Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

Possibilities are unlimited with this amazing, private retreat! Nestled on over 24 wooded, rolling acres, sitting high above the Great River Road with incredible views and sunsets. Conveniently located within 15 minutes of the amenities of Historical Grafton, the conveniences of Alton and access to the Clark Bridge. The main home offers 8,000 sq. feet of finished living space, gorgeous handscraped, exotic hardwood flooring, full kitchens on 2 levels, built in hot tub and sauna, full bar, central vac, radiant floor heat, solarium with humidity control, 3 fireplaces, 3 car att. garage, huge main floor laundry area, sunroom, numerous patios & balconies with phenomenal views, it overlooks the 1 acre stocked pond, and just beyond that, on the 2nd parcel (PIN#01-396-009-00)you'll find the 5 are stocked lake! But wait...there's more!! The detached 4 car garage, built in 1995, also offers a 2 bedroom guest house! Opportunities like this don't happen often! Welcome to your new DREAM HOME!

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Big Homes Just Listed in the St. Louis Area - STLtoday.com

Houstons restaurant scene is huge and there is no shortage of fun, family-friendly restaurants around town. Sometimes you just want to kick back and relax while the kids eat and play.

Weve rounded up the best restaurants in Houston with a playground, make sure you visit them all.

Here is our full Guide to Restaurants with Playgrounds in Houston:

Crisp Heights- This gastro pub offers pizza and Italian-fusion bites, plus they have an outdoor patio great for kids. They dont have a playground but theres a fountain, a ping pong table, and cornhole.

Little Matts- This unique burger restaurant has picnic seating, game tablets, a candy shop, and an arcade. They also offer chicken wings, personal pizzas, and more on the menu.

Betsys at Evelyns Park- If you want an awesome playground, why not go to a park? This park in Bellaire has a restaurant and coffee shop on the same property. There isnt an actual playground but the kids will love the walk-up slides. Plus, there is plenty of room to run and its close enough to keep an eye on the kids while you eat. Bring your camera- there is also an awesome sculpture installation based on Alice in Wonderland.

Lake House- This counter-serve restaurant has an outdoor patio right inside Discovery Green. They are located by the fountains so the kids can play in the water while you eat.

Christians Tailgate- This restaurant has three locations in Houston. Their West University location has a small arcade and an outdoor playground. Make sure to order a milkshake!

Lupe Tortilla- This Texas-native restaurant has multiple locations around Houston, and many of them have an outdoor playground. The playgrounds are in a sandbox so know before you go.

Preslees-This new Heights restaurant on 19th St. has an outdoor patio with tons of stuff for kids to play with, including swings/hammocks, a mini-playground for toddlers, a pedal car, ping pong, cornhole, and more.

Chick-fil-A-Sure, it might be fast food, but Chick-fil-A is always a favorite with kids and adults alike. There are numerous locations all across Houston, and most of the restaurants have an indoor playground.

Jimmy Changas- All of the Jimmy Changas locations, from Katy to Pearland, have a playground! There are four locations in Houston, all with a Jimmys Jungle.

Yard House- This outdoor beer garden and restaurant doesnt actually have a playground but one visit and youll see why its on the list. They have a huge, outdoor area with lawn chairs, green space, and hammocks. They offer their eclectic menu for lunch, dinner, and late-night dining.

Lupe Tortilla- This Texas-native restaurant has multiple locations around Houston, all of them with an outdoor playground. All of the playgrounds are in a sandbox so know before you go.

Beavers West- Enjoy room to run plus play equipment at this restaurant on Westheimer. They have a great menu and a fun atmosphere, great for singles and families.

Live Oak Grill- This restaurant has one location in Houston- in Sugar Land. Each location has a spacious patio with room for kids to move around, picnic-style seating,

Casa Ole- Casa Ole has several locations in Houston but there is only one left with a sandbox! Bring a towel for the car, youll need it! This location is on Highway 6 North at Yorktown Crossing.

Creekwood Grill- Located in Cypress, this restaurant has a playground and great food. They also offer kids eat free on Wednesday nights!

La Hacienda- This Cypress-area restaurant is huge and has an even bigger playground. The towering structure is great for kids aged 3 and up. They will also enjoy the indoor and outdoor patio seating.

Jimmy Changas- All of the Jimmy Changas locations, from Katy to Pearland, have a playground! There are four locations in Houston, all with a Jimmys Jungle.

Las Ventanas Tex Mex- This spacious Tex-Mex eatery offers a small childrens play area. There is plenty of room on the patio so you can keep a close eye on the bubs, plus delicious drinks and food.

The Original Shack Burger Resort- This outdoor restaurant offers a huge play space, complete with games, a sandbox, and more. They sometimes have live music and the food is always good.

