Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

A two-bedroom/two bath apartment on the 14th floor of The Plaza at Five Points is on the market for $1,195,000

Lakeland residents Carol and Don Stephens have been coming to the Sarasota area for short getaways for 35 years, most of that time specifically to Longboat Key where they enjoyed beach condominium living, views of the Gulf of Mexico and days of subline relaxation. But, several years ago they decided they wanted a different kind of experience an escape to the city.

"We had been hearing a lot about Sarasotas downtown with its lively cultural scene and we thought that would be just the thing," said Don Stephens. "We wanted to be close to walking distance if possible theaters, galleries, restaurants, shopping, the opera, you name it. We wanted a place where we could park the car, unpack and then enjoy the action. And hopefully not see the car for the next week or so."

When a 14th floor, two-bedroom apartment became available at The Plaza at Five Points, the couple knew they had found their launch pad for fun, as well as two deeded garage parking spaces.

The 1,671-square-foot luxury dwelling has an extra-large covered terrace accessed by both bedrooms and the living room which frames views of Sarasota Bay and metropolitan life. The couple bought the condominium in 2012 primarily because of its location, right in the middle of everything, and were then charmed by their apartment and The Plaza at Five Points building, which has 49 units (four penthouses) and was built in 2005. Its a mixed-use complex. The condominiums begin on the 11th floor. Below that offices, financial services, retail, a bank.

Carol Stephens, an interior designer, furnished her sky-box with urban polish and custom amenities, the way she would a permanent full-time residence so that she and Don would have every convenience and comfort if they were in town for two days days or two weeks. The double door front entrance opens into a lavish foyer and has views across the living room out to the terrace and beyond.

The large rooms express a relaxed elegance with special features such as grasscloth walls in the kitchen, dark granite counters, double vanities in the master and guest baths, artistic lighting, and custom built-ins. She installed wide-plank hardwood floors in the living room, hall and master bedroom. When the couple moved in, the apartment had two generous walk-in closets, which was more storage than they needed. So, Carol converted one of them into a home-office for Don.

The Plaza building itself, apart from its prime location, has been a source of pride for the homeowners. "We love that The Plaza is pet friendly because we have an eight-pound Yorkie whom we take to the park across the street everyday," said Don. "The Plaza has valet parking, guest parking, full-time maintenance management and it is impeccably cared for. We could not ask for more."

These homeowners have also appreciated the 10th floor open-air residents private oasis which includes a heated swimming pool and spa, summer kitchen, outdoor shower, rooftop gazebo, and inside a fitness center and conference room. Theres also a large community room with lounge and catering kitchen.

Carol and Don Stephens have loved everything about their downtown condo with the urban vibe. But, recently the couple put their vacation getaway on the market. It is listed at $1,195,000 through Thomas Netzel of Sothebys International Realty and it is being sold turnkey.

"The reason were giving it up is that we just dont use this wonderful place like we used to" said Don. "Our children and grandchildren are in Lakeland and we are involved in their lives and we want that to be the case. Friday nights for us lately are spent at a high school watching the grandkids in some sporting event.

"The last time Carol and I came to Sarasota for a weekend of city fun, we realized we handt been there for six months. It was a reality check and we both realized its time for somebody else to have The Plaza apartment experience and enjoy the kind of urban getaway we enjoyed for the past seven years."

Five Points, the intersection of Main, Central and Pineapple streets in downtown Sarasota, has been the center of commercial activities since settlers began to arrive in 1885, the date the Scots first came. Where The Plaza condominium is now, there was originally a wooden boarding house constructed in 1886 to accommodate new arrivals and construction workers. That building was demolished in 1924 to make room for First Bank and Trust Building, the areas first skyscraper. It had seven stories and an elevator, which alarmed as many neighbors as it impressed.

Other banks have continued to occupy that corner right up to today. Retail, restaurants and offices are on the lower floors of the Plaza at Five Points. A large clock that faced two ways was a signature feature of the bank (s) that have stood tall at Five Points. Theres still a clock today but its across the street at the entrance to Selby Park at Five Points.

The area that is today a lighted round-about with flags has traditionally been called the triangle at Five Points. In Sarasotas earliest days there was an artesian well, drinking fountain, hitching post and a trough for cows, horses and other thirsty livestock that wandered by. In 1911 community authorities outlawed meandering cows at Five Points. Later the triangle was the site of a World War I memorial.

