Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

By Tia Lynn Ivey

managing editor

For over 35 years, the Clothes Closet has served families in need throughout Madison and Morgan County by providing free clothes and household items donated from the community. But now, it may be up to the community to help the Clothes Closet, located in downtown Madison directly behind the Morgan County Courthouse.

The building, owned by Morgan County, is in dire need of a new roofa project expected to cost anywhere from $30,000 to upwards of $50,000. Currently, the several dedicated volunteers at the Clothes Closet have buckets set up to catch leaks from the roof while gaping holes in the roof are visible on the outside and inside of the building. While the county is currently collecting bids for the project from local roof contractors, the county has not yet committed to footing the bill for the new roof replacement.

It all depends on the cost, said County Manager Adam Mestres, who noted completed bid packages will be presented to the Morgan County Board of Commissioners for review at the Feb. 18 meeting. We are looking for community partners to help with the cost, whether it be the city of Madison, the religious community, or others. But the roof is in bad shape will need to be completely replaced.

Bernice Davis, 91, founded the Clothes Closet over 35 years ago and still volunteers every week, along with other long-time volunteers Dottie Kurtz, Lena Cole, Julia Osaby, and Pat Nesbitt.

When we moved into this building, I thought Thank God, we will never have to move again, but here we are, said Davis as she sorted through donations at the Clothes Closet. This is just such a convenient location for people to get to when they are in need. You would be surprised how many people we have come through herethe families and the children who are helped by what we give out. People truly need this.

Dottie Kurtz recounted helping a young a man find a new shirt for a job interview and single mothers with children find school clothes. Kurtz wrote a letter to the county stressing the Clothes Closets need for help.

Right now its hard to imagine where we would go and still have the space we need and convenience to those who need us, wrote Kurtz, who stressed the important work the Clothes Closet does for the local community. Whether its a 4-year-old child who visited us weekly with her grandmother and watching her learn the value of volunteering with us, a homeless man coming in from the cold and being fitted for new socks and shoes, a group from a local church gathering clothes for a family whose home has burned to the ground, a young man seeking a nice shirt and slacks to wear to a job interview or a teacher at the Crossroads Alternative School seeking old shirts that can be repurposed to create their yearly public art project now installed at Farmview Market. Of course everyone coming through our doors doesnt have such a need but we have been able to help them with clothing, books and small household items so they can have a little extra money saved for their food and shelter.

Kurtz also stressed the importance of the Clothes Closets current location.

Our central location behind the Courthouse has been vital for those who seek our help and many walk or ride with others to visit us. Over the years these people have become extended family to the few of us who regularly volunteer our time each week, wrote Kurtz.

Davis is hopeful that the county and community will come together to keep the Clothes Closet open and at the same location.

We are very hopeful help will come through, said Davis. You know, when I started this all those years ago, it was just about helping people in need. Thats what we do here, what we have always done. It makes you feel good to know you have done good for somebody else. We just want to keep on doing that.

The Clothes Closet is open to public on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Clothes Closet is located in a small brick building directly behind the Morgan County Courthouse, off East Jefferson Street in Madison.

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Time To Help Is Now - Morgan County Citizen

Casagmo condominiums unit owners association has objected to First Selectman Rudy Marconi's suggestion that condos in Casagmo and Fox Hill might, with certain deed restrictions, count with the state as affordable housing.

Casagmo condominiums unit owners association has objected to First Selectman Rudy Marconi's suggestion that condos in Casagmo and Fox Hill might, with certain deed restrictions, count with the state as

Photo: Macklin Reid / Hearst Connecticut Media

Casagmo condominiums unit owners association has objected to First Selectman Rudy Marconi's suggestion that condos in Casagmo and Fox Hill might, with certain deed restrictions, count with the state as affordable housing.

Casagmo condominiums unit owners association has objected to First Selectman Rudy Marconi's suggestion that condos in Casagmo and Fox Hill might, with certain deed restrictions, count with the state as

Ridgefield condo owners insist their units arent affordable housing

Casagmo is in an uproar, triggered by First Selectmen Rudy Marconis suggestion that units in the Main Street condominium complex might help the town meet the states affordable housing requirements.

As you may know, unit owners at Casagmo have invested heavily in recent years to renovate, repair and upgrade the complex, James Hulbert, president of the Casagmo Phase II and Master Associations, said in a Jan. 17 letter to Marconi. We have spent millions of dollars on siding and roofing replacement and are in process of completing a costly drainage/paving project. There have been other projects as well and future projects are planned.

These projects have been initiated to protect and increase the value of the property to the benefit of all unit owners as well as to improve the quality of life for our residents, the letter reads. These investments coupled with the prime location off historic Main Street, within walking distance of all the downtown amenities, is making Casagmo a more sought after and desirable place to live.

Marconi discussed the 307-unit Casagmo and the 287-unit Fox Hill condominiums off Danbury Road at a Jan. 7 public hearing of the Planning and Zoning Commission, concerning revisions to the Town Plan of Conservation and Development.

Speakers at the hearing decried how the towns affordable housing law allows developers to circumvent local zoning if 30 percent of the units in their proposed projects would meet state affordability guidelines. Marconi noted that the town would be exempt from this provision if 10 percent of all housing units in town were deemed affordable by the state, and deed restricted so that theyd remain affordable for the next 40 years.

Marconi had said many units in Casagmo and Fox Hill might be in a price range that would meet the state guidelines, but theyd need to be deed-restricted to satisfy the state requirement and count against the 10 percent needed to get out from under the towns affordable housing law.

The Casagmo owners took umbrage with this.

We want to let you know that we are caught off guard by your recent comments suggesting that the town should encourage units at Casagmo to become deed restricted as affordable so they can count toward the town having 10 percent of its housing stock meet state affordability standards, Hulbert wrote.

Your comments made to the Planning and Zoning Commission during discussion of the draft Plan of Conservation and Development for Ridgefield have been published by the local newspapers (Danbury News-Times, Ridgefield Press), the letter reads. Casagmo is a private community and we are disappointed these comments were made without first letting us know or contacting us to discuss.