The Backyard Grill- This Cypress-area restaurant has a small sandbox on the patio for kids. The patio is screened in during bad weather. Theres also a tree, adorned with fairy lights, right in the middle of the restaurant! The kids will love it.

Clays- This restaurant in West Houston has a large play area with turf grass as well as a petting zoo! You can sit inside or outside without worrying about the kids.

Lupe Tortilla- This Texas-native restaurant has multiple locations around Houston, all of them with an outdoor playground. All of the playgrounds are in a sandbox so know before you go.

Drix Restaurant & Lounge- This Katy-area wine bar and restaurant has an entire room set aside just for kids! Youll want to check on the kids frequently because you wont be able to see them from outside of the playground but you can easily see who is coming and going.

Did we miss one? Name your favorite local restaurant with a playground in the comments below:

Link:
A Guide to Restaurants with Playgrounds in Houston - Houston On The Cheap

Fancy a new patio, bed or border, or maybe its time to make that veg plot a reality? Hannah Stephenson offers design ideas to help get you started.

The New Year is a great time for turning over a new leaf and planning a new look for your garden.

You can sit inside in the warm, sketch possible shapes and sizes of lawns, beds and borders, and maybe even contemplate a new patio.

Heres some inspiration for getting started

Tackling steep gardens

Dealing with a steep garden can pose problems (Hannah Stephenson/PA)

My own garden needs some careful thought as its on a steep hill but I havent got round to terracing it into sections, as that would require major digging work and all the expense that goes with it.

The trouble with steep gardens is that if you want level planting areas, you can create terraces but you are likely to need a specialist to build the necessary retaining walls. However, if you decide to go ahead, it can mean endless possibilities, as such walls can include steps, water features and split-level flowerbeds.

Dealing with difficult shapes

Use trellis and climbing plants to separate different areas of the garden (iStock/PA)

You, too, may have a difficult garden which doesnt have a uniform, rectangular shape, but while you are planning, bear in mind these basic guidelines.

The key to an interesting garden is to be able to move through it, and everything should not be visible at a single glance. Its great to provide surprises by creating trellises or other borders, which will divide a garden into individual areas.

Softening borders

Soften gardens with curved borders (iStock/PA)

If you have a square plot, this may seem almost impossible, but you can soften boundaries with climbing plants. It is also a good idea to base the whole garden on a circular pattern, whether it be with a circular lawn or paved area, with soft curved borders providing eye-catching colour and detail.

If you have a town garden with an unsightly view of, say, an industrial building, or you are overlooked by neighbours, you could think about planting a tree or a climbing plant on trellis in a strategic position, to enhance privacy and create a pleasing sight for the eye.

Tackling narrow and wide gardens

People with wide gardens which are not very long should never place a focal point on the opposite boundary, as this will only emphasise the gardens shortness.You can create eye-catching surprises like this water feature in odd-shaped gardens (iStock/PA)

Instead, place eye-catching points from corner to corner, arranging a viewing point in one corner and planting the borders, so the eye automatically goes to the other corner.

Long, narrow gardens can also cause headaches, but such a plot can be divided effectively by creating a meandering path in an S shape, using plantings so that each curve you take brings you to another surprise.

Make a plan

There are a number of garden apps which will help you do this, includingiScape (iOS), a great way to visualise how your garden could look. The app lets you take a photo of yourgarden, render it into 3D, then drag and drop features onto it, including plants, trees, ponds and ground cover such as grass and gravel.

Whatever online help youre offered, make a list of what you want in your garden will you be growing vegetables, making your own compost, investing in a greenhouse, or would you rather it consisted mainly of pretty pots and borders of colour?

If you are short of space, you may have to compromise on your initial wish list, rather than trying to cram everything in and not being able to move.

Also consider how much time you are going to have to spend maintaining your garden. If you have a full-time job, it may not be wise to have masses of beds and borders and a huge lawn, which will need high-maintenance upkeep.

Sketch it out

Always design a new garden on paper first, as though you are looking down on the garden. Measure the shape and dimensions, scale it down to suit the size of your paper and draw in your house first, making sure it is at the correct angle in relation to the garden.

Pick up ideas for new garden design by visiting public gardens, or flick through magazines and books to findpictures which may well correspond to the shape and size of your garden.

[readmore][/readmore]

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Want to redesign your garden for 2020? Heres how to give it a go yourself - Irish Examiner

The solar industry will evolve from component brands to system brands and service, according to Barry Cinnamon in this industry perspective.

The future of solar-plus-storage?

