme fire behavior due to Santa Ana winds. But adaptive measures greatly increase survivability. Mitigation experts have identified the elements that adapt a community to fire:

The community needs local understanding of where its risk is. The town of Paradise, Calif., is a good example of a community that was wholly at risk. But most towns have only certain at-risk neighborhoods or areas, depending on fuel buildup, topography, prevailing winds and structure development.

Key to reducing risk is hardened structures. In terms of wildfire, that means replacing combustible portions of a structure such as wood shake roofs or wood siding with less flammable materials, and installing metal screening on vents.

Coupled with hardened structures is the creation of defensible space, clearing combustibles from around a structure up to 100 feet. Removing potential fuels slows the fire and provides a place for firefighters to deploy.

Most civilian fire deaths occur during evacuations, which often happen too late or result in traffic jams because there are not enough exit routes from a community. Establishing many safe evacuation routes helps move people out of danger quickly.

Safe zones are a last resort. They are usually a large open area where fire is less likely to reach: a football field, golf course, etc. But extreme fire behavior makes safe zones less reliable.

Both public and private land managers should work to reduce hazardous fuel buildup and create healthy, resilient forests near communities. This might be accomplished by thinning, harvesting or prescribed burns.

Appropriate land management also means restricting development in high wildfire environments. Thats a difficult sell. Few communities have wholly embraced the curtailment of new development.

Community fire adaptation requires a local mitigation collaborative made up of key community stakeholders state, federal and local policymakers, landowners and residents. The concept was embraced by the nations fire world, but sufficient funding was not provided.

For decades, anemic national mitigation funding focused on messaging in hopes that education and awareness would result in mitigation. It hasnt worked.

The fire world has spent billions developing a state-of-the art wildfire suppression infrastructure that provides for equipment, training, staffing, teams, logistics, supplies and expertise that can be mobilized quickly and efficiently. Conversely, very little has been spent to build community wildfire risk reduction programs focused on what can be done before the fire starts.

Developing, creating and maintaining a focused local wildfire mitigation program takes funding, expertise and staffing, things most high-risk fire communities dont have. Several interagency programs are trying to address those shortfalls. National Mitigation Best Practices Training teaches specialists what methods work to engage residents and communities to reduce risk. National Community Mitigation Assistance Teams (CMATs) deploy to communities to help them create strong mitigation programs. Both these programs are new, developed in the last five years, and are still evolving. Both programs are free and supported by the U.S. Forest Service and the National Association of State Foresters.

Those are only two pieces of the puzzle. The nation needs a national mitigation infrastructure (like the one that supports the national fire suppression effort) to provide interagency coordination of funding, consistent training for mitigation specialists and a focus on strategic work in high risk areas.

Without a coordinated, national, strategic effort to support mitigation at the local level, well see more homes destroyed, more lives lost, more tax dollars go up in smoke. If we continue to invest only in firefighting, well get ... more firefighting.

Whats the saying? If you always do what youve always done, youll always get what youve always gotten.

Pam Leschak, of Side Lake, Minn., and Boise, Idaho, recently retired as the national program manager of Wildland Urban Interface/Fire Adapted Communities for the U.S. Forest Service.

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OPINION EXCHANGE | Down-to-earth management of forests and development could limit wildfire disasters - Minneapolis Star Tribune

WASHINGTON Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell declared Friday he will support President Donald Trump in attempting to fill the late justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs Supreme Court seat this fall, despite the imminent presidential election.

Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise, he said in a press release. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

McConnell famously refused to allow former president Barack Obamas nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to proceed in 2016. At the time, McConnell argued it was an election year and voters should decide who filled the next Supreme Court seat; Garland was nominated in March of that year, eight months away from the election.

Responding to cries of hypocrisy from the left, McConnell has said that rule only applied because the Senate was controlled by a different party than the president; he reiterated that argument Friday.

Trump himself did not appear to be aware of Ginsburgs death when McConnell released the statement. The news of Ginsburgs death came during a campaign rally in Minnesota, where Trump did not show any indication he was aware of the news, aside from praising his potential future Supreme Court nominees, including Sen. Ted Cruz, and emphasizing the importance of the election for the future of the court. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

McConnell has long been on record saying he would appoint a Trump nominee to the Supreme Court in 2020 if a seat opens up, despite blocking Obamas nominee in 2016. Oh, wed fill it, McConnell told supporters in Kentucky last year.

The Friday night announcement of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death comes less than seven weeks before the next presidential election. But even if Trump loses to Joe Biden, Republicans will control the Senate until at least January.