One of the concerns at the complex appears to be a fear that prices could be hurt just by being mentioned as a location where units might count against the state affordable housing requirement.

We understand there is a real need for affordable housing in Ridgefield, Hulbert wrote. However, we also have a concern that your published comments could have a negative impact on the overall value of our property and of our unit owner investments.

For example, these comments introduce an unknown regarding the future of Casagmo and unknowns tend to concern potential buyers, leading them to wait and see what happens. Markets generally react negatively to uncertainty, Hulbert said. We also believe that the town government has no standing to force or encourage individual unit owners in a private condominium association to add deed restrictions which could change market value.

Hulbert asked Marconi to publicly retract his comments.

Asked by The Press if he had a response, Marconi said the comments were just an example of what we might consider.

Read more from the original source:
Ridgefield condo owners insist their units aren't 'affordable housing' - The Ridgefield Press

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited a Jacksonville, Florida, roofing contractor for fall hazards at three construction sites and is seeking $1,007,717 in penalties. OSHA cited Florida Roofing Experts, Inc., owned by Travis Slaughter, under its egregious citation policy with eight willful violations of the fall protection standard.

Tong_stocker / Shutterstock.com

Days earlier, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit found Slaughter; Florida Roofing Experts; and its predecessor firm, Great White Construction, Inc., in contempt of court for failing to pay $2,202,049 in penalties for earlier safety and health violations. Slaughter could face federal incarceration if he and his company fail to pay the outstanding penalties plus interest and fees.

Employers that ignore multiple court orders requiring correction of violations and payment of penalties will be held accountable, Solicitor of Labor Kate OScannlain said in a Department of Labor statement.

This enforcement action demonstrates that OSHA will utilize every resource available to ensure that safety and health standards are followed to protect workers, OScannlain said.

The Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission issued 12 final orders to pay penalties for multiple egregious, willful, and repeat violations for lack of fall protection and other safety and health hazards cited October 2, 2017, and June 5, 2018, at worksites in Florida.

The court held the companies and Slaughter in civil contempt on January 3, 2020.

On January 9, OSHA cited Florida Roofing Experts for four new fall protection violations at a worksite in Middleburg, Florida, and four new violations at two jobsites in Fleming Island, Florida.

New fall protection violations cited included:

This employer has an extensive OSHA history with willful, serious, and repeat violations that has demonstrated an egregious disregard for the safety of their workers, OSHA Atlanta, Georgia, Regional Administrator Kurt Petermeyer said in an agency statement.

The employer continues to allow employees to work without fall protection and has made no reasonable effort to eliminate the risk, Petermeyer said.OSHA has investigated Florida Roofing Experts and its predecessor, Great White Construction, 19 times within the past 7 years, according to the agency, resulting in 42 citations related to improper fall protection, ladder use, and eye protection.

The agency now has placed Florida Roofing Experts in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP) due to the high-gravity willful, egregious violations related to fall hazards.

The SVEP replaced an earlier Enhanced Enforcement Program (EEP) deemed ineffective because agency personnel failed to consistently conduct follow-up inspections. Employers in the more narrowly focused SVEP are subject to mandatory follow-up inspections.

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Over $1 Million in Fall Hazard Penalties Sought by OSHA - EHS Daily Advisor

There are at least 13 candidates jockeying to replace the late City Commissioner Nick Fish in May.

Yesterday, one of them, Tera Hurst, the executive director of Renew Oregon, a clean energy group, picked up a valuable endorsement from NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon, the group formerly known as the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws.

"Tera Hurst will be an incredible addition to City Hall. [At Renew] she has redefined what an environmental leader looks like, and inspired NARAL to support Clean Energy Jobs, with the understanding that reproductive justice includes environmental justice," says the endorsement, which goes out to 13,000 NARAL Oregon members and probably many more than that on social media.

Although endorsements don't always mean a lot, NARAL's pick is helpful in a crowded field in which candidates don't have much time to distinguish themselves from each other before the May 19 primary election. It also comes at a time when abortion rights are under threat around the country and in the federal courts.

NARALPro-Choice Oregon positions itself as a key player in that fight. "NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon is the leading grassroots pro-choice advocacy organization in Oregon," the organization says on its website. "We educate our members and identified supporters, provide strategic advice to candidates, mobilize get out the vote efforts, and ensure that pro-choice policies are a top priority in local and state government."

Typically, before groups active in Portland city electionssuch as public employee unions or business groupsissue endorsements, they ask candidates to fill out questionnaires, come in for interviews, or both.

Hurst says the choice makes sense. "It is common for an organization to quickly endorse its chosen candidate, who they know is an uncompromising champion of their mission," Hurst says in an email. "NARAL was not only confident in my candidacy for City Council but also invested in sending a strong message of early support in an open election."

One of the other candidates in the race, Margot Black, the founder of Portland Tenants United, expressed disappointment that NARAL endorsed without interviewing other candidates.

"I'm a little puzzled why an organization like NARAL would make such an impactful endorsement without any process at all," Black says. "There are a number of progressive women in this race and I think it make sense to conduct and endorsement process. I imagine people on NARAL'S mailing list would assume there was a process."

Former Multnomah County Commissioner Loretta Smith, perhaps the best-known candidate in the race, declined to comment directly on NARAL's decision, although Smith noted she'd worked closely with the group at the county and hopes to do so again if elected.

"I appreciate the work they do," Smith says. "My campaign is going to be about povertyputting roofs over people's heads and put food on their tables." (Julia Degraw, who ran against Fish in 2018 and is running again, could not be reached for comment.)

Although NARAL recently released a slate of statewide endorsements which mentioned NARAL's political action committee was "meeting with amazing candidates every day," Christel Allen, NARAL Oregon's political director, acknolwedges in the case of the City Council race that didn't happen.