Tony & Wayne

Willis Carrier developed the first mechanical refrigeration system in 1903. It took another 50 years before window air conditioners became popular in homes and businesses. Hot and humid climates, such as those in the southeast, were by necessity the first to widely adopt air conditioning. By the 1970s, air conditioning was standard and the industry matured to one in which system maintenance and upgrades were the bread and butter for industry professionals.

The PV industry has followed a similar path. Bell Labs developed the modern solar cell in 1954. 50 years later rooftop PV was becoming popular in certain U.S. markets. Because of high electric rates, California and Hawaii were at the forefront of PV adoption.

By 2019, California hit a million rooftop PV systems in 2019, and solar is now standard on new California homes. Those intrepid early adopters of rooftop solar are now upgrading their 10- and 20-year old systems with new inverters, as well as adding battery storage. Solar-plus-storage systems are going into millions more buildings around the U.S.

How do these HVAC industry experiences foreshadow developments in the PV industry? Here are a few likely outcomes:

Willis Carrier probably never imagined the ubiquitous growth of refrigeration and air conditioning, just as the inventors of solar cells never imagined the ubiquity of PV systems. The solar-plus-storage industry is destined to be a key part of virtually every building in the U.S. From a growth perspective, we havent seen anything yet.

***

Barry Cinnamon is the founder of Cinnamon Energy Systems, a Silicon Valley solar (and energy storage) installer with a 20-year track record.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the authors own, and do not necessarily reflect those held by pv magazine.

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The future of the solar-plus-storage industry will look like the air conditioning business - pv magazine USA

The fresh report was added to Reportocean.com offering. Click here for more information @https://www.reportocean.com/industry-verticals/details?report_id=30703

This ready to use report offers you detailed insight into the global cable conduit systems industry with market size, in value terms, estimated at USD million/billion for the period. It also provides the projected growth rate for the next 5 to 6 years along with forecast market value. The study includes estimation of market size, detailed profile of products/services, SWOT of manufacturers/providers, their strategies, and recent developments in the industry. In brief the Global Cable Conduit Systems Market 2019 research report by Report Ocean offers industry data, trends, qualitative information, and competitive landscape, not easily accessible, and culled from multiple sources so that it acts as a ready recknor for you. The report is in-depth, authentic, exhaustive and very exclusive.

Takeaways from the Report:

You will learn about the market drivers for the projected period

You will get to know about the headwinds hampering the market growth

You will be exposed to the segment-region-wise analysis of major geographical areas

You will know the market size at the country level

You will get detailed insight into the strategic and actual happenings of the key players in the global cable conduit systems industry, including research and developments, collaboration, working partnership, and other acts, product launches, etc.

You will be provided details of various segments

You will also be enlightened about the value and supply chain analysis of the market

Parameters for the Study:

The exhaustive study has been prepared painstakingly by considering all possible parameters. Some of these were

Consumers options and preferences

Consumer spending dynamics and trends

Market driving trends

Projected opportunities

Perceived challenges and constraints

Technological environment and facilitators

Government regulations

Other developments

Research Methodology:

While preparing the study of global cable conduit systems market for the reference year, we took recourse to collect qualitative and quantitative information based on primary sources (nearly 80% weightage) through personal interactions, and secondary research, along with consultation with industry level professionals and experts. Historical trends and current market estimates were arrived at and analyzed to predict the likely direction in which the market will move in the next 5 to 6 years.

The report also studies the varying trends of diverse segments and subcategories, presented geographically, based on primary and secondary research. These are cross-checked by interviewing the key level decision-makers, such as CEOs, VPs, Directors, etc. of the relevant companies at the top and mid-size segments; this leads to gaining of more profound insights into the market and industry performance, which in turn authenticates and substantiates the findings.

Secondary research mainly focused on identifying, collecting, collating, and analyzing information needed for an extensive, market-oriented, commercial, and client-friendly study of the global cable conduit systems market. This result also led to generating information about the major players, market classification, and segmentation according to the industry trends, geographic locations, and technological developments related to the market. Our team of field force and deck-based researchers gathered information from various credible sources such as annual reports of the companies, filings with regulatory agencies, journals, white paper, corporate presentations, company websites, paid database, and many more. In addition to sources like Hoovers, Factiva, Bloomberg, Report Linker, we used our in-house database to generate a very very trustworthy report.

We followed, concurrently, both the Bottom-Up approach and Top-Down approach. Under the former, we assessed the market size of individual markets by performing primaries and secondaries of major countries which hold around 75-80% of the regional market share. Then we extrapolated the same to derive the projected size of any specific region such as Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific, etc. Under the latter approach, first, we estimated the size of the global market and then broke it down at specific country level. After performing both the processes, we invoke gap analysis, where we identify the deviation/differences in market size at the country, regional, and global level. Then through having a relook at data sources, data, and analytics we rework on the report so that no gap remained. Ultimately both the approaches should yield the same output

The report, in short, is very rigorously prepared and is as authentic and reliable as it can be.