Five Points has always been considered the hub of the city of Sarasota and today people who live at The Plaza at Five Points or work in one of the offices in the building are keeping history alive as well as enjoying modern urban amenities. Five Points was in the middle of the action when Sarasota was a struggling community of settlers intent on prospering and it still is today.

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An escape to the city - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Part one of this series focused on slab preparation and sub-base installation. In the article, we learned the importance of a well compacted and smooth subgrade, as well the proper installation of formwork, jointing, vapor barriers and other reinforcement. This article will discuss the next steps to placing, finishing, sawing and curing medium to large concrete slab on grade.

Rate of placement and screeding method are baseline decisions that must be made prior to start of placement. Placing/finishing concrete is time sensitive and susceptible to environmental conditions. Ideally you want to work within an 8- to 16-hour window for place, finish and cure/saw cutting operations.Uniform mix batch to batch and slab edge boarded.Chad White

Major considerations when scheduling concrete and planning day of placement activities include:

Planning Tips

For the purpose of this article we will be discussing concrete placement rates of 60-200 cubic yards per hour and strike-off rates of 4,0008,000 square feet per hour. Formwork and strike-off will dictate the FL numbers. Uniformity of slump and rate of placement will greatly influence FF numbers and panning/finishing processes.Roller tamp attachment to laser screed.Chad White

FF60/FL40 is the new norm for warehouse and open slab placements. Automated raking and screeding of slabs will result in higher production rates and flatter floors.

Major considerations when placing concrete include:

Installation Tips

Finishing floors is all about flatness, burnish and attention to detail. Timing of finishing steps is a critical factor and must be judged in real time.Blending edge burnish.Chad White

Major considerations for finishing concrete slabs include:

Tips for Finishing

Curing is either spray-on membrane or wet cure with blankets. There are pros and cons to both systems, and individual project requirements may dictate choice. The important thing with curing is timeliness and adherence to manufacturers and project specifications.Installing wet cure blankets.Bob Simonelli

Timing is probably the key coordination factor with saw cutting operations. A skilled crew and good equipment are required. There is nothing worse than having a great looking finish marred by crooked or spalled cuts.

Major considerations for installing control joints and curing include:

Tips for Sawing/Curing

Control and conditions of access during the placing/curing period is probably the biggest component to a slab protection plan and the hardest to police. Ensure slab protection plan is communicated to all trades. Advocate for daily cleaning by floor scrubber during construction. Ensuring that a spill kit is available while the slab is being used by other trades is a must and a major component of daily housekeeping. Scratches, gouges, spills and edge destruction are major concerns when slab is being used as a work platform by general trades.

Major considerations for slab protection include:

Execution Tips

Chad White has been involved in all aspects of concrete construction from craftsman to concrete subcontractor and is a founder of WL Concrete. Whitehas personally been involved with design and construction of many industrial slabs, including shake-on hardeners, defined traffic super flats and high tolerance random traffic floors. He is the author of numerous articles regarding concrete slab on grade installationand a speaker at World of Concrete.

Read this article:
Placing, Finishing, Sawing and Curing Total Concrete Slab Packages - ForConstructionPros.com

Next up in our review of 2019, Kristine Klein picks out the 10 most arresting installations on Dezeen, including Banky's pop-up, pink seesaws slotted between the border wall and a sauna at Burning Man.

Gross Domestic Product, UK, by Banksy

British graffiti artist Banksy opened up a "for display purposes only" pop-up shop in East Croydon to showcase his merchandise, which is for sale online. The retail space was created in response to actions by a greeting card company trying to "seize legal custody" of his name.

The installation in Croydon consists of a series of window displays that contain several works of art created by Banksy, including the stab vest worn by rapper Stormzy for a concert this summer. Many of the retail products were made exclusively for the online shop and include t-shirts and mugs adorned with the artist's famous works.

Find out more about Gross Domestic Product

The Starry Night, The Netherlands, Ivana Jeli and Pavle Petrovi

To highlight the issue of light pollution in urban areas, Serbian artists Ivana Jeli and Pavle Petrovi installed a series of LED lights that together form Van Gogh's Starry Night over a canal in Amsterdam.