Republicans hold a 53-seat majority in the 100-seat chamber. In the event of a tie, Vice President Mike Pence casts the tie-breaking vote. Because of that, four Republican senators would need to object to a new Supreme Court nominee in order to block a nomination, assuming all Democrats are opposed.

The White House is poised to swiftly name a nominee Trump released a list of Supreme Court candidates hed like to nominate just last week. The unusual practice of publicly naming potential candidates has given the administration and conservative legal advocacy groups time well in advance of an actual open seat to vet potential nominees and develop a confirmation strategy. Trump announced the nomination of Justice Brett Kavanaugh just two weeks after now-former justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement in July 2018.

Republican nominees already hold a 54 majority on the Supreme Court, but replacing Ginsburg would shift the court even further to the right; justices serve lifetime appointments and can only be removed through impeachment, so the next justice could spend decades on the bench. Trump has lashed out at Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. for siding with Ginsburg and the courts liberal wing in rulings against his administration, suggesting he would try to fill the next vacancy with a more politically reliable nominee.

According to NPR, before she died, Ginsburg told her granddaughter: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

McConnell has been open about filling judicial vacancies and the reshaping the ideological makeup of the courts being the top priority of the Senate under the Trump administration. Under his watch, the Senate has rarely passed meaningful legislation, but it has confirmed more than 200 of Trumps judicial nominees.

Senate Judiciary Committee chair Lindsey Graham released a statement Friday night expressing great sadness about Ginsburgs death, but he did not address what he would do if Trump announced a nominee. In October 2018, Graham said, If an opening comes in the last year of President Trump's term, and the primary process has started, we'll wait to the next election. Asked to confirm that statement at the time, Graham replied: Hold the tape.

Grahams office did not immediately return a request for comment. Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley is also on record saying he would not support a Supreme Court nomination in 2020, though he and Graham have been more reliable party-line voters over the past four years.

Trump has made the future of the Supreme Court a central part of his reelection strategy, similar to his approach in 2016. Last week, he added 20 more judges, politicians, and lawyers to the two dozen names already on his short list. Conservative operatives have long predicted that Trump would choose a woman as the nominee if Ginsburgs seat became open, either through her retirement or her death, with Judge Amy Coney Barrett of the US Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit and Judge Joan Larsen of the 6th Circuit long considered frontrunners.

The confirmation timelines for Trumps first two Supreme Court nominees offer a guide for how a third nomination could play out over the coming months.

It took just over two months from start to finish for the Senate to confirm Trumps first Supreme Court nominee, Justice Neil Gorsuch. He was nominated Feb. 1, 2017, and confirmed 5445 on April 7, 2017. Democrats were largely united against his nomination, and McConnell pushed through changes to Senate procedure to make it all but impossible for Democrats to use a filibuster to block Gorsuchs nomination from going forward.

Trumps second Supreme Court nominee, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, proved even more divisive than Gorsuch, but even that bitter political fight only took three months from nomination to confirmation. Trump announced Kavanaughs nomination July 9, 2018, and the Senate confirmed him Oct. 10, 2018, a time period that included an additional Senate hearing to vet allegations by Christine Blasey Ford that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her at a party when they were both in high school decades ago; Kavanaugh denied the allegation, and he was confirmed 5048.

Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine have both said they would oppose voting for a Supreme Court nominee too close to the 2020 election, though those statements were made before Ginsburgs death was announced Friday evening. Both senators, as well as Mitt Romney of Utah, have cast high-profile votes in opposition of Trump. Collins voted with Murkowski and the late John McCain to kill Obamacare repeal. Romney voted to impeach Trump earlier this year. Murkowski voted against Kavanaughs nomination to the Supreme Court (Collins voted in favor, while Romney was not yet in the Senate). None of their offices immediately responded to requests for comment from BuzzFeed News about the new vacancy.

Link:
Mitch McConnell Said The Senate Will Vote On Trumps Replacement For Ruth Bader Ginsburg - BuzzFeed News

Nailing It Down

By Dave Murnen and Pat Beaty

Its one of the ickier household chores: Getting the dirt and dead flies out of your window tracks.

However, there is an easy way to thoroughly clean the tracks that is quicker and not as distasteful. We think its a great end-of-summer chore.

Giving windows a true cleanup

Before you thoroughly wash your windows for the season, we suggest cleaning up the window tracks so that your entire window will look like new!

Its not all about aesthetics: a scrubbed up, bug-free window track is also a sign that your window will work efficiently, allowing rainwater to drain properly through the irrigation channels hidden under the track to the outside.

Im sure you know what were talking about. The grime, dirt, specks of mold and families of flies that quickly accumulate in the tracks of your windows are simply gross.