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Summary

A conduit system is a set of tubes which enables the protection and routing of electrical wires in buildings, thereby providing a safe pathway for power and low-voltage communication. The structure of a cable conduit is mostly tubular, made of metals (stainless steel, galvanized steel, or aluminum) or non-metals such as plastic, and it can be either rigid or flexible. An electrical conduit is advantageous as it results in simpler wiring. It is safer to install and permits easy and frequent alterations in the wiring system, providing protection even in damp and hazardous locations. Moreover, it is an effective way to protect the wiring system from environmental and other conditions such as chemical vapors, electromagnetic interference, moisture, and others. Prominent players operating in the cable conduits market adopt strategies such as acquisition, partnership, expansion, and product launch for increasing their geographical presence and market share.

The use of submersible electric conduits, liquid tight conduits and conduits providing protection against fire is gradually increasing in the market. Cable-in-conduit, which consists of cable embedded in the conduit, provides ease of installation, thereby driving the world cable conduits market. The cable conduit market shows a phenomenal growth owing to the booming construction industry and the rise of frequently alterable wiring systems in buildings. However, the rising prices of raw materials acts as a restraint for this market.

The market segmentation of cable conduit systems is done on the basis of type, end use, and geography. The types of conduit systems include rigid and flexible conduit systems, which are sub-divided into metallic and non-metallic systems. Rigid cable conduits have a hig..continue..

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Cable Conduit Systems Market with Key Drivers, Industry Research, Regional Forecast, Top Players, Key Companies and Segment - Testifyandrecap

Now that we have celebrated Christmas many people have taken down their Christmas trees and decorations. A lot of people leave the outdoor lights up a while longer. Some even leave them up all year long which the fire department says is dangerous which also means they must be taken down.

Thatsthe chore that most of us perform year after year. Those Christmas lights wont hang themselves up on your gutters or the roof line. I know in my own situation my physical condition combined with acrophobia (fear of heights) make it a serious chore for me to put even minimal lights up and then take them down again. Over the years I came very close many times to tumbling off of a ladder more than twenty feet in the air. I have stopped using a ladder more than five feet tall.

Weve all seen Chevy Chase falling off the roof in National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. Every year you hear stories of people breaking legs, arms, collar bones, etc. or simply suffering bruises, cuts and abrasions which were the result of falling while putting up or taking down Christmas lights.

Over all of my years in broadcasting I have read warnings on the air from the fire department that you should never leave those strings of Christmas lights up all year long due to the extremes of temperatures and drying in the summer. The wiring can be damaged enough to short out and cause a fire by being exposed to the excessive heat followed by getting wet from rain and then subjected to the cold temperatures of our Oregon winters. I dosee homes in the Eugene-Springfield area with the lights still on the roof under the blazing hot summer sun and some people even have the lights turned on at night365 days a year.

Why doesnt somebody develop holiday lights that are safe to leave up all year long? You know like the old saying Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door. Well you wont have to wait any longer, because two entrepreneurs have done it. Yes they have developed outdoor Christmas lights that can permanently attach to your house without having to be taken down and put back up each year. I have called them Christmas lights, but because of their unique design they can be used for any holiday or celebration. I wrote about this back in 2015.

The revolution in decorative lighting is called Everlights and is the brainchild of two Oregonians Ross Harke and Darren Taylor. This really is a story of living the American Dream. We have to turn the clock back to when Ross and Daren first got together. It sounds like a made-up story, but they have been best friends since Kindergarten and grew up living next door to each other. I had a long telephone interview with Ross and he explained that they were the best man at each others weddings too. Exactly how the idea came to them is a story in itself. Daren apparently hadnt taken down the Christmas lights from his house yet when they were watching Superbowl at his house a few years ago. Ross berated him for leaving them up so long. Thats when Darren said What if we could keep them up all the time? Thats when they started kicking around the idea of developing these special lights themselves. Quite a feat for two guys only hovering around the 30-year-old mark. They both have a passion for building. Ross says he is more into the business-side as his profession is in Revenue Cycle Consultation business in Oregon while Daren is more into the product-side of their venture since his background is in the construction business, but now he is working full-time for their Everlights business in Utah.

They tossed around the idea and decided that the system had to be waterproof and the lights had to be special and not set up serially like the old style lights that when one bulb dies the whole string goes out. They also wanted more colors than what standard bulbs can provide so they decided on LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) because each bulb could change through the whole spectrum of colors.

