Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

CONNELLY SPRINGS The North Carolina Department of Transportation will begin a project to replace two bridges that date to the Dwight D. Eisenhower presidential administration by Monday.

On Thursday, NCDOT announced the start date for the project that will replace a pair of 60-year-old bridges on Interstate 40 that cross over Berea Church Road in Connelly Springs. The department says tens of millions of cars have passed over the bridges, which were constructed in 1956 (eastbound) and 1958 (westbound).

The $8.56 million contract for work on the bridges was awarded to NHM Constructors of Asheville. By Monday, NHM will close Berea Church Road to begin what is expected to be a two-year process to replace the bridges. The department previously announced that aside from planting, reforestation and permanent vegetation establishment, all work on the project will be completed by Sept. 1, 2019.

According to information from NCDOT, NHM will construct an onsite detour to allow I-40 traffic to flow in all four lanes. A local detour has been established for Berea Church Road to help accelerate construction, the department said. The Berea Church Road detour will direct westbound traffic to Burke Boulevard, then to U.S. Highway 70, then to Knobs Landing Road, then back to Berea Church Road. The opposite applies to eastbound vehicles on Berea Church Road, according to a release.

NCDOT requests that motorists follow detour signs, obey all posted speed limits and slow down in construction zones.

The project to replace the bridges is part of a 10-year plan for Burke County. Many of the projects slated for the first five years of the plan already are funded, according to information from NCDOT.

Other NCDOT projects that are part of its 10-year plan include:

I-40 paving Pave 23.8 miles of road from mile marker 95.2 to mile marker 119 at a cost of $23.5 million. Construction will start in 2018.

Exit 100 (Jamestown Road) Upgrade the interchange at a cost of $2.42 million, plus an additional $250,000 for preliminary engineering. Right-of-ways will be secured in 2018 and construction will start in 2020.

Exit 107 (Drexel Road) Upgrade the interchange at a cost of $16.1 million, plus another $400,000 that already has been spent on preliminary engineering. Right-of-ways will be secured in 2019 and construction will start in 2020.

U.S. Highway 64/Burkemont Road Improve the interchange at a cost of $1.41 million, plus another $250,000 that already has been spent to do preliminary engineering. Right-of-ways will be secured in 2019 and construction should start in 2021.

Exit 111 (Carolina Street, Valdese) Revise the interchange at a cost of $3.61 million, plus an additional $250,000 for preliminary engineering. Right-of-ways will be secured in 2019 and construction will start in 2021.

N.C. Highway 181 road widening Widen less than a mile from St. Marys Church Road to Clay Street at a cost of $10.9 million. Right-of-ways will be secured in 2020 and construction will start in 2022.

Exit 116 (Old N.C. Highway 10) Upgrade the interchange and remove two-way traffic at a cost of $14.8 million. Right-of-ways will be secured in 2022 and construction will start in 2024.

Exit 112 (Mineral Springs Mountain Road, Eldred Street) Construct interchange improvements at a cost of $16 million. Right-of-ways will be secured in 2022 and construction will start in 2024.

N.C. Highway 181/Bost Road widening Widen 2.8 miles to three lanes at a cost of $18.4 million. Planning and design is in progress and the right-of-ways will be secured in 2023 and construction will start in 2025.

Excerpt from:
Road construction project on I-40, Berea Church Road to begin Monday - Morganton News Herald

McDONOUGH Turner Church Road is just one many dirt roads in Henry County that will soon be transformed to asphalt.

On Tuesday, the Henry County Board of Commissioners approved a $987,278 bid to pave the road. McLeRoy Inc., of Zebulon submitted the lowest bid for the project, which was approved by commissioners unanimously.

SPLOST Transportation Project Director Roque Romero expects a notice to proceed for construction to be issued by the end of August. The project is expected to be complete within 300 days, he said.

The project, which consists of paving east of the bridge to Ga. Highway 20, will be funded using District 3 SPLOST IV funds. Turner Church Road is the last of District 3 dirt roads to be paved under SPLOST IV collections.

During the Tuesday meeting, the BOC received an update on SPLOST IV projects, which included other dirt road projects that are remaining:

Two of five roads have been completed. Construction for Lester Mill Road is in progress, while the design for Peeksville Road from the bridge to Old Jackson Road is in progress. Right of way acquisition is in progress for Peeksville Road from New Hope Road to the bridge.

Six of 10 dirt roads have been paved under SPLOST IV. Right of way acquisition is underway for Amah Lee Road, from Old Highway 3, and Thoroughbred Drive, from Greenwood Road.