Using 1,400 acrylic rods illuminated by small LED lights the designers were able to imitate the artist's brushstrokes and recreate the painting's swirling night sky pattern.

Find out more about The Starry Night

Steam of Life, USA, JKMM Architects

Finnish studio JKMM brought a sauna to this year's Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert. To create the circular pavilion, Steam of Life, the team of architects stacked timber slabs.

The interior was lined with benches and an open atrium for cooling down and meditative relaxation formed the centre of the structure. Apart from the sauna stove, which was transported from Finland, all of the building materials were locally sourced.

Find out more about Steam of Life

Mirage house, Switzerland, Doug Aitken

American artist Doug Aitken built a ranch-style residence clad in mirrors for a site in Switzerland surrounded by mountains, where it will stay for two years. The reflective material of the building casts the scenic landscape, which changes with the seasons, across its exterior.

Inside the mirrored structure kaleidoscopic panels installed on the walls and ceilings refract light and distort the interiors.

Find out more about Mirage house

The Secret of the Great Pyramid, France, JR

French artist JR placed a massive optical illusion made from thousands of paper stickers on the grounds surrounding IM Pei's Louvre pyramid in Paris, to celebrate the building's 30th anniversary.

The collage, which measured 17,000 square metres, formed an imaginative image that proposed the continuing underground construction of the iconic triangular structure. JR's work was only on display for one day, the museum's daily stream of visitors left the piece in shreds.

Find out more about The Secret of the Great Pyramid

US-Mexico border wall seesaws, USA, Mexico, Rael San Fratello

Rael San Fratello inserted three pink seesaws between metal slats of the US-Mexico border wall, so that children on either side can play together. The playground equipment was inserted along the portion of the wall that extends from El Paso, Texas to Ciudad Jurez in Mexico. Rael produced the installation through a collaboration with Taller Herrera, a workshop located in Ciudad Jurez.

"The wall became a literal fulcrum for US-Mexico relations and children and adults were connected in meaningful ways on both sides with the recognition that the actions that take place on one side have a direct consequence on the other side," the designer said on Instagram.

Find out more about US-Mexico border wall seesaws

Unzipping Milan building, Italy, Alex Chinneck

For Milan design week British artist Alex Chinneck installed a giant zipper on the face of a historic Venetian building to give the illusion that it is being peeled open. The installation was created for vape and tobacco brand Iqos.

The 17-metre-wide facade features a large zipper on its right side designed to create an opening that reveals bright lights. Inside the edifice, sculptural zippers attached to the interior walls and a circular opening on the floor also reveals glowing lights.

Find out more about unzipping Milan building

For Forest, Austria, Klaus Littmann

Klaus Littmann planted 300 trees in Wrthersee Stadion, a football arena, in Klagenfurt, Austria to send a message about the anthropocene, deforestation and climate change. For Forest replicates the the types of plantings typically found in European forests.

It memorialises nature as an "artistic sculpture" and was designed to gather people together so that they contemplate the environment and the importance of its protection.

After the installation closed the hundreds of trees were re-planted on a nearby plot of land. A wooden pavilion that provides visitors with educational information accompanies the small forest.

Find out more about For Forest

Sight, Greece, Antony Gormley

British sculptor Antony Gormley placed 29 humanoid sculptures atop hills, inside architectural ruins and along the coast line of the Greek Island Delos near the Aegean sea. Works in Gormley's collection titled Sight were made using iron and formed abstract versions of human bodies.

The exhibition was organised in collaboration with the Ephorate of Antiquities of Cyclades and commissioned by Neon, a nonprofit art foundation.

Find out more about Sight

Desert X installations, USA, Sterling Ruby, John Gerrard and Pia Camil

Works by 18 artists and groups including Sterling Ruby, John Gerrard and Pia Camil were featured in a series of installations displayed at the biennial art festival Desert X in California's Coachella Valley. The arid landscape, located East of Los Angeles, is the site of the annual Coachella music festival.

Highlights of the exhibition were Sterling Ruby's monolithic rectangular block coated in fluorescent orange and Lover's Rainbow by Pia Camil, made from arched rebar, painted every colour of the rainbow. Camil realised the work as the twin for a matching sculpture located on the other side of the US-Mexico border, the piece sheds light on the current immigration policies between the United States and Mexico.