"In this case, we didn't [interview candidates]," Allen said in a statement. "We take our endorsements seriously, and this was a unanimous decision. We recognize Tera Hurst as a true reproductive freedom champion and a leader in our organization. We are proud that pro-choice voters trust us to support candidates like Tera who will go above and beyond to champion our mission. We know she will be an extraordinary partner in City Hall."

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In Crowded Race to Replace Nick Fish, NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon Endorses One of its Own Board Members Without Interviewing Other Candidates - Willamette...

Project: A seven-story building containing 440 rentals at 57 Alexander St.in downtown Yonkers may be one step closer to becoming a reality. Rose Associates, the developers behind the proposed building, closed on the property two months after securing a tax incentive package from the Yonkers Industrial Development Agency.

Planned amenities in the luxury rental project includean outdoor swimming pool, a roof deck, coworking spaceand 44 affordable housing units, to name a few, as part of the tax incentive agreement.

Rendering of 57 Alexander Street proposal(Photo: Yonkers Industrial Development Agency)

Rose Associates has also agreed to develop a 0.5-acre park 25,000 square feet fronting the Hudson and 443 parking spaces. Construction costs willexceed $177 million.

Location: 57 Alexander is a 6-acre site two blocks from the Yonkers train station and Avalon Yonkers.

Motion picture firm Lionsgate will occupy a $100 million studio across the street from 57 Alexander.

The site is also located within walking distance to a 20-acre, $502 million development by real estate firm Extell Development.

RELATED:Yonkers waterfront apartments, park win tax incentives; when work will start

WESTCHESTER:Developers place bets on riverside development

YONKERS: Real estate is 'white hot'; see all the housing projects in the works

Aerial view of 57 Alexander in downtown Yonkers(Photo: B6 Real Estate Advisors)

Latest Development: The owners of 57 Alexander have agreed to sell the site for $23 million.

B6 Real Estate, the brokerage behind the transaction, said the Altman family agreed to sell the site in December to make way for the development.

Altman Stage Lighting Co occupies a 75,000-square-foot warehouse at 57 Alexander.

Rendering of 57 Alexander proposal in Yonkers(Photo: Rose Associates)

Up next: Rose Associates needs to secure construction financing. The developer told The Journal News/lohud that construction would begin in January back when the IDA granted its tax incentive package.

Construction is expected to wrap up by mid-2022. Rose Associates told theYonkers IDA the project wouldyield 631construction jobs and 10 full-time jobs in the city. No word yet on what rents will be.

Read or Share this story: https://www.lohud.com/story/money/real-estate/2020/01/30/yonkers-waterfront-apartments-park-proposal-moves-forward/4608754002/

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Luxury apartments to replace waterfront warehouse in downtown Yonkers: the latest - Lohud

It is a crisp winter morning and the area around Notre Dame is sealed off as it has been since the fire last April that devastated the cathedral.

Those in the know, however, especially those with the keenest of eyes, might spot some small movement high up to the south of the stricken and blackened structure.

The bees of Notre Dame, whose escape from the inferno seemed almost miraculous, are thriving and conserving their energy ready to produce honey this summer, just as they have every year since they took up residence on the sacristy roof in 2013.

Nearly 10 months after the Paris cathedral was ravaged by fire, the three colonies are healthier than ever, according to their beekeeper.

Sibyle Moulin, who looks after the hives, spoke to the Guardian after she visited them for the first time in six months. Access to the site is restricted because the severely damaged 13th-century stone structure is still unstable and there is a risk from lead particles from the roof that was turned into dust in the blaze.

Moulin, who had to undergo a health and safety course to resume visits to the honey bees, said the 30-45,000 insects in the three hives are absolutely fine.

Theres nothing wrong with them at all. The behaviour of the colonies is perfectly normal, she said. Theyre not very active at this time of the year, but thats how it should be. They seem fine.

When fire tore through the cathedral last year, most people feared the bees, which can number up to 50,000 per colony, had perished.

Moulins company, Beeopic, received calls of support from well-wishers all over the world, who were moved by reports that the bees had not abandoned their queens in the face of danger, but had gorged on honey and hunkered down to protect their colonies.

Although untouched by the flames which destroyed the cathedrals famous roof structure, Moulin says she was initially worried the heat might have damaged the hives, given their position on the sacristy roof on the south side of the cathedral and approximately 30m (98ft) below the main roof. Another concern was that firefighters, whose priority was to control the fire, might have disturbed them in their frantic efforts to put out the blaze.

Of course, my first thought was for the cathedral itself. My second was for the bees. I kept watching the television footage of the fire but the captions at the bottom always hid the sacristy roof, which is below the main roof, so I couldnt see if theyd been touched, Moulin said.

Drone footage in the aftermath of the fire showed the hives were intact, but it took several weeks of detective work to establish if the colonies had survived the proximity to temperatures estimated to have reached 800C(1,470F) at their peak.

An ounce of hope. The three hives are still in place and visibly intact, Nicolas Gant, head of Beeopic, tweeted hours after the fire was put out. As for the occupants the mystery remains. All that smoke, heat, water.

We will have to see if our brave bees are still with us as soon as were given access to the site, which may take some time, he added.

Two days later, Gant announced: Our bees at the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral are still alive.

Moulin says beekeepers had to piece together clues in film footage taken of the cathedral.

We examined satellite images and we saw the hives were intact and hadnt been knocked over and there were no puddles of wax underneath them. As the wax melts at around 70C we knew they hadnt been affected by the heat. We werent worried about the smoke, because we use it to sedate them so we knew theyd just go to sleep around the queen.

Then we were sent some film from some of the people working on securing the cathedral and we could see bees going in and out of the hives. We studied their behaviour and saw they were carrying balls of pollen on their feet which meant they were building up stocks of protein to feed the young.

As soon as we knew there were baby bees we knew it meant the queens were fine since they were producing them.

It was good news, but Moulin could not be 100% sure of the health of the colonies until she was given permission to visit the devastated cathedral in July, three months after the fire.