These up-and-coming business partners contacted a company in Shen-Zen, China to make the prototype for them and with the aid of a Vancouver engineering firm helped solve any design problems. They received their first delivery of the prototype in October of this year and have installed it on a few homes of their in-laws and friends in Oregon and a few in Utah. The lights held up well under the various weather conditions both here and in Utah. Now what they needed was the financial backing to develop the wi-fi controller that allows the user to program the colors and designs through their own smart phone.

In order to facilitate that effort they made a video promoting their product and put it on Kickstarter. If you have never heard of Kickstarter here is a quick explanation. According to their website kickstarter.com Our mission is to help bring creative projects to life. They go on to say Kickstarter helps artists, musicians, filmmakers, designers, and othercreators find the resources and support they need to make their ideas a reality. To date, tens of thousands of creative projects big and small have come to life with the support of the Kickstarter community.

Now that you know what Kickstarter is it is time to see the video that Ross and Darrenproduced asking for backing for the production of Everlights.

As you saw in the video, the installation is quite simple. At this time the wiring has to be crimped and then heat-shrinked, but the production models should have waterproof snap-on connectorswhich will make the do-it-yourself installation process much easier and quicker.

Since the lights are LEDs and not colored bulbs they are virtually invisible to the naked eye when the lights are turned off. That means no unsightly bulbs of various colors hanging limply off your roof during the day. Im sure you have a thought in the back of your mind about now just like I did after I gathered all of the information about Everlights and that is: How much does it cost? That will depend on the size of the building you want to decorate and just how elaborate of a design you want to create. Ross explained that for a bungalow-sized home of about 1,000 square feet they estimate the cost would be from $500-$600. The 2,000 square foot home or larger could range to $1,000 or more again depending on how it is set up. That does sound expensive, but when you take into account the LED bulbs last for 50,000 hours Ross estimates they should last for some 30 years. If a bulb does need to be replaced it would be just one not an entire set like with traditional lights. You can spend an average of $60 per year to replace your old light sets when they fail. I added that up and for a period of 30 years that wouldamount to $1,800. So, for the one-time outlay of money your lights could last the same length of time that it takes you to pay off your mortgage. I still go back to what I said at the beginning of this article about not having to put the lights up and take them down in our typical Winter weather every year. To many of us that would be worth its weight in gold.

It would seem that all that was left is to take delivery of the lights when production began and then market them. That is exactly what they have done. To me the lesson in all of this is to follow your dream. If you come up with a product or service idea Ross and Darren are your examples to show you the way to follow through on your idea. It could change your life as it has theirs. For more information about Everlights or to contact them to make an order just go to https://myeverlights.com/store/.

Let me know what you would like me to talk about or explain. You can comment below or email me at:[emailprotected].

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A Followup To A Story Of An Incredible Invention. - Eugene Daily News

A year from now, residents will likely look back on 2020 as the year things really started to change on and around Poway Road.

The City Council two years ago approved a significant overhaul of the Poway Road Specific Plan, which governs how the roadway running through the citys center will be developed over the next two decades.

The first post-approval project to move forward was The Outpost, a mixed-use residential/retail development with two stories of underground parking. That development is more than a year behind schedule, largely the result of the contractor dealing with costly water intrusion issues.

However, anyone driving down Poway later this year will notice new action on the south side of the road in the vicinity of Tarascan and Civic Center drives. Thats where contractors for Meridian Development will begin knocking down 10 vacant buildings to make way for 83 market-rate condos and prepare three lots for later development as retail/commercial use. Meridian will also begin work on a 44-unit, three-story affordable senior citizens apartment complex across the street, followed by 14 market-rate condos directly behind. The entire project is known as the Poway Commons.

Poway Community Park, to the south of where the 83 condos will be built, will undergo an upgrade with the anticipated spring start of construction of the Mickey Cafagna Community Center. The existing auditorium and senior center, along with a small city office building, will be torn down within a couple of months to make way for the $9.9 million construction project. When finished in May 2021, the center will have two large meeting rooms, six classrooms and offices.

Further west, on Pomerado Road at Oak Knoll Road, work is expected to be completed by fall on Villa de Vida, a two-story, 54-unit affordable housing development serving adults with disabilities who can live independently.

City Manager Chris Hazeltine said his priorities for the new year include keeping all of this work on track, along with the Espola Road undergrounding project.

The contractor for the Espola Road utility line undergrounding project has completed the trenching and conducting installation on the first half of the project. The next step will be for San Diego Gas & Electric crews to begin cabling activities sometime this month. City spokeswoman Renee Carmichael said that work is expected to take about six months to complete and will be followed by similar cabling work by Cox Communications and AT&E crews. Utility pole removal will take place once all overhead wiring has been removed, she said. That will be followed by a city project to construct a pedestrian pathway down one side of the roadway.