Find out more about Desert X installations

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Dezeen's top 10 installations of 2019 - Dezeen

While it hardly qualifies as cutting-edge technology, the project described here did provide a solution to an annoying problem I have faced several times: How do you get a decent off-air signal from an AM station, where the studio is in a modern curtain-wall office building and is located at or beyond the 5 mV/m contour of the station?

I saw evidence that several engineers had explored solutions in the past. The hardware was still around when I arrived. A very nice (and pricey!) commercially-made shielded loop was installed on the roof with inside phantom power for its preamp in the studio racks seven floors down. That didnt really work. A better antenna signal could be had from the coax shield than from the actual loop antenna and preamp output.

Another iteration was the installation of pre-amplified loopstick antennas, taped to the window glass in one of the studios with coax routed back to the rack-mounted receivers. This, too, yielded a marginal signal enough to tell if we were on the air, but not useful for critical evaluation at all.

Yet the stations both had very usable, listenable signals on my car radio parked in the building driveway.

A COMMON PROBLEM

As is always the problem with metal-skinned buildings, the openings in the exterior walls behave like sections of waveguide at frequencies below cutoff virtually all of the field is cancelled. I concluded that no inside solution would ever work satisfactorily. Long runs of coax also werent working.

How could the car radio result be replicated in the building? To do that, I borrowed old technology and married it with some moderately-priced new technology to build what I believe is a solid solution.

I fabricated two shielded loop antennas from home center components as shown in Fig. 1. Inside the tubing is 10 turns of ordinary hookup wire. I used some multi-conductor wire and joined the ends to make one long wire length (see Fig. 2). Recall that the purpose of a shielded loop is to make the antenna responsive to only the magnetic component of the transmitted signal.

The shield is there to prevent successful capacitive coupling with electrostatic fields. Since the electrostatic fields from AM stations (and from most sources of interference) are vertically polarized, the electrostatic field induces voltage in only the vertical pieces of conduit. That same electric field exists inside the tubing as well and induces a voltage on the wire turns inside.

So how does this shielding help? Because the electric field in the vertical tubing sections induces voltage in the wire turns in opposite directions on either side of the loop. Thus the electrostatic contribution (in a perfect world) cancels. The gap in the conduit at the top of the loop (Fig. 3) is to avoid having the shield look like a shorted transformer turn, thus cancelling the magnetic component as well.

This is how your field intensity meter works. Regardless that the meter scale is calibrated in volts per meter, it is a magnetic device. The relationship between the electric field and the associated magnetic field is a known constant (120)t and the Potomac folks figure you wont be using the meter in other than an air environment, a pretty safe bet. Loop orientation works just like your field meter as well, with distinct nulls and maxima as you rotate it.

To provide just a bit of pre-selection to the loop, I added a small transistor-radio-style variable capacitor bought from an eBay seller. I calculated my ten turns to have about 200 microhenries, but with the capacitance contributed by the tubing and other unquantifiables, who knows?

My variable cap has two sections, each about 220 picofarads. I paralleled the sections and wired loop and capacitor as a tank circuit the miracle of adjustable components. Just turn the dial until it works! Tune for maximum smoke. The result is a broad resonance, but helpful for me, since my location is in the 50+ mV/m field of two other AM stations.

To couple each loop to a receiver, I used some randomly chosen ferrites found in a drawer and made a small ferrite loaded transformer for each loop antenna. I figured the impedance of the loop would be low. I guessed maybe an ohm or two. So, a 1:5 turns ratio would get me somewhere in the 50-ohm neighborhood.

NON-CRITICAL DESIGN

As youve probably guessed by now, nothing in this design is particularly critical. The radios are ordinary Panasonic in-dash models bought on eBay for about $20 each. This, too, is anything but critical.

Now, with two steerable antennas, I have a decent signal from both stations. But how to get that RF down seven floors to the studio? The answer is not to try. Instead, I installed my two car radio receivers in a weatherproof box (see below) and clamped the whole business to a railing on the roof.