They didnt seem to have been affected at all. Of course, theres lots of noxious material all around them, including the lead dust, but theyre not like children; they wont be licking walls or touching anything other than flowers. The only thing they might come into direct contact with that might be contaminated is the water they drink.

In July, Moulin retrieved 66kg of honey from the three hives, samples from which have been sent to laboratories in Canada to be tested for lead.

Beeopic maintains the hives and bee colonies, but the honey produced from those on the roof of Notre Dame, and the 350 other hives in Paris that the company looks after of a total of 700 dotted around the city belongs to the owners of the buildings on whose roofs they sit, including that of Louis Vuitton on the Champs Elyses and the nearby Grand Palais on the north bank of the Seine.

The urban honey bees, of the Brother Adam Buckfast variety, were developed for their mild temperament in the 1920s by a Benedictine monk. The Notre Dame hives were installed on the cathedral roof in 2013 as a gesture to promote biodiversity.

There are also hives managed by other companies on the Paris Opera buildings, the Comdie Franaise, Coca-Colas French headquarters and several banks.

Moulin, who normally visits each hive at least once a month, hopes to remove the queens from the three Notre Dame hives this summer and replace them with younger royals. The queen bees can live for five years, while their worker bees have a lifespan of around 45 days.

We usually do this every year because when the queen bee is older there is a tendency for the colony to swarm, which tends to frighten people in the city, so we try to avoid it. The problem is that anything leaving the site has to be washed down and decontaminated, and I cant see myself putting the bees into the shower, she said.

At first the authorities wanted us to remove the hives, but theyve seen [the cathedral through the catastrophe and theyre still there, so it seemed more intelligent to leave them alone.

Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield on Twitter for all the latest news and features

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They survived fire and toxic fumes. So what happened next to Notre Dame's bees? - The Guardian

This Summerland cabin is more than 130 years old but needs a new home where it can be preserved.

Image Credit: FACEBOOK / Old Kelowna

January 29, 2020 - 6:30 PM

One of the Okanagans oldest buildings has been in search of a home for the past few years and historical enthusiasts are hoping it will find one soon.

The Trout Creek Sod Roof Cabin was built between 1886 and 1888 so its between 132 and 134 years old. It was built by ranch hands at Thomas Ellis Ranch and has been sitting on a concrete pad in a field near Highway 97 south of Summerland for a number of years.

The 42-acre property on which it sits had been for sale so, last fall, a petition campaign gathered more than 2,000 signatures asking the District of Summerland to preserve it.

That petition was presented to Summerland council by George Downton, president of the Summerland branch of the Okanagan Historical Society, on Nov. 25. Council simply voted to accept the report.

Downton said the cabin used to be closer to Okanagan Lake but was moved to the front of the property, the bottom two rows of logs were replaced and a concrete pad poured. The roofing under the sod will need replacing.

The previous property owner was interested in developing the land but the new owner may be considering replanting the part where the cabin sits and putting up a fruit stand.

The Heritage Society cannot own property or buildings so Downton was hoping the municipality would take on that role or that the new owner might be willing to take possession of the cabin, possibly for use as a visitor attraction. But that could raise concerns about liability and insurance issues.

Since the land is in the Agricultural Land Reserve, relocating it on that site may complicate preservation efforts further.

The cabin is on the provincial and federal heritage registries because its one of the oldest buildings in the Okanagan but those registries dont offer protection, Downton said.

The only Okanagan sites on the registry that have been protected are the Father Pandosy Mission in Kelowna (established in1859) and the Fairview Townsite near Oliver (founded in the 1890s).

On Wednesday, Jan. 29, Downton met with the new owners of the land and the CAO of Summerland to discuss the possible future of the cabin.It was the first meeting of the parties so the issue was not discussed in detail. Downton hopes for more meetings but no dates have been set.

Find out more about theTrout Creek Sod Roof Cabinhere.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Rob Munroor call 250-808-0143 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroomand be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.

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This 130-year-old sod roof cabin is looking for a permanent home in the Okanagan - iNFOnews

Lincolnshire Police say they have dedicated a special team of investigators to combat the current crime wave which has seen over 40 thefts of from church roofs in the county in the last year.

With significant thefts of lead from Billingborough, Threekingham and Pickworth Churches in the last two months, as well as other locations around the county and beyond, the county force says its officers are making enquiries into the lead thefts from churches in the region during 2019 and January 2020.

So far, four men, aged 24, 28, 30 and 43, were arrested in the West Midlands on suspicion of conspiracy to steal after the theft from Threekingham. They have been released on bail while investigations continue, say police.

Chief inspector Phil Vickers said: It is believed that in total there were more than 40 offences committed in Lincolnshire where lead was stolen from rural churches during 2019, and though at this stage 16 of those are believed to be linked, it is anticipated that number may increase as the investigation progresses.

During 2019 Lincolnshire Police worked with the Lincoln Diocese and individual church premises across the county, providing site-specific advice to 53 premises as well as broader guidance to prevent offending, in addition to several hundred site visits that had been carried out previously.

The impact of these offences goes well beyond the significant financial cost. Communities have felt a great sense of loss at the damage caused to their heritage, and increased vulnerability due to the rural nature of many of the premises.

She added: We know that in addition to the loss of lead, extensive damage has been caused to the fabric of the buildings by water ingress during bad weather.

We continue to work with rural communities to prevent offending, and encourage anyone seeing or hearing anything suspicious at Heritage Sites, particularly at night but also during the day, to contact police immediately.

Fundraising efforts have already sprung up to try and raise the cost of replacing the roofs, with all of them temporarily covered with sheeting and roofing felt until arrangements can be made.

The nationally-important medieval wall paintings and 600-year-old carved wooden rood screen were put at risk from water leaks when the lead was stolen from Pickworth Church earlier this month.

Interim minister Rev Cameron Watt is responsible for both Pickworth and threekingham churches and said: Anything like this is a real challenge but having two of our churches targeted in a short period of time over Christmas is heartbreaking.