This is also an election year in Poway, with two district council seats up on the November ballot. Councilman Barry Leonard is running for re-election in District 2. Councilwoman Caylin Frank, elected to a two-year citywide term in 2018, will be seeking a full four-year term representing District 4.

A likely addition to the ballot will be a measure regarding The Farm in Poway, a 160-home development on the site of the closed StoneRidge County Club. A full environmental impact report is due out for public review and comment later this month. The City Council is expected to review the development sometime during the spring.

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Look for changes along Poway Road this year - The San Diego Union-Tribune

Baked by the sun and buffeted by wind, the southeast corner of a sod house is typically the first piece to fail and fall.

Merle Block would learn this lesson the hard way, some years after hed taught himself to build a home from the very ground around it.

He and his wife, Linda, were farming and ranching near Gothenburg at the time. But they felt called to tell the story of their ancestors, immigrants who landed in Nebraska and had relied on the earth to provide the shelter they needed.

They feared the areas connection to its past was slipping away.

Both of our families lived in sod houses in the 1880s and thereafter, he said recently from Arizona, where they were escaping winter. I grew up on a farm, but I never saw the sod houses.

In 1988, they bought 3 acres near Gothenburgs interstate exit, built a bright red barn and opened a museum, showcasing the areas rich Swedish history with old photos and pioneer-era items.

Merle Block put up the sod house next, cutting and stacking and shaping the bricks of soil into four walls and a roof. It took him three weeks and three good reference books, he said.

The couple now had the makings of a tourist attraction, but they needed more tourists. So he built what he called the worlds biggest sod-raking plow out of new steel and old bridge planks, four times larger than normal and a magnet for travelers.

It was just a showpiece, right up next to the interstate at the front of the lot. People would see it and pull off.

The sod-raking plow at the Sod House Museum is four times bigger than normal and made with new steel and old bridge planks.

But he wasnt done. He collected all of the scrap barbed wire his neighbors, and their neighbors, could offer, and taught himself to be a sculptor.

He wrapped more than 3 miles of fence wire into a Native hunting on horseback, 4.5 miles into a buffalo grazing nearby.

I put the buffalo out in the grass beyond the sod house and the barn, and theyd spot that right away. People kept coming back and bringing friends and showing them. And thats what we wanted.

The buffalo grazing near the Sod House Museum is made out of 4 miles of old barbed wire.

Those early years, they were averaging 50,000 visitors a summer, he said. They didnt charge admission, but they accepted donations and sold souvenirs in the sod house.

That still didnt do it, he said. It wasnt a money-making project.

They welcomed visitors for nearly three decades, even as the Pizza Hut and Howard Johnson and Comfort Suites and espresso shop moved into the area, and the sod house weathered and he had to build it back up, and the sculptures rusted and the demands of running a museum started taking a toll.

They shut it down two years ago.

We hated it that we had to close, but the time comes when it doesnt work. The wife said: Were old. You get up into your 80s; you just dont want to work.

They put their attraction on the market last year: barn, sod house, barbed-wire buffalo and Native, worlds largest plow -- 3 acres of interstate-area property -- for $119,000.

Merle Block collected scrap barbed wire to create a Native on horseback.

Gothenburg is proud of its pioneer history, promoting its Pony Express station, the historical museum and, for years, the Sod House Museum.

And its boosters have been monitoring the future of the property. It needs updating, but its still a draw, said Deb Egenberger, executive director of the Community Development Office.

Wed love to see it remain there, she said. We have a lot of folks who come right off the interstate and want to see it.

The offers started trickling in, said Stephanie Walker, an agent with Gothenburgs Remax Farm, Home and Ranch whod never sold a sod house before.

It was a unique listing, just because it wasnt a typical commercial listing.

Most potential buyers had plans for the property that didnt include telling the tale of the areas history.

Merle Block spent three weeks building the sod house in 1988.

But then the right offer appeared. A fair price, and a letter pledging to continue the museums legacy, while making some changes and updates.

That meant something to the sellers, Walker said. The property is under contract, the deal should close soon and the hand-built tribute to the past should have a future.

The Blocks are very much tied to that, she said. And theyre glad to see it continue.

The porch swing isn't the only attraction in Nebraska that claims a "world's largest" title. The Leon Myers Stamp Center at Boys Town is home to the world's largest stamp ball. The colorful ball has a 32-inch diameter, weighs 600 pounds and contains 4,655,000 postage stamps.

In downtown Omaha you'll find a 13-foot fork gathering up a bite of metal pasta. Jake Balcom designed the stainless steal sculpture called "Stile di Famiglia" (Family Style) for the The Homeowners Association of the Towns of Little Italy. You can see the sculpture at 1115 S. 7th St.