The signals from two AM stations, as well as power, are carried on a piece of Cat-6 cable following the telephone riser path down the seven floors and into our leased space. Power comes up on two paralleled pairs, and baseband audio is coupled from the radio speaker outputs on the other two pairs.

The radios I used are bridge amplifier designs, meaning that the speakers are driven in a balanced, differential way, but I used small audio transformers for isolation anyway. Preserving balance yields undiminished audio quality downstairs. I also added a local headphone jack for each, allowing confirmation of proper operation before leaving the roof.

The whole business was installed into what Amazon calls a black, tactical, weatherproof case as shown in Fig. 4. Weve all seen these used for sensitive electronics that must be shipped. They have snap locks and gasketed lids. I just ordered a generously sized one and installed the shelves you see. The loop antennas attach using ordinary 3/4-inch plumbing components with the antenna coax fished through. I added reinforcement where the pipe flanges attach. Finally, the whole assembly is U-bolted to the railing.

WHAT ABOUT POWER?

Powering the system remotely involved a little I-squared-R thinking. The Cat-6 run overall was about 250 feet. Paralleled Cat-6 conductors at that distance worked out to be about 5 ohms overall. I had no idea what current the radios drew and, barely visible in the pictures, is a small lead-acid battery also in the enclosure. Its there to hold up the radios channel memory if the downstairs power needs to be disconnected for some reason. It needs to remain charged.

Finally, theres a small 12-volt fan in the box as well. I guessed 2 amps for the radios which, with 5 ohms on the way, means my 12 volts will be 2 volts on the roof. I could have done some bench measurements and built a supply, but when I can buy a 30-volt 3-amp adjustable supply with metering and overcurrent protection on Amazon for $60, why bother? The supply is pictured in Fig. 5.

With the battery disconnected, the supply voltage was gradually raised until the receivers saw about 13 volts. I then noted the current. When the battery was connected, the voltage came down to about 12.8 and the current increased by about 50 milliamperes. That seemed a reasonable amount for trickle charging one of the 7amp-hour batteries commonly used in UPS devices. Well see.

Anyway, the completed project, which is shown in Fig. 6, was simple, straightforward, not too terribly expensive, and solved a long-standing and annoying problem. For engineers it doesnt get any better than that.

Frank McCoy is chief engineer of Salem Communications Chicago cluster. Got an idea for a hands-on engineering article? Email rweetech@gmail.com.

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Receivers in a Box on the Roof - Radio World

One-third of Dutch households are using some sort of smart home technology, to regulate their heating, monitor security and even switch off lights.

Intelligent robot vacuums that clean the floor, your children telling the bathroom light to turn itself off and checking who is ringing your doorbell while you are having drinks with the neighbours smart home technology is seeping into many aspects of our lives.

Yet despite the advantages smart home technology offers, research published in September shows that even though almost two-thirds of Europeans are interested in installing some sort of smart system in their homes, most have not yet gone down that road.

The research was published by the Smart Home League, an alliance of companies involved with smart home technology. It showed that although only 11% of European homes currently employ some form of smart technology, that total is set to accelerate as more devices are developed and more consumers become aware of the advantages they bring.

Climate

German intelligent home climate management system Tado for example, says it want to demonstrate how technology can help people make their lives easier with technology, while saving energy and cutting energy bills at the same time.

Energy saving is a hot topic in the Netherlands and the Dutch can count themselves among the early adopters when it comes to smart homes. Research by the Smart Home Monitor early this year showed over one third of Dutch households already have some form of smart home technology, far outstripping the European average.

Energy and climate control systems to help residents to reduce energy consumption and save money were top of the popularity list, followed closely by followed by lighting and home security.

Consumers have a wide choice of devices and suppliers to choose from. Among the dozens of security systems on offer, French firm Netatmo has smart alarm systems using cameras, movement sensors and smoke alarms so you can protect your home both inside and out. The company also produces air quality monitors and heating system regulators. The aim, the company says, is to help users create a safer, healthier and more comfortable home.

Light switches

While the advantages of a complete home security system are easy to see, some of the more minor services offered by smart home technology such as light switch control might seem a waste of time.

However the Smart Home League research showed that two-third of Europeans are bothered by simple household tasks such as turning down the heating and searching for keys which can be easily solved using smart home technology.