He said the small communities would have to find ways to foot the repair bill and would be appealing to the Diocese for support, particularly for Threekingham where the church congregation is so small.

It is not a victimless crime. We will have to look at grant applications and money from heritage bodies and fundraising, he said.

You can donate to the Pickworth appeal at: http://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/pickworth-village-church-standrews

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Police team set up to tackle over 40 thefts of lead from churches in the last year - Sleaford Standard

See, the problem in San Francisco too, the politics are just crooked, you know what I mean? And they can go sideways. They even undermine the people in charge. Nick Bovis, allegedly, on a wire.

A few years ago, your humble narrator and Rose Pak came across a pile of detritus dumped on a Chinatown street corner. This would not do. She whipped out her cell phone, dialed Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru, and the mess was cleaned in short order.

Thats what Mohammed Nuru did along with, per a 75-page federal complaint unsealed yesterday, many, many other less savory things: In summation, rampant public corruption.

Yesterday things went sideways and undermined the people in charge. It was revealed that there was gambling going on in the casino and nobody but nobody shouldve been shocked, shocked. When a 75-page federal complaint and joint U.S. Attorney-FBI press conference prompts newspapers to reprint Nurus lengthy C.V. of ethical breaches, readers and journalists alike can question how the hell he got this job.

But thats missing the point. That C.V. got him this job. And his ability to field phone calls from the citys power players and solve their problems expediently kept it for him.

This is the third time were reporting this, but it seems warranted: Multiple sources this month confirmed to Mission Local that Nurus Public Works cleaning crews showed up ahead of time to spots on the mayors daily itinerary, and power-washed them before she arrived.

Nuru got his job because he was a man who would do what he was asked to do. And he kept his job because he didnt need to be asked to do things like this.

Several outrage cycles ago, residents of the San Francisco side street Clinton Park placed boulders on the sidewalk sans any permitting or municipal permission to deter homeless campers or alleged dope-dealers. Incensed homeless advocates repeatedly rolled the boulders into the gutter. And Nurus Public Works crews saw fit to spend time and money repeatedly hoisting the outlaw emplacements back onto the curb. The real problem, in Nurus own words, was that larger boulders were required.

Mohammed Nuru was the larger boulder. He was hard and blunt and able to solve problems in a quick and unsophisticated manner. Or not solve them. Depends who called.

Those boulders served as a clumsy metaphor for life writ large in this city. And, now, so does Nuru.

U.S. Attorney David Anderson addresses the media on Tuesday regarding charges filed against Mohammed Nuru and Nick Bovis. He is flanked by U.S. Attorneys to his right, and FBI agents to his left. To Andersons immediate left is FBI Special Agent In Charge Jack Bennett.

The FBI and the US Attorneys office spent an awful lot of time and money busting up a conspiracy to bribe an airport commissioner $5,000 to open up a chicken shack at SFO.

A conspiracy that did not, it turns out, come to fruition.

San Francisco considers itself a sophisticated city, but this is what our highly compensated public officials get caught doing on federal wiretaps.

Per the complaint, Nuru was also bribed with a tractor.

Well, thats got to rankle. As does handing the FOX News Needles-and-Feces Filth Porn contingent so much material to work with.

And there is a lot of material in this federal complaint, even if the fraud charges that could put away Nuru and restaurateur Nick Bovis for 20 years are jarringly small-time: A chicken shack at the airport; bid-rigging an outhouse contract; having city-employed contractors working on your dacha (and gifting you a John Deere tractor).

But its not the plot. Its the scenery. An atmosphere of casual corruption is revealed here, and as US Attorney David Anderson noted yesterday, the unnamed players CONTRACTOR 1, DEVELOPER 1, even GIRLFRIEND 1 will recognize themselves.

Anderson urged them to run to the FBI offices and disclose what they know. Or well do it the other way. (Actually, Anderson said walk, dont run, which may have been a misstatement or may have been an acknowledgement that it was rainy and slippery on Tuesday. Whatever).

Nuru, it seems, is up to his neck in a pile of the stuff that so delights FOX News. As revealed yesterday, he was first arrested on Jan. 21 and promised to cooperate with the broad, long-running investigation and keep its existence secret.

But this did not happen. Per the feds, Nuru did the opposite and began informing people about the baited trap. The feds are angry, and one of the implicit rationales for yesterdays press conference was to impart that message to CONTRACTOR 1 and DEVELOPER 1 and all the rest.

The feds hoped to use Nuru as a Trojan Horse to ensnare more and bigger players in one neat move. But it seems he ruined this plan, and now they have to make case after case. Not only is he facing 20 years for alleged fraud, but five more for purportedly lying to the FBI about spilling the beans a preposterous thing to do, considering Nuru was so wired up the FBI probably knew how often he went to the john.

Nuru is a good soldier. But 25 years is a lot of leverage. It will be interesting to see how hard the feds want to pull this thread. Because if they pull hard enough, theyll unravel the whole sweater.

Some of you may recall those old Dianetics commercials, in which all of lifes problems were rattled off along with corresponding page numbers in which they were addressed (What causes negative thinking? Page 72).

The complaint against Nuru and Bovis is a bit like that. Whos the Chinese billionaire who wined and dined Nuru and purportedly received behind-the-scenes help on a project in San Francisco? Page 55.

So, lets take a look at Page 55, which is pasted above. What project might that be? And what did Nuru do to help the man who, per a wiretap of his call to GIRLFRIEND 1 gifted him some stone (uncut stones? Perhaps the feds know) and thousands of dollars worth of booze.

A bit, it seems. Your humble narrator has learned from numerous sources that the project in question is at 555 Fulton St. That project is being undertaken by the Chinese-owned development outfit Z&L Properties. Searching on city websites, it seems that there are no records for some of the work being described in the federal wiretap and, importantly, that other work appears to have been done over the counter when far more extensive time and observation should have been required.