More about the artist: Jake Balcom

The Klown Doll Museum in Plainview is home to more than 7,000 dolls. Don't miss Stumpy the Klown, the museum's 8-foot-tall wooden mascot.

Beneath this concrete pyramid in Seward is a time capsule filled with an assortment of artifacts including a Chevy Vega. The items were placed in the capsule by Harold Davisson in 1975 with instructions to open the capsule on July 4, 2025. The pyramid is billed as the world's largest time capsule.

Hebron claims to be the home of the world's largest porch swing.

You can't have a list of odd attractions without including Carhenge. The monument near Alliance is one man's automotive tribute to England's ancient Stonehenge.

The tiny northeast Nebraska town of Maskell is home to the smallest city hall in the United States.

The Archway museum straddles Interstate 80 near Kearney. The 310-foot-long elevated building features exhibits and stories about America's western expansion.

The lower level of the Hastings Museum is dedicated to Kool-Aid, which was invented by Hastings native Edwin Perkins.

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The past and future of Gothenburgs Sod House Museum and the world's largest plow - MDJOnline.com

Photography by ALICE MARY HERDEN

Every year during the winter break, thousands of people take part in the annual Christmas Bird Count. December 14 this year marked Audubons 120th year.

The Christmas Bird Count was known as the Christmas Side Hunt, a holiday tradition back in the early 1800s, where riflemen would shoot and kill as many feathered fliers they could find in a particular area and at that time included small game. The group that had the most birds collected would win, what they won is unknown.

After years of conducting this Side Hunt, conservationists, including famed ornithologist Frank M. Chapman began to take notice of the decline in the birding population.

Frank M. Chapman came up with the idea of exchanging their rifles for a pair of binoculars and by that hopes to restore that areas birding population. From that day on, this became the most popular tradition among hundreds of thousands of avid birders.

According to The First Christmas Bird Count document on Audubon.org, the count held on December 25, 1900, twenty-seven participants observed over eighteen thousand individual birds and over eighty species. Ducks, sparrows, woodpeckers, and owls were among those species counted in over ten states, including Ontario.

The Christmas bird count has been the longest-running citizen science program in the U.S. if not in the world. Dr. Marianne Korosy, Director of Bird Conservation, said. Its important not only for Audubon members but people that are interested in birds.

Dr. Marianne Korosy explained another vital factor for this bird count: tracking changes in species diversity. For example, if species X had been observed at the same location for over eighty years and for the next twenty years, not one sighting was recorded, that could be one of the indicators of climate change.

The Christmas bird count not only documents the number of birds of each species but they document the diversity of the species that are present in the same time increment every year, Dr. Marianne Korosy said. The count always runs from December 14 to January 5. We are sampling, in essence, the birds in the same time frame every year in the same 15-mile diameter circle. That gives us a long-running database that we can evaluate trends, the population as well as species diversity.

Linda Vanderveen and Bev Hansen organized two separate bird counts in Hernando County.

On the Brooksville Christmas Bird Count, we got 110 species. The unusual birds were a Clay-colored Sparrow, a Peregrine Falcon, a Broad-winged Hawk, a Baltimore Oriole, and a Says Phoebe. The Brooksville Circles center is Bystre Lake, and the circle is 15 miles across. We have seven teams covering the areas.

The most numerous bird species were Robins, Crows, Ring-necked Ducks, Cowbirds, Coots, and Cattle Egrets. Birds that we dont find anymore are the Burrowing Owls, Great Horned Owls, and several species of ducks. Loss of habitat has taken a toll over the years.

~Linda Vanderveen via email

The most outstanding bird for the Aripeka-Bayport CBC is an adult male Hooded Oriole, a very rare bird that has only been documented in Florida twice before. It was found in Weekiwachee Preserve and is still being seen by countless birders who are traveling from various parts of the state to see it. Thirty-two birders participated in this count. We saw 17 species of ducks and 14 species of shorebirds.

Parenthetically, in the days after the CBC, while some birders were on their way to see the Hooded Oriole, they found another bird rarely seen in Hernando County called an Ash-throated Flycatcher. This is also in Weekiwachee Preserve.

~Bev Hansen via email

Hernando Audubons participation in the Christmas Bird Count can document changes in bird species happening here in Hernando county. Those feathered friends we see out and about during our hikes or walks, biking, driving, or even watching them visit bird feeders in our backyards is just one way of understanding the effects of habitat loss and changes in the climate.