The smart home is currently moving from early to mass adoptions, but to drive that forward, companies much make sure devices are accessible, affordable and easy to use, the League says. Smart speakers like Amazon Echo and Google Home have accelerated smart home adoption, because they are simple to set up and easy to integrate into every day routines.

Cost effective

In this way, the smart home can support consumers by making their homes safer, more comfortable, more energy efficient and increasingly cost effective.

The alliance survey also showed that 37% of people plan to buy a smart home product within the next year and that 68% of people who already have one such product are ready to buy another. This, the compilers say, suggests people who use them are aware of both the value and the benefits.

People want a smart home that provides them with a positive experience, says Dave Ward, European product director at Smart Home Alliance member Ring in a press release. They want to see a true benefit, something that solves an issue, rather than simply adding technology to their home.

DutchNews.nl has been free for 13 years, but now we are asking our readers to help. Your donation will enable us to keep providing you with fair and accurate news and features about all things Dutch. Donate via Ideal, credit card or Paypal.

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Would you let a robot vacuum your floor or use your phone to turn off the lights? - DutchNews.nl

In season nine, episode seven, The Spock Resonance, Sheldon is asked to take part in a Star Trek documentary by Wil Wheaton.

Sheldon is overjoyed to have been asked to participate, especially when Wil reveals Bill Nyes son will be on hand to help.

During the interview, Adam asks Sheldon: Do you have any Spock collectables?

Sheldon said: I have many. My most treasured is an autographed napkin given to me by my very thoughtful friend Penny.

READ MORE:Big Bang Theory: Did Young Sheldon star Iain Armitage ever appear?

While Penny and Leonard process what the camera may have caught them doing, a problem lies with when Sheldon said it was installed.

In 2012, the sixth season of Big Bang Theory premiered with The Date Night Variable.

During the episode, Leonard and Penny are working on their relationship and gather at Leonards to watch sports.

However, in the background, there was no Aquaman on display.

See the rest here:
Big Bang Theory plot hole: When did Sheldon install security camera? Blunder uncovered - Express

SINGAPORE - A tender to install, operate and manage 6,000 digital displays screens in lifts and lobbies in Housing Board blocks has been won by Target Media Culcreative (TMCC).

The panels will be built by June 2020 and allow more residents to receive information and news from the screens, in line with the Republic's Smart Nation drive to leverage digital technologies.

The project will be fully funded by TMCC - a joint venture between Singapore Press Holdings and Focus Media China - which beat out three vendors to win the tender.

Most of the panels will be installed at lift lobbies on the ground floor, with others inside residential lifts.

The content broadcast on the screens will range from local notices on activities in the estate to nationwide updates on emergencies and public health advisories.

In its call for tender in October this year, HDB said that commercial advertisements could also be displayed, but it will be capped at 30 per cent of the total screen time.

There are currently about 8,700 such panels installed at common areas in HDB blocks.

TMCC operates 8,000 screens across seven of the 16 townships in Singapore - Choa Chu Kang, Tanjong Pagar, West Coast, Jurong-Clementi, Sembawang, Tampines and East Coast-Fengshan.

International brands such as McDonald's, Mitsubishi and Redoxon, as well as government agencies such as the Ministry of Communications and Information and Ministry of Manpower have broadcast content on these screens, TMCC said.

Apart from investing in the hardware and software of the panels, the firm will also pay a temporary occupational licence fee to HDB, which is similar to the current arrangement it has with town councils.

Mr Jeff Liu, chief executive of TMCC, said: "In our past experience of building 8,000 screens, we understand how the digital display panels can bring vibrancy and relevance to HDB dwellers.

"In sync with the Singapore's government push for digitalisation, our smart digital display panels serve as an innovative channel and green initiative for the majority of Singaporeans to receive timely and relevant information."

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Target Media wins HDB tender to install digital display screens in lifts, lobbies next year - The Straits Times

Written by Hina Rohtaki | Chandigarh | Published: December 16, 2019 10:38:22 am The vendors site in Sector 15, Chandigarh. (Express photo: Kamleshwar Singh)

IN ANOTHER glaring example of splurging public money, the Chandigarh civic body will be providing flooring afresh on a site meant for street vendors which was refurbished in January this year with neatly layered paver blocks, completely intact. The new flooring at this vendors site which is one of the largest among all vending sites in Sector 15 will be done at a cost of Rs 37.49 lakh.