Even if you are someone who is diligent about cleaning them, its typically hard to get them truly clean. Plus you may not have realized how much it can help to have the irrigation channel hidden under the window track clean. If it is clean, it will prevent moisture from seeping into your window frames and siding.

So, heres how you do it: First open your vinyl or aluminum openable window all the way. Then lift the moving portion of the window completely out. (Yes, you can do that!) Now you can take a putty knife and pop out the lower track so that it exposes the window frame. Yes, it does come out. Just lift the movable portion and clean. (Do take note of how it was sitting in the window frame first so youll know which end to put where.)

So then you clean the part you removed and also clean and dry the area underneath the track. When the underneath and the track itself are clean and bug free, just place the window track back in, followed by the window.

Now, that feels better, doesnt it!

While you are paying attention to your windows, take a good look at the caulking around them.

Caulking keeps moisture out

The UV light of the sun damages caulk. A good caulk job should be hidden from the sun and elements by paint or flashing whenever possible. So, if the caulk around windows and doors looks like its weathered, its time to start fresh. Of course the optimal time to do this is before you paint. But if your inspection shows that new caulk is needed, dont delay and then paint over it when cured.

For starters, take a sharp tool which will cut out the old caulk and remove it to sound wood or metal. Caulking over existing caulk not only doesnt look as nice but it can also inadvertently trap moisture behind it defeating the purpose of caulking to begin with!

Once the affected section of caulk is removed, carefully apply new caulk. Use a wet finger or smoothing tool to seal the edges in tightlyless is more and covered is best.

Check for Z flashings at window

While you are inspecting your windows, take a look from a different angle and go outside.

Most homes have something called Z flashings or head flash which is located on top of the trim board for your windows.

The Z flashing diverts water away from the top of your window. Yes, your windows still show raindrops; however with Z flashing the majority of the water is directed away from the top of your window. This helps prevent leaks and the trouble they create for siding, trim and window frames.

However, not all homes have Z flashing above their windows. The better older homes back in the day had a sloped head trim board to do this job. If this is your type, make sure the wood is sound, caulked and well painted.

If your windows are leaking and dont seem to have flashing, take a trip to your local hardware store and talk to the folks there about how to install some. Or, its a good project for a licensed professional to install them.

Reviewing last week

Now that you are on a roll, lets review some of the end-of- summer chores we mentioned in last weeks column.

We reiterated that there is likely still time to paint your house before the weather turns. In our climate, its ideal to paint a homes exterior every five to seven years.

A good paint job is important for your houses siding. It helps keep out the water, mold and mildew out!

However, even if you dont paint your house this year, a scrub with 30 Second cleaner and a good rinse will get the grime off and actually help your current paint job last.

We also stressed ladder safety in the same breath as what to do if you dont have gutter guards to keep out debris or your gutters themselves need to be secured tightly to your house, this is also a great time to take care of those issues.

Dont forget to use a ladder stand-off and be sure the ladder is on solid ground when you use it to wash the outside of your windows.

One more reminder: After the winds earlier this week, you may have become extra aware of trees that are near your house. In fact, any grass, tree or shrub that is touching the siding or roof of your house needs to be cut back so its at least one-foot from any structure.

And of course, if you see any dangerous limbs or unstable trees taking care of that now before the fall storms blow in.

Dave Murnen and Pat Beaty are construction specialists at NeighborWorks of Grays Harbor County, where Murnen is executive director. This is a nonprofit organization committed to creating safe and affordable housing opportunities for all residents of Grays Harbor County. For questions about the ductless heat pump program or home repair, housing counseling for renters and landlords, home buyer education and buying, call 360-533-7828, listen to the extension picks that will best help you and leave a callback name and number. Due to COVID-19, our office is not currently open for a visit, but we will call you back.

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A trick to banish flies from your window tracks - The Daily World

Ruth Bader Ginsburg feminist icon, legal giant, toast of pop culture left this statement with granddaughter Clara Spera as cancer closed in: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

The big picture: For all that the nation owes "Notorious RBG" the hip-hop-inspired nickname she enjoyed and embraced Republicans are planning to do their best to be sure her robe is quickly filled, despite that last wish, with her ideological polar opposite.

The Trump court, solidified with an astonishing third court pick in 3+ years is the more likely outcome.

Here's what we learned from both parties after the justice's death at 87, from metastatic pancreatic cancer, was announced about 7:30 p.m. ET:

Republicans familiar with the thinking at both ends of Capitol Hill say that every signal points to moving fast:

Jonathan Swan reported last year that when U.S. Appeals Court Judge Amy Coney Barrett of Chicago came up as Trump was picking a successor to Justice Anthony Kennedy, the president said: "I'm saving her for Ginsburg."