We are informed by numerous sources that the permitting for this project was handled by expediter Walter Wong. Connecting the dots, that would make Wong CONTRACTOR 2.

A call to Wongs office rang about seven or eight times this morning before a woman picked up the phone. She said she had nothing to say about Wongs alleged appearance in the complaint.

She also refused to confirm whether the FBI raided Wongs office yesterday as multiple sources have told us they did.

There is something akin to this to be discovered on nearly every page of the complaint.

If and when Nuru decides to belatedly assist the authorities or if those named within run, walk, or otherwise perambulate to the FBI offices the guessing games will cease.

San Francisco Public Works clears a homeless encampment on 14th and Mission Streets, March 2017. Photo by Lola M. Chavez

Over the past few decades, Rose Pak, Willie Brown, and others have successfully seeded the government with legions of people, targeting the departments where things can be either done or undone. This has proven a highly effective way for a coterie of people to remain influential.

Mayor London Breed who, herself, comes from this political world has been handed a golden opportunity to undo the status quo in this city. If thats what she wants to do. Rather, minimizing change and containing damage may be the preferred outcome here.

Nuru has been placed on leave. Under Breed, former Health Department boss Barbara Garcia has resigned while under investigation for purportedly steering contracts to her wife, and erstwhile Muni head Ed Reiskin has stepped down after a litany of missteps including knowingly kneecapping the entire transit system and failing to tell the mayors office about it. Joanne Hayes-White also retired, after a lengthy tenure atop the fire department and Public Defender Jeff Adachi died. Otherwise, however, the citys cards have not been shuffled.

The powers-that-be are the powers-that-were.

But the sheer mass of information disgorged by the feds yesterday indicates that theres much more here and ferreting out clandestine tractor gifts and chicken shack bribes isnt the ultimate goal. Nailing the director of Public Works doesnt appear to be the ultimate goal, either.

Nuru is, among other things, the living embodiment of business as usual in this town of ours. That may change, but that may not.

Because, in truth, things didnt go sideways yesterday. They went sideways long ago. And everybody knew everybody. And they did nothing.

They undermined each and every one of us.

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L'affaire Mohammed Nuru: Is San Francisco a dysfunctional government or a functional cartel? Time to choose. - Mission Local

Got something on your mind? Email the Funbag. Your letters:

Carson:

What's the most despised dish to hand wash? Tupperware has to up there, along with any mugs or cups that aren't dishwasher safe.

Im gonna go ahead and strike baby bottles from consideration here, because many of you do NOT have kids, and you dont need me griping endlessly about having to wash Dr. Browns bottles and about sports bottles and about all the other domestic booby traps that await you in the future. Im only gonna rank grownup dishes here, for your sake and for mine.

Tyler:

Which is the proper way to reference the Memorial Day holiday/weekend? Is it, Memorial Day weekend, or Memorial Weekend? Theres a furniture store that runs ad spots on the radio and they always reference their sale as The Memorial Weekend Sale. It drives me nuts. Ive always thought it should be the Memorial Day Weekend.

You are correct. Ive never heard it called Memorial Weekend, not even by alt-right troophumpers like Gobby the Iowa trucker who go out of their way to remind you of the blood sacrifice our men and womenand by extension theymade for your freedom. Its Memorial Day weekend. All the mattress sales tell me so.

Ian:

Which would be faster? An average schmuck throwing the hardest fastball he can, or Aroldis Chapman but he has to throw two baseballs, one with each hand, and at the same time? Chapman can take the faster of the two, but he's gotta actually try to throw both not just do his regular motion and kinda toss with the other hand.

Chapman still crushes the average schmuck. Ever go to a carnival and test out a radar gun? Every dudeand by "every dude" I mean mewho steps to the rubber for that game thinks hes gonna hit triple digits. Then the readout blinks 52 and that same dude (again, me) declares the gun broken and demands a refund. If youre a grown man and you can hit 70, youve got a certifiably live arm.

No matter. Chapmans fastest pitch clocked in at over 104. He can juggle faster than you can pitch. So if you forced him to throw righty at the exact same time, yeah it would fuck with his motion and what not. But he still has enough raw arm strength, particularly on his left, to get those balls smoking like they just re-entered Earths atmosphere. Its a sobering realization. Depressing, really. Aroldis Chapman is a shitbag. Why cant COOL people have all the bitchin throwing skills instead? Why does every farmboy bumper sticker enthusiast get those skills instead? It aint right.

Stephen:

My entire banana eating life, I have eaten them by peeling them from the top (where the stem is). Recently, I was informed that this was incorrect, and that the proper way to peel a banana is from the bottom. Apparently, this is how monkeys do it. This can't be true, right? Opening the banana from the bottom feels like the action of an insane person.

It is, indeed, true. I learned this little hack from a Funbag reader years and years ago and I still deploy it, especially when the ripeness of the banana is iffy. If you yank on the stem of a banana that isnt quite all the way ripe yet, you know what happens. The peel doesnt break open and you end up mushing the top of that nanner into a fine puree. That risk is eliminated when you just pinch the bottom. Watch this actual monkey peel it from the bottom using his teeth. Not only is that monkey efficient, hes also ADORABLE. Be more like the monkey. In fact, HIRE the monkey to peel the bananas for you. Its the path of least resistance.

Rob:

Would you eventually go insane if you could never again use a blanket? Sure you could get some soft PJs and turn up the heat, but I don't think that would be enough. I know the animals do it. But I think eventually you would go straight up nuts if you couldn't avail yourself to a cozy a blankie. Am I correct?

So NO covers of any sort? Just you and a mattress? I think it would suck for a while and then you would get used to it. Ever nap without covers? Thats pretty easy, right? I think you could adapt to sleeping at night in a similar fashion. It would be horrible at first, but then your physiological need to fall asleep would eventually beat out you need to have a fluffy comforter draped over your body, and then it would only get easier on successive nights.