Those interested in learning more about the Christmas Bird Count, please visit: https://www.audubon.org/conservation/science/christmas-bird-count

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Birders document rare finds during the Annual Christmas Bird Count - Hernando Sun

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The new Ouachita parish school board building in West Monroe, La. is set to be fully functional by the end of January as staff settles in to the new space. (Photo: Nicolas Galindo/The News-Star)

Just before the winter break, the lobby of 1600 N. Seventh St., West Monroe, was stacked high with boxes the kind for moving, not gifts.

The Ouachita Parish Schools administrative offices are moving under a single roof, and the transition is set to be complete by mid-January.The first meeting in the updated building will be a special meeting at noon Jan. 6.

Superintendent Don Coker is proud of the new space. He can point to the purpose almost every closet, nook and cranny will serve.

"The space is great, and I like to see this as not just a central office but a training facility for all of our people," he said.

The formerOuachita Parish Alternative Center and West Monroe Junior High School campus has been renovated into state-of-the-art office space with classrooms and computer labs for staff training dotted through the complex.

Everything was designed to work together and make things easier.

"A lot of thought was put into how this was when you take a school and you gut the entire thing and then you build it back one step at a time trying to figure out how you coordinate all of this stuff. It's huge," Coker said.

The new board room at the remodeled Ouachita Parish School Board building in West Monroe, La.(Photo: Nicolas Galindo/The News-Star)

Once people are buzzed in the front door, a hallway to the left leads to Coker's office and personal conference rooms and the cafeteria.

Going straight, visitors will find the elevators, then the board room. Behind the board room, members have a smaller conference room specifically for executive sessions.

Taking a right from the lobby will lead straight to the most visited offices: retirement, leave, insurance and payroll.

Then the business offices are laid out in ways that keep departments together while sharing work rooms and printers. Every department has its own break room.

The DARE and truancy officers with the Ouachita Parish Sheriffs Office will have their own space with an external exit at the end of a wing. (The facility is secure and requires digital fobs to swipe in each door.)

Upstairs, there are other departments andtraining space, computer labs and additional storage. They've included a media room with a green wall for photos and digital video training for students too.

Media center workers and IT will be in another building in the same complex.

The new Ouachita Parish School Board building in West Monroe, La. will feature tables designed and made by the district's high schools. This table was built at West Ouachita High School.(Photo: Nicolas Galindo/The News-Star)

All the furniture from the old offices has been brought to the new building, and students at parish high schoolsare building tables for conference rooms around the complex.

Coker said they also plan to hang students' art around the buildings.

The best bargain in the whole development, he joked was the sod out front. Landscaping wasn't in the budget, but West Monroe High School had borrowed money from the board to put down a new turf practice field. They moved the grass to the new office.

The only place everything was not accounted for was the mail room. Each school has a letter box, as does each department in the new building.

"We haven't figured out what we're doing with thoseyet," Coker said, grinning andpointing to a bank of cubbies against one wall.

It's a new look, but history hasn't been abandoned. The West Monroe Junior High School wall plaque is hanging near the secondary entrance on the front of thebuilding.

Parts of the building keep vintage elements of the building in sight, like painting original brickwork to blend with new drywall. The look merges both elements.

"I'm thinking that down the road, this is going to be a cost saving measure for the entire district," Coker said.

They'll be maintaining fewer buildings, as a star, and there are built-in energy efficiencies in the redesigned offices, such as overhead lights that adjust based on the amount of daylight in the room.

The rooms are spacious and most of have lots of natural light. (In 30 years of administration, this is the first time Coker has had a window in his office.)

Ouachita Parish School Board Superintendent Don Coker sits at his desk in the new school board building in West Monroe, La. on Dec. 19.(Photo: Nicolas Galindo/The News-Star)

The new facility gives the district multiple spaces for events they'd previously held at churches. Coker said they can accommodate 700 teachers at one time in the entire central office.Being able to speak to 100 employees in one room like this is something they've never been able to do.

There are plans to start serving meals out of the cafeteria to employees who aren't based ata school. The goal is to make it self-sustaining without adding extra cost to the district.

Coker assumed his role in 2015. He said he'd been thinking of this project for several years and timing was everything. OPAS, now call Ouachita Parish Academy for Learning, students had to be moved, and some employees had to be relocated around the district to make room while the buildings were being renovated.

Now they're all coming home.

"What I'm having to do is to take four families and blend them into one, and that's going to be my Iwouldn't say challenge but that's going to be something that we're going to be working toward," Coker said.

He feels humble and proud that he pulled it together.

"I'm tired, but I'm happy."

Read or Share this story: https://www.thenewsstar.com/story/news/education/2019/12/31/ouachita-parish-school-board-starting-new-year-new-offices/2667983001/

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First peek: OPSB starting new year with new offices - The News Star