Look for Republicans to ignore the precedent they set when they stonewalled Merrick Garland, after he was nominated by President Obama in 2016.

Remember that the title of the wily McConnell's memoir is "The Long Game."

Politico's Tim Alberta author of "American Carnage," the best modern book on Republicans says in a smart piece:

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) told Sean Hannity on Fox News that it's "critical" a justice be confirmed before Nov. 3, in part because of the possibility of a "constitutional crisis" if there were a 4-4 split over a disputed election outcome.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, hoping that this election will make him Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, can be expected to fight ferociously against a rocket-docket confirmation.

Howard Wolfson, a Mike Bloomberg strategist who's a veteran of Senate campaigns, writes in his Daily Biscuit newsletter:

Reporting was contributed by Zachary Basu, Alexi McCammond, David Nather, Hans Nichols, Jonathan Swan and Alayna Treene.

Go deeper: Ginsburg's life ... What they're saying.

Continue reading here:
A court fight for the ages - Axios

The United States unilaterally proclaimed on Saturday that UN sanctions against Iran are back in force and promised to punish those who violate them, in a move that risks increasing Washington's isolation but also international tensions.

"Today, the United States welcomes the return of virtually all previously terminated UN sanctions on the Islamic Republic of Iran," US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement.

According to him, the measures were "back in effect" from 8pm Washington time (0000 GMT Sunday).

The government of US President Donald Trump also promised to "impose consequences" on any UN member state that does not comply with the sanctions, even though it is one of the only countries in the world which believes they are in force.

Tehran's 'reaction has been largely restained' to new US sanction threats, FRANCE 24's Reza Sayah

The threat is formidable: those deemed to be in defiance by Washington will be denied access to the US financial system and markets.

"If UN member states fail to fulfiltheir obligations to implement these sanctions, the United States is prepared to use our domestic authorities to impose consequences for those failures and ensure that Iran does not reap the benefits of UN-prohibited activity," Pompeo stated.

He promised that measures would be announced in coming days against "violators".

Iran condemns US sanctions, calls on international community to 'stand against these wreckless actions'

'False claim'

With 45 days to go until the November 2 election, Trump could unveil those measures during his speech at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday.

However Washington is almost alone on the issue: all the other great powers China, Russia and also the US'sown European allies have challenged the claim.

"Any decision or action taken with a view to re-installing [the sanctions] would be incapable of legal effect," France, Britain and Germany said in a joint letter sent Friday to the Security Council and of which AFP has obtained a copy.

The Russian foreign ministry on Sunday condemned the United States' unilateral declaration that UN sanctions on Iran are back in force, saying that Washington's statements lacked legal authority.

"The illegitimate initiatives and actions of the United States by definition cannot have international legal consequences for other countries," the foreign ministry said in statement.

Russia's deputy ambassador to the UN, Dmitry Polyanskiy, also lamented the decision.

"It's very painful to see how a great country humiliates itself like this, opposes in its obstinate delirium other members of UN Security Council," he tweeted.

"We all clearly said in August that US claims to trigger #snapback are illegitimate. Is Washington deaf?"

'America's maximum pressure has turned into America's maximum isolation'

Reacting to the US move, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said Sunday that Washington's "maximum pressure" campaign against Tehran had thrown the US into "maximum isolation". "America's maximum pressure against Iran, in its political and legal aspects, has turned into America's maximum isolation," Rouhani said during a televised cabinet meeting.

The Americans themselves realise the statement is a "false claim", Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif said Saturday.

How did the UN arrive at this spectacular stand-off between the leading superpower and the rest of the planet? To answer that, one has to go back at least one month.

In mid-August, Trump's administration suffered a resounding defeat at the UN Security Council when it tried to extend the embargo on conventional weapons being sent to Tehran, which was due to expire in October.

Pompeo made an unusually vehement attack on France, Britain and Germany, accusing them of "siding with Iran's ayatollahs", and on August 20 announced a controversial move known as the "snapback", which aimed to re-establish all sanctions against Tehran a month later.

The sanctions were lifted in 2015 when Iran signed on to an international agreement not to seek to build nuclear weapons.

But Trump said that the landmark accord, negotiated by his predecessor Barack Obama, was insufficient and withdrew the US from the agreement in 2018, then renewed and even strengthened Washington's bilateral sanctions.