Relatively speaking, blankets are an obscene comfort, because comfortat least in the modern, material sensewas something that mankind neither needed nor had until recently in its lifespan. (I remember the author Bill Bryson talking about this in his At Home book.) I am very much a creature of the 21st century. I need blankets and duvets and hoodies and recliners and fleecy robes to keep my body and mind happy. I have zero interest in going back to the days where people slept on cave floors and shit. Because I do have some experience with roughing it at night. I have slept in abandoned school buses. I have slept on the floor of an airport terminal. I have slept on the cold hard ground. I have slept on trains and in cars. I didnt like ANY of it and Ill never do it again if I dont have to. But I did manage to fall asleep, if fitfully, those times. My ancestors were able to sleep without accessories and somewhere deep within me is the ability to do likewise. Does that mean Im not as tough as they were? WHO GIVES A SHIT. All I know is I want my robe time.

Chris:

So this past weekend, I was over at a buddys house for a day of Indy and NASCAR. About midway through the day, their Labrador retriever was ripping ass with death blow ferocity. Now - I'm partially to blame for this after fueling him up on guacamole and chips, little smokies and other shitty things a dog will eat. This dog cleared the whole GD room ... TWICE! But what I found amusing is I was looking at this furry bag of shit and I swear to God he was smiling like he knew exactly what he was doing. So, Drewwhat do you think? Dogs know when they're crushing people up with farts? I say yes.

They know when theyre shitting somewhere theyre not supposed to. I have encountered spiteful dog turds in my home. Those shits were not shat by accident. Those shits were premeditated. So it stands to reason that a dog could also use its limited cunning to make your TV room into a giant Dutch oven. Thats what I WANT to believe. In reality, dogs are fucking stupid and probably just farting to fart. But Id much rather construct an elaborate series of motives and thoughts behind a dogs actions in order to deepen my relationship with it: a relationship that the dog may not even be aware is, like, a thing happening.

Also, dont table feed a dog, especially if its not YOUR dog. I dont table feed my dog because I dont want him barking for food every time I sit to fucking eat. So when other people assume they have free rein to feed loose chicken scraps him, I wanna throw them into traffic. Those farts you smelled? That was the smell of KARMA, sir.

Jerry:

Is it just me or did Rage Against The Machine get totally boned by being 20 years too early? They wrote catchy, ANGRY songs about racism and the evils of unchecked capitalism. They practicality predicted the last 10 years beat-for-beat. But it seems like they will eternally be associated with dudebros that want to scream "Fuck you" in public.

Those same dudebros would have co-opted Rage Against The Machine in all the exact same ways if they had come onto the scene today. Take it from a white guy: theres nothing you can createno song, movie, book, or even memethat we cant rudely claim as our own, no matter when you created it. Also, like I said last week, virtually every form of rock has been put into cultural dry dock for the rest of eternity, so its unlikely that RATM would blow up at all in 2020. They could only have existed when they existed, and the best artists are the ones who put out their shit well before the rest of the world is ready for it. If that band came out now, theyd just be dismissed as some thirsty guys trying to take advantage of the dreaded cancel culture (that phrase was invented and used exclusively by assholes who have been cancelled) or some shit. Better to leave them where they were. Also, I dont want to wait any longer for "Bulls on Parade" to be released than is necessary. I dont like RATM all that much but that song remains a total fucking rampage.

Bo:

When you hit it big and you can afford to fly private, do you, or do you pull an Al Gore and still fly commercial (or pretend to)?

Money gives you license to indulge your deepest hypocrisies, so hell yeah Id spring for a private plane if I had a billion dollars. Im a thoughtful guy but Im not stupid. I crave ULTIMATE LUXURY. One time I saw pictures of the Seychelles resort where Prince William and Kate Middleton honeymooned and I was like THOSE LIMEY FUCKERS. How dare those two lovebirds get to bask in absolute paradise while Im stuck in a warm and pleasant house with central air, efficient WiFi, and two cars in the driveway? Its a CRIME, I tell you.

For all my corny liberalism, I still BEG to be filthy rich. I wanna fly in private planes. I want membership at every country club. I wanna stay in the biggest rooms of only the nicest hotels. I want to have whatever the nicest Mercedes is. I want a vacation house (mansion) in Mustique. None of my nascent Bernie Broism has curbed those appetites. I want a utopian world where everyone has access to healthcare and a living wage, and I also want be a fucking billionaire in that utopia. I would buy a plane from the Emirates fleet to call my own. The flat beds. The caviar service. All that shit. Very safe, but also very prickish.

I would not fly in helicopters, though. Im not being flip about that. I lived through NASCAR legend Davey Allison dying in a helicopter crash, and now Ive lived through Kobe Bryant and his kid and seven other people meeting a similar fate. Ive ridden shotgun in a helicopter. It was fucking terrifying. In 2017, your odds of dying in a helicopter accident if you took a ride in one were a mere one in 500. Helicopter safety is a legitimate issue and, when all of the initial Kobe grief has been absorbed, I hope that the crash that killed him spurs SOME kind of action to make choppers safer or, in the interim, to figure out ways to dissuade or even outright prevent civilians from riding in them, no matter how practical they may be for a wealthy and eager father on the go. Kobes death, along with the deaths of his daughter, pilot, and co-passengers, was eminently preventable. Thats a big reason why it was so shitty.

Mike:

According to my three minutes of internet research, there are three FBS football teams within a three-hour drive of New York City: Rutgers, Army, and UConn. None of those teams are very good. Since NYC is a large, underserved college football market, would there ever be a motivation for some really rich guy to establish a new college with the sole, unspoken intention of making a profit off of the football program? You buy 100 acres somewhere in the swamps of Jersey, hire a faculty, get the school accredited, then use discount tuition to get the enrollment where it needs to be for FBS (say...4,700, like Tulsa).