According to the estimate prepared by the engineering wing, accessed by Chandigarh Newsline, of this Rs 37.49 lakh, around Rs 1 lakh would be spent on dismantling the concrete paver blocks and stacking the existing ones. Providing and laying cement concrete of specific grade excluding the cost of shuttering will be done at a cost of Rs 19,48,875 and another part of it will be done at a cost of Rs 8,66,658. The railing would be installed at a cost of Rs 3.02 lakh.

When contacted, Chief Engineer Shailender Singh said that existing pavers are not to be dismantled and an approach road needs to be made. However, when told that it was in the documents of estimates prepared by the engineering wing that the existing ones will be dismantled and nowhere in all the 17 points of the estimate it was mentioned that any approach road will be made, he said he would check with the executive engineer concerned.

Former councillor and BJP leader Saurabh Joshi said that this expenditure was not justified as the site was refurbished in January this year and pavers were completely intact. It is surprising that not a single paver block is broken. And why do they want to make it concrete again by splurging public money? Just this January, they made the area concrete, Joshi said.

Joshi also raised a question as to when the change in land use was done as it was a green belt earlier. Has a proper procedure been followed when the change in land use was done because I was told by the department of urban planning that the CLU cant be done? So now, how did they convert the green belt into this land? And did they call in public suggestions and objections for this? Joshi asked.

Surinder Sharma, president of the Residents Welfare Association of Sector 15, said that a vigilance inquiry should be ordered into the fresh expenditure that is being incurred at the site. They have made it a money-minting thing. Everything is in a perfect condition. Moreover, they should focus more on the fact that the choice of this site is faulty. Who will provide security to the girls who are in the hostel adjacent to the site? he asked.

The site was recently revamped for as many as 936 vendors. Residents have already been raising questions on the choice of the site saying that there is a girls hostel next to it and it will become a hub of anti-social elements.

For all the latest Chandigarh News, download Indian Express App

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For refurbished vendors site, Chandigarh civic body to spend again, readies flooring estimate of Rs 37.49 lakh - The Indian Express

Bathroom

Photo Courtesy of National Association of the Remodeling Industry

Family Features

MISSION, Kan., Dec. 17, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- (Family Features) Adding additional bathroom space to your home or renovating an outdated lavatory can improve your homes usability and increase its value, too. To get the most practical benefits and value out of your new space, there are several factors to consider.

Before you get started, take into account these considerations about the design and function of your new bathroom from the remodeling experts at the National Association of the Remodeling Industry.

SpaceA primary consideration is the available footprint to create your new bath. This is often a concern as children reach their teen years and also with expanding families. If there arent enough bathrooms in the house, you may want to add another, or it may be that you simply need to improve the layout and features to make better use of the existing space. For example, if the bath will be shared by multiple members of the family, a separation of the sinks from the rest of the room may be helpful.

FeaturesDetermining how you will use your bathroom dictates the features youll want to include. A guest or hall bath is likely to have far fewer features than a master bath but may share some similarities with a kids bathroom. First, youll need to make decisions about basics like lighting, the number of sinks and amount of counter space youll need.

If you like baths, youll need to decide between a tub and shower combination unit or separate facilities. With a separate tub, the style you prefer may guide your overall design. The aesthetic for a bathroom with a focal point like a claw-foot tub is likely different from a jetted tub.

StorageStorage is one of the biggest concerns in any design, particularly in rooms as small as typical bathrooms. Carefully consider this aspect of the room during your pre-planning phase. To help determine how much space you need, make a list of all the items you need to store in the bathroom, including cleaning agents, toiletries, linens, first aid items and medications.

Its a good idea to also think about where in the room you would like to store each of these items. You may want some of the toiletries in the shower area, while others will be used near the sink or dressing area.

SustainabilityMany contemporary bathroom fixtures are designed with sustainability in mind, so you can manage your water usage while still enjoying a water-rich environment. You can find water-saving features on everything from toilets to shower heads to even sink faucets.

AccessibilityApplying universal design principles to your project can promote safety and increase your homes appeal to a wider range of buyers in the future. In the bathroom, you can improve safety by incorporating non-slip flooring surfaces and ensuring the space is well-lit.