Iranians react to US slapping new sanctions 'we need to find a solution'

Legal pirouette

At the moment, the US is insisting it is still a participant in the agreement that it stormed out of, but only so that it can activate the "snapback" option.

Virtually every other member of the Security Council disputes Washington's ability to execute this legal pirouette, and the council has not taken the measure any further.

But this dialogue of the deaf has gone on unabated: the Trump administration acts as if the international sanctions are in place, while the rest of the international community continues to act as if nothing has changed.

Washington is hammering home that the arms embargo has been extended "indefinitely" and that many activities related to Tehran's nuclear and ballistic missile programmes are now subject to international sanctions.

But "I don't see anything happening", said one UN diplomat. "It would be just a statement. It's like pulling a trigger and no bullet coming out."

Another diplomat deplored the "unilateral" US act, saying that "Russia and China are sitting, happy, eating popcorn, watching" the "huge destabilising fallout" between Washington and its European partners.

But if the United States were to carry out the threat of secondary sanctions, tensions could continue to spiral.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

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US unilaterally declares UN sanctions on Iran are back in force - FRANCE 24 English

LEVITTOWN, PA Here are some of the past week's top news posts from the Levittown Patch site. You can scroll through the headlines below and click on the links

Share your local news, events and photographs by clicking "+" at the top of any page, or email Patch editor Doug Gross at doug.gross@patch.com.

Pedestrian Killed In Rt. 1 Hit-And-Run In Fairless Hills

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Drive-Thru Wawa In Falls Twp.: Groundbreaking Photos

Groundbreaking On Drive-Through Wawa In Falls Is Tuesday

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Pennsbury Superintendent Gretzula Announces Retirement

No Arrests In Fairless Hills Shooting, Victim Still Hospitalized

Mary's Cupboard Seeks Backpack Donations

The Supreme Court has decided ballots received up to three days after the election will be counted.

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Bristol Riverside Theatre Gets $93K In CARES Funding

The Supreme Court has decided ballots received up to three days after the election will be counted.

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Bristol Gets Money For Eviction Relief

Fitzpatrick, Finello To Debate In Bucks Congress Race

Bucks Co. Announces Ballot Drop-Box Locations For Election

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Deadly Hit-And-Run | Drive-Thru Wawa: Levittown News - Levittown, PA Patch

A new jewel was recently installed in the nearly completed Island County Administration Building on Camano Island.

Camano Island artist Jack Archibald helped place his 5-by-22-foot stained glass art panel Convergence on the north side of the new building at 121 N. East Camano Drive.

The colorful stained glassed art uses convergent lines and circles, which complements the buildings modern design inside and out: vertical red cedar plank siding outside and exposed wood beams inside. Outside, the glass changes mood as the sunlight shifts above. Inside, colors pop when the sun shines through.

I like the building; its sort of modern the glass is modern I like that convergence, Archibald said.

In the planning stages, Archibald had known there was no budget for a glass mural in the public buildings budget, so he proposed to build it for free. Artist Trust awarded him with a $1,500 Gap Grant, which covered most of the materials, so Archibalds donation was his many hours of labor.

Archibald and SHKS Architects worked to incorporate his design into the plans. The architects designed the window space to make installation easy. Archibald waited until the space was built then he measured it onsite and built the glass precisely. Then Archibald and Larry Bach fitted the large horizontal stained glass panel into the building.

Two old geezers up on the high lift its kind of fun, Archibald said.

He said his goal wastoadd art to a public space to inspire a vision of possibilities in ourselves and our children.

I think the entire county will be thrilled with it and grateful for Jacks contribution, said Island County Facilities Director Larry Van Horn. It looks stunning from both the inside and the outside, we couldnt be happier.

The art installation comes as construction is wrapping up on the $5.6 million project. Plus, the project is on time and on budget, Van Horn said. Phase 1 started last fall and is nearing completion a couple weeks early after COVID-19 measures initially set it back. Furniture will be installed the week of Oct. 12. Moving day has been scheduled for Oct. 23. Offices will move in over the weekend, so there's no interruption in county services.

There are hundreds of details to be finished between now and the 23rd of October, but were pretty firm that well be ready, Van Horn said.

In Phase 2, the crew will demolish the old annex building and build a secure sheriff parking area. The target date is Nov. 19 for the Sheriff's Office to move into its new building. Then all the departments will move into the same modern, artistic building.

Larry Bach helped install Jack Archibald's stained glass mural Wednesday in the Island County Administrative Building, Camano Island.