Theres no motivation to ever do that. If youre ass rich, you can already buy off a current college football program and sort out ways to profit off your black market investment. Thats how much every Power Five school operates right now, especially the haughty ones like Notre Dame that like to pretend theyre above all that shit. Why try to make that happen in New York, where youd have to compete with two NFL teams plus infinite other entertainment options? Theres a reason Rutgers has never amounted to fuck all, no matter how much money they pour into that godforsaken program. Youre not gonna have any better luck with, like, Fordham Two. Much better to set up shop in someplace like Tuscaloosa where college football is the only thing anyone cares about.

I lived in New York for six years and it is very much a college football wasteland. That city thinks of itself as too big and important to concern itself with such provincial sporting concerns. You can go to counterfeit "barbecue" places like Brother Jimmys to swill bad punch from mason jars and pretend youre still a diehard Virginia Tech fan, or you can go to an apartment with a scattering of Big Ten alumni who labor under the continuing delusion that their conference plays interesting football. But, in general, New York doesnt have the fans, the isolation, or the terroir to support some instant State U dreamed up by Carl Icahn. College football is big where its big for very specific reasons, and small where its small for equally specific reasons. Besides, theres no place to tailgate in Manhattan.

Chris:

Is there anything more infuriating than reheating some tasty leftovers, then discovering that they cook at vastly different rates? I made some damn good chicken, with greens and plantains yesterday and popped them in the microwave for lunch today for a couple of minutes. The greens and plantains were steaming hot -- too hot to put in my mouth -- but the chicken was cold. I had to put it back in for another minute or so to get the chicken to a safe temp, but this took the side dishes to fucking nuclear temps. I'm not gonna sit here and microwave all three separately and combine them into one plate. If I wanted to cook a whole damn meal again, I would have done so. Is there anything that can be done about this?

Are you at an office doing this? Im at home all day, so I can deal with staggered microwave times by putting the longest cooking part of the meal on the plate first, then adding the other shit to it as needed while its nuking. But thats a luxury you probably cant afford if youre at an office or somewhere else away from your own fridge. All I can offer you are a couple of ideas Ive stumbled upon during the course of my long and productive microwaving career.

First off, dont nuke everything on high. Use the REHEAT button if your microwave has one. Mine does not display a time countdown when I press it, which traps me inside a living purgatory wherein I must endure the strangely endless agony of watching food turn in a microwave while also not knowing precisely HOW long itll be stuck in there. But the lower the power setting, the more evenly the food will heat. Also, put a damp paper towel over the whole plate. Thatll act as a loose cover for the dish as it cooks, AND itll prevent the kind of explosive spattering that ends up painting the walls and ceiling inside the oven. Ever hear a piece of chicken explode while its microwaving? Its not a comfort.

John:

Top to bottom, which profession has bigger assholes, coaches or chefs?

Chefs. Ive played football. Ive worked in restaurants. Chefs are bigger assholes by a distressingly wide margin. I graded my chef bosses not by whether or not they were assholes, but whether or not they were LIKABLE assholes. That was best card I could draw from that lot.

Im sure things have changed in the more visible corners of the hospitality industry since my days as a table runner. But rampant chef worship has only gotten worse since then, which means that somewhere, in some halfway decent gastropub no one is paying close attention to, theres a raging prick who graduated from the Sorbonne tasing his own staff when they fail to garnish his celery root bisque properly.

Sarah:

Im at an airport and they keep announcing that all terminals are designated smoke free areas and they make the same announcement on the planes. How much longer do we need to announce this? Does anyone actually think you can smoke on a plane? At some point this has to become a given.

Its a given, yes. But they have to announce it by law, same as your doctors offices automated menu telling you to hang up and call 911 if your kidneys are falling out of your body. Its rote and forgettable at this point, but youve met smokers. If you give a smoker ANY opening to light up, theyll seize on like they just found the Hope Diamond sitting in the gutter. Also, vaping is huge now and vapers are even more liable to bend the rules because, compared to cigarette smoke, a cloud of vape has far less odor and dissipates quickly. Theyll vape on a plane. They dont give a shit.

I have weed carts at home and I do the whole vaper sleight of hand thing everyone does, where I conceal the pen in my hand and sneak in a couple hits while Im walking the dog. Its as close to engaging in modern espionage tactics as Ill ever get. Every vaper thinks theyre tricky like that, no matter where they happen to be. And that is why the safety video for Virgin America will have to remain 57 minutes long indefinitely.

Robert:

As someone who is graduating this May, what life advice do you have to offer? Everyone is simultaneously trying to figure different shit out all at the same time, and so far, its a massive guessing game. I have a trip to Europe planned and I am also waiting to hear back from a few companies. The fact that everything is so open/undefined is a bit worrying, but also slightly exciting. Should I go to Europe and never come back? (jk but not really, but possibly?)

Yeah, fuck it! GO. Get the hell away from this shithole backwater of a country while its power grid is still functioning. Other countries have beer too, you know.

Honestly, it seems like youre in a good spot already, what with fancy trips and potential job offers looming. You also happen to be in the best possible position anyone can be in if any of that shit goes awry. Go ahead and ENJOY the open-endedness of your present situation. Because once you get a job and maybe start a family, those open ends seal shut for a long, long time. Youll have responsibilities and those responsibilities are worthwhile, but they also prevent you from fucking off to tend bar at a ski resort for a year if you feel called to it. Like, if I elected to do that right now, my wife and kids would have a few questions for me. Itd be a whole THING. Waste time while you can. You wont always be able to afford to.

Tom:

I was recently at a movie theatre when a tornado warning hit the area. The staff sequestered everyone in the theatre in the designated shelter areas--the bathrooms. I was crammed into the men's room with 20ish other people of all genders. The social contract at this point is that no one is using the bathroom for its designated purpose now, right? Well, this one guy comes walking through the crowd, makes eye contact with people, closes himself in a stall, and proceeds to take a very colorful shit. After he finishes, he lets himself out, makes more eye contact with people, and heads out into the hallway without washing his hands. I guess my question is, what did you think of the Aladdin remake?

I bet it wasnt as good as watching that guy drop a deuce like a true baller.

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The Worst Dishes to Wash, Ranked - VICE