Other ideas include adjusting counter and toilet heights to make bathrooms more accessible (wall-hung toilets should be approximately two inches higher). You could incorporate structural bracing around the tub, shower and toilet for grab bars. You might also consider a walk-in tub or stand-up shower with no threshold, levered handles for faucets and an adjustable showerhead.

Find more ideas and inspiration for your bathroom design at remodelingdoneright.com.

Michael Frenchmfrench@familyfeatures.com 1-888-824-3337editors.familyfeatures.com

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Make the Most of Your Bathroom Renovation - GlobeNewswire

Professional Handyman and Home Improvement Business Expands from Washington, D.C. to Southern Maryland

WASHINGTON House Doctors, the trusted source for handyman services, home repair, and home improvement, announced today the expansion of the trusted territory in Washington, D.C. to now also serve Southern Maryland.

Under the leadership of local owner Kevin Logan, House Doctors is expanding its home improvement and repair services to residents from Washington D.C., to Annapolis, Chesapeake Beach, Lusby, St. Charles County, St. Marys County, Waldorf, Lexington Park and everywhere in between including most of Southern Maryland.

House Doctors hires only experienced technicians who are scheduled online at the time most convenient for the home or commercial property owner. The company also makes house calls to offer estimates for larger repair and remodeling projects.

Twenty years ago, there was a large construction boom for housing. But now people need to take care of all of their houses, said Logan. With the increased need for home renovation services, we dont want to leave the residents in Southern Maryland out to dry.

House Doctors experienced, insured, background-checked and uniformed handymen technicians specialize in projects that take two hours to two days to complete, such as repairing decks, doors, and drywall; putting a fresh coat of paint on a fence or wall; fixing or replacing a leaky faucet; installing a new fan; or cleaning out and fixing your gutters.

Theres never been a more optimal time to get into the home repair and home improvement business in Southern Maryland, said Jim Hunter, CEO of House Doctors. Home improvements are booming in Maryland. Thanks to the increasing popularity of platforms such as HGTV, the demand for repair and maintenance projects, and even larger-scale upgrades and remodels continue to be indicative of the changing demographics influence from millennials, baby boomers and aging in placers.

For more information on House Doctors of DC, visithttps://housedoctors.com/handyman-dc/services/or call 202-499-3748.

To learn more about franchising opportunities with House Doctors, visithttps://www.housedoctorshandymanfranchise.com.

About House Doctors

Known as the trusted handyman service for home repair and home improvement, House Doctors offers a myriad of services from drywall and gutter repair to kitchen and bathroom remodeling. The House Doctors team of insured, bonded and uniformed handymen have a wide array of skillsets to tackle even the longest list of to-dos. With a one-year guarantee, prompt and precise service and a team of qualified craftsmen and technicians, House Doctors is not only a handyman service but a trusted home advisor among the customers it serves. Founded in 1995, House Doctors is located across the countryand has targeted several growth markets for the next few years.

To learn more about house Doctors franchise opportunities, visithttps://www.housedoctorshandymanfranchise.comand for more information about the brand, visit the company website athttps://www.housedoctors.com.

The Southern Maryland Chronicle is a local, small business entrusted to provide factual, unbiased reporting to the Southern Maryland Community.While we look to local businesses for advertising, we hope to keep that cost as low as possible in order to attract even the smallest of local businesses and help them get out to the public. We must also be able to pay employees(part-time and full-time), along with equipment, and website related things. We never want to make the Chronicle a pay-wall style news site.

To that end, we are looking to the community to offer donations. Whether its a one-time donation or you set up a reoccurring monthly donation. It is all appreciated. All donations at this time will be going to furthering the Chronicle through hiring individuals that have the same goals of providing fair, and unbiased news to the community. For now, donations will be going to a business PayPal account I have set-up for the Southern Maryland Chronicle, KDC Designs. All business transactions currently occur within this PayPal account. If you have any questions regarding this you can email me at davidhiggins@southernmarylandchronicle.com

Thank you for all of your support and I hope to continue bringing Southern Maryland the best news possible for a very long time. David M. Higgins II

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House Doctors of DC Increases to Meet Greater Demand - The Southern Maryland Chronicle