See more here:
Convergence of art and government in new Camano building - goskagit.com

Bill Ayers of Ayers Contracting built the home. Ayers, Trombetta says, worked through even the trickiest issues (installing the weathered beams with a skytrack!) easily. Beyond that, Trombetta says Ayers shares his penchant for perfection. He is absolutely as attentive to the details as I am. As Trombetta was only able to be onsite five times during the entire building process, he was especially grateful for Ayers clear and consistent communication through texts, photos and phone calls. But best of all, Ayers finished the project on budget.

Ayers, in turn, thanks his team of ace subcontractors, including D & W Mechanical, McMartin Tile & Marble, Kasson Contracting II, TC Coatings Unlimited and Fortified Coatings, for help that made the building process seamless.

Meet Trombetta and Ayers in our Northern Home & Cottage 2020 Virtual Tour, as they walk you through this new take on an Up North vacation home.

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This Glen Arbor Home is a Fresh Take on Cottage Style - MyNorth.com

Michael Jordan joining fantasy sports giant DraftKings, a Steve Wynn defamation lawsuit, and the Venetian launching the first post-COVID live tournament series dominate this weeks industry headlines

By: Andrew Burnett

Well kick off with the poker news, and that is dominated by Sheldon Adelsons Venetian Resort Las Vegas decision to run a 32-tournament series this month.

The $400k Deepstack Poker Showdown Series is the first chance for fans of live poker to attempt a return to normality in a COVID-19-dominated world.

The cardroom has been running one-day tournaments since re-opening, but this will be a clear step up, although Venetian tournament director Tommy LaRosa was quick to point out the safety aspects.

He told CardPlayer magazine: By beginning with single-table tournaments and then moving to multi-table tournaments, the process has allowed us to refine our protocols. That included installing plexiglass dividers at each table, allowing for eight-handed play as well as sanitizing tables, chairs, chips, dividers, and LaRosa emphasised that, All patrons must wear masks regardless of the plexiglass dividers being installed.

The Showdown Series runs until September 27th with the flagship finale being a $100k GTD, $400 buy-in NLHE Showdown from September 23rd to 27th.

Disgraced Wynn Resorts CEO Steve Wynn this week saw his defamation lawsuit face a setback, the Nevada Supreme Court siding with a former employee.

As we reported last year, Wynn has been facing trouble from multiple directions following serious sexual impropriety allegations.

Many of them stemmed from a 2018 Wall Street Journal article in which Jorgen Nielsen claimed Wynn had been sexually harassing employees for decades.

Wynns defamation lawsuit describes Nielsen as a disgruntled former employee who harbors a personal animus, dislike, and anger toward Mr. Wynn, according to the LVRJ.

The Nevada Supreme Court, however, sided with Nielsen this week, stating: Nielsen showed that his communication was made in direct connection with an issue of public interest in a public forum, and was truthful or made without knowledge of its falsehood.

Chicago Bulls and all-round NBA legend Michael Jordan has joined fantasy sports betting giants DraftKings as a special advisor, immediately boosting the companys share price.

Jordan will receive an undisclosed equity stake in exchange for providing guidance and strategic adviceon key business initiatives," according to press reports.

The retired star, who won six MVP awards and six championships during his playing career, is now the principal owner of North Carolina-based NBA team, the Charlotte Hornets.

The sportsbetting firm 5Dimes, widely known because of the 2018 murder of its founder William Sean Creighton known as 5DimesTony has apparently suspended relations with its US-based customers.

The Costa Rica-based sportsbook notified its customers that as of September 21st it would no longer be accepting bets from American sports bettors for an unnamed period of time, according to CardPlayer magazine.

However, questions have been raised about the unexpected suspension, with several customers claiming they have simply been switched to what may well just be a skin.

Multiple 5Dimes customers have since had their open futures bets and accounts transferred to a more obscure offshore site called Betanysports, according to legalsportsreport.com.

They report that, Suspiciously, the site layout, prices and bet options all look identical to 5Dimes and state that betanysports is also based in Costa Rica and a sister site to 5Dimes.

Founder and owner, William Sean 5DimesTony Creighton, was abducted and murdered back in 2018, his body found a year later a dozen people arrested including two transport police officers.

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Michael Jordan Takes on Sportsbetting Role and Live Tournament Series Poker Returns - HighstakesDB

TAMPA, Fla., Sept. 15, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Tzadik Properties, LLC an industry-leading, multi-family property management company based in Miami-Dade County, Florida and in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was recently the subject of a Tampa Bay Times article published in regards to its properties in and around the Tampa Bay area.

Of the referenced properties, only Timberfalls is owned by Tzadik; the remainder are third-party managed.As such, Tzadik is subject to constraints contained within the owners' capital expenditures budgets in undertaking repairs and maintenance but has made improvements to the full extent possible at both Timberfalls and the third-party managed properties.

Since acquiring Timberfalls, Tzadik Properties, LLC has spent $1,511,492 in capital expenditures, which go above normal repairs and maintenance; and of that, $65,094 has been spent during the COVID-19 pandemic. The damages noted in the article are in the process of being repaired. In fact, contracts have been signed for $626,000 worth of repairs and should be commencing shortly, based on third-party contractors.

"Tzadik Properties, LLC continues to seek out and work with a range of agencies and organizations for even quicker repairs and to be able to offer even more rent concessions to its tenants during these challenging times," said Adam Hendry, founder and CEO of Tzadik Properties. "As a company, we strive to do the right thing for our residents, for our staff and for the communities in which we serve."

Related to work orders and maintenance requests, from March 1, 2020 to July 31, 2020, Tzadik had 836 work orders submitted and completed at its Florida properties. During the previous 5-month span of October 1, 2019 to February 28, 2020, Tzadik only had 228 work orders submitted and completed. This presents an increase of 366% in work orders that were completed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since taking over the properties in Hillsborough County six years ago, $4,657,039.56 has been spent on capital repairs, including major improvements and replacements such as siding, roofs, tubs, flooring, HVAC, etc. In addition, for the Tampa properties, $788,884 was spent from January 2020 to August 2020 on normal repairs and maintenance (painting, patching of walls, small repairs, repairing a faucet or toilet, repairing AC filters, etc.).

Further, another $368,753 was spent on contracts such as maintaining sprinkler systems, landscaping, lift station repairs, pool maintenance, security, etc. Of that amount, $36,234 was spent on pest control.

The article also questions Tzadik's delinquency and eviction process in relation to Governor DeSantis' Executive Order suspending residential evictions due to COVID-19. Per the company's policy on notices, Tzadik continued to offer residents ample opportunities to work out payment arrangements. From March 1, 2020, to present, Tzadik has provided concessions to prevent eviction for 33 of its Timberfalls residents, totaling $16,335. During this timeframe, Tzadik extended concessions to prevent evictions to 360 residents at its properties throughout the state of Florida, for a total dollar amount of $829,323. Throughout Hillsborough County, at its 11 properties, Tzadik provided $172,000 in total concessions, which saved 93 residents from eviction. In addition, Tzadik provided 1,448 of its Florida tenants with $80 rental credits for prepaying their rent during the months of May, June and July, in the total amount of $118,840.

Tzadik Properties, LLC granted $671,000 of concessions and credits to renters for the TZA portfolio, which consists of Tampa-owned properties as well as Winter Haven and Jacksonville, totaling 14 properties. Company-wide, from March through August, Tzadik offered concessions to 5,465 tenants to go towards moving in, resident referrals, renewals and miscellaneous resident concessions in the amount of $854,351.26.

The total amount of concessions / credits that Tzadik granted to renters at Timberfalls who were at risk of eviction was $88,000. Tzadik worked with renters who were willing to speak with property management and offered 50% off all balances that had more than one month's rent in arrears in exchange for them paying the other half.

At one property that Tzadik third-party manages, there was a miscommunication between the site level and outside evictions counsel regarding whether the property was financed with a federally backed mortgage, leading to a handful of arguably questionable evictions that were dismissed immediately upon discovery.

Of note,twoof the tenants interviewed for the Tampa Bay Times article wereplaced in evictions in March, before lockdown measures and after months of rental delinquencies. One individual who was referenced in the article, is an unauthorized resident who has been arrested on property before. The leaseholder of that unit has a current balance is $4,968.65, and has not made any payments or responded to Tzadik's offers of waiving half of the balance. Assistance options were sent to her door and emailed on June 15, 2020. Again, the tenant has been unresponsive to all collection efforts. Since the beginning of March, that unit has submitted seven work orders. All were completed with completion notes, and the unit has not submitted a repair request since May 1, 2020.

Regarding the PPP loans referenced in the article, they are irrelevant to the evictions and property conditions as acceptance of PPP funds was not conditioned upon eviction forbearance.As suggested by its name, the Paycheck Protection Program was designed to cover payroll costs and keep employees employed.Unlike most of its peer property management companies, all of its employees remained on-site to serve the tenants throughout the pandemic and that is what the funds were expended on. In fact, at the beginning of March, before COVID-19, the company had four employees at Timberfalls. By mid-April, it had five employees and was looking to hire additional employees to take care of work orders, and in June it had six employees in which one was an additional newly added position. Currently, Timberfalls has five employees and one open position. In Hillsborough County, six new maintenance positions have been added since April after the pandemic began to better handle the 300% increase in residents repair requests/work orders.

Due to the PPP loan, Tzadik Properties, LLC was able to retain all its employees company-wide. The loan was also used to provide all Tzadik employees with the newly created Tzadik Stimulus Package, which helps all 217 employees with added expenses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Expenses include hand sanitizer, child daycare, indoor children's toys, TV streaming programs memberships, roommate/spouse job loss, household income loss, and to thank employees for showing up to work every day to assist residents during these uncertain and unusual times.

Per the PPP program, funds also went to keep residents and employees safe per the CDC guidelines and recommendations for COVID-19. Related expenditures included PPE, video doorbells, additional cleaning supplies, masks, gloves, sanitizers, etc.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Tzadik Properties has maintained 96% stabilized occupancy and is continuing business as usual, meaning that all offices and properties were open, including:

Moving forward, Tzadik Properties is continuing to meet with organizations such as City of Tampa Housing and Community Development, Department of Code Enforcement for the City of Tampa, and others, to ensure the end result is positive for the residents, the community and the company. Additionally, Tzadik had reached out to Councilman Luis Viera twice. Tzadik and Councilman Viera are in the process of scheduling a follow-up phone call.

Tzadik is also working with Rapid Rehousing, a subset of the Housing First approach to end homelessness, which is designed to help those who are homeless or at risk of losing their home. During COVID-19, Tzadik placed approximately 10 of its Florida-based tenants in that program, which will cover rental costs for one year. This program is one example of ways in which Tzadik Properties works towards its goal of providing affordable and sustainable housing for all.

"Tzadik did not shut down any leasing offices or put a halt to any resident work order requests after COVID hit. Because work orders increased so much during the pandemic, we hired 6 extra positions in maintenance here at our Tampa properties and that has really helped us keep up with the higher demand. All team members were issued PPE including face shields, bodysuits, gloves, masks, hand sanitizer and other cleaning supplies to keep us safe. We also increased our cleaning of common areas, the office and anywhere residents may frequent."

-Angel Flores, Tampa Area Maintenance Manager

"I have been employed with Tzadik since March 2018. When many lost their jobs, Tzadik Management ensured our jobs were not only safe but that our residents could still live during this time knowing their landlords are here to support them every day. I have had extensive experience with property management companies from Greystar to the St. Petersburg Housing Authority and the commitment level Tzadik has shown during these troubling times deserves some recognition and should be talked about publicly. I could not be happier to be a part of such an amazing team and company."

-Vanessa Grant, Multi-Site Property Manager

"Throughout the pandemic, Tzadik has given me the platform to work and assist our residents during a very difficult and uncertain time. I created a community food bank, delivered food boxes and contacted dozens of agencies to solicit assistance to help our resident meet their financial obligations. Not only did Tzadik allow these activities during the workday, they encouraged me to do more and met my enthusiasm by allowing residents to clear their outstanding balance by paying 50% of the amount owed. I am proud to work for such a great company."

-Dwone Burse, Property Manager for Bella Mar, Tampa

"I've been a resident for 7 years. I'm very pleased with everything that has taken place. I don't have any issues and am grateful to live here. This property is a wonderful place to live and all of my maintenance requests are taken care of. I have been really pleased with the new manager of maintenance. They are a great team. I would recommend anyone to live here. My daughter has lived here for 2 years. She loves it also."

-Leslie Dupont Parker, Timber Falls Resident

"I am very satisfied with the service that I am getting from maintenance."

-Ronald Shannon and Elsie Flacher, Timber Falls Resident

About Tzadik Properties, LLC Tzadik Properties, LLC is a growing, innovative and driven real estate and property management company based in Miami, Florida. Since its formation in 2007, Tzadik has managed more than $1 billion in apartment complexes, over 15 million square feet of commercial real estate, and more than 19,000 units in over 20 states. Through excellent management, a focus on company culture, and a tech-driven style of operating, Tzadik has established a reputation for "Building Lasting Relationships." In 2020, Tzadik acquired JM Real Estate, Inc., a full-service, commercial property management, leasing, sales and investment acquisition company that is located in Brevard County, Florida, and serves from Titusville to Palm Bay. For more information about Tzadik, visit https://tz-m.com or call (305) 770-6383.

Contact: Dure & Company, PR Consultant 954-723-9350 / 247401@email4pr.com

SOURCE Tzadik Properties, LLC

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Multi-family Property Management Company, Tzadik Properties, LLC, Reaffirms Commitment to its Residents and Upholding Quality Standards of Living in...