Preliminary design is in progress for Selfridge Road, from Speedway Boulevard to the Atlanta Speedway Airports entrance, and South Cleveland Church Road, from New Morn Drive to Stone Road.

One of two dirt road projects is in progress. Commissioners are expected to approve a construction bid for Elliott Road, from East Lake Road to Crumbley Road, in the coming months.

There were no SPLOST IV dirt road updates listed for District 5.

Continue reading here:
Turner Church Road approved for paving construction, others on list - Henry Herald

Houston Business Journal

Photos: Churches expand with population boom northwest of Houston Houston Business Journal In April 2016, Houston's First Baptist Church broke ground on a 100,000-square-foot church on 32 acres off the Grand Parkway in Bridgeland. After a little more than a year of construction, the church opened the doors to its new Cypress campus on June 11.

The rest is here:
Photos: Churches expand with population boom northwest of Houston - Houston Business Journal

Lebanon The white steeple that once adorned the First Baptist Church, rising above the roofs of School Street, soon could be revived under recently unveiled plans for a new church building.

A large steeple isnt the only feature architects working to design the new building borrowed from its predecessor, the remains of which were razed in the wake of an arson that destroyed the structure in December.

Renderings for the new church depict a Gothic Revival-style exterior and large windows to draw natural light, features congregants will find familiar.

But those plans are dependent on approval from the Lebanon Planning Board, which is scheduled to review the design during its Aug. 14 meeting. Planning Board approval is the final stage of city review needed before construction can begin.

There also is concern from parishioners that the church might not have enough money to construct the steeple, which is why the building is designed to stand without the feature, according to Jack Althouse of the Pennsylvania-based Althouse, Jaffe & Associates architectural firm.

My goal was to design a church that fit into the community architecturally, Althouse said of the proposed building.

Althouse, who is nationally known for designing churches, said he drew inspiration from churches throughout New England.

The new church will be built on the same downtown Lebanon site as the previous church, which dated to 1870. With the steeple in place, it would stand at a little more than 83 feet tall and would occupy more than an estimated 12,000 square feet of the roughly quarter-acre lot.

Thats roughly the same square footage as the former building, Althouse said, but it wont be a carbon copy.

The buildings footprint is more square than its rectangular-shaped predecessor, meaning Althouse was able to add several modern features.

Inside, a large lobby will greet visitors and churchgoers. The space is a growing trend among churches, Althouse said, giving congregations a place to meet and a space where people can participate in services without actually being in the sanctuary.

Often people have to excuse themselves during worship, Althouse said, adding that the lobby allows such people to remain in the building.

There are plans to do away with church pews in favor of chairs installed in a semicircle, he said. A balcony will be built in the sanctuary, and the worship platform will have enough space to accommodate live music.

It should be a really inspiring place to worship in, Althouse said.

The congregation also asked that the building include classrooms physically separated by walls and a kitchen, according to Althouse. In the old building, members were forced to use dividers to separate educational programs, he said.

Although church moderator Keith Davio hasnt yet seen the plans submitted to the city, hes been pleased with renderings brought to the congregation, which has been meeting weekly at the Lebanon Middle School since the fire.

(Althouse) seems to have incorporated the majority of what were looking for, Davio said in a phone interview on Thursday. Our building committee has put a lot of time and effort into that. Theyve got a good product.

Davio declined to say how much the building is expected to cost or how much money the church was able to collect from its insurance company after the fire. He said completion of the classrooms also might be dependent on funding.

Aside from large windows and a new exterior, there also are plans for minor landscaping and a patio on the property, according to Rod Finley of Pathways Consulting. One American elm and six crabapple trees are proposed for the site, he said.

Because the building is grandfathered, it will not be required to meet current parking standards or conform to maximum height requirements in the citys Residential 2 zoning district, Lebanon Zoning Administrator Tim Corwin said.

The proposal garnered city Zoning Board approval in June, when the church requested a special exception for its new footprint.

If all goes well, construction could begin in September and the building could be ready for use as early as next summer, Althouse said earlier this spring.

For Lebanon resident Linda Armstrong, construction would be a welcome site. Armstrongs house on Green Street sits across from the former church site, which now is fenced off.

I want to see the church put back there. I dont like looking at the hole, she said, looking out from her porch on Thursday. Its totally weird not having the church there.

Tim Camerato can be reached at tcamerato@vnews.com or 603-727-3223.

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First Baptist Shares Plans - Valley News

This 114-unit building is under construction on the site of the former Charity Neighborhood Baptist Church building on Bedford Avenue and Lincoln Place. View Full Caption

DNAinfo/Rachel Holliday Smith

CROWN HEIGHTS A church group that sold their former worship space to a Crown Heights developer says they're being cheated out of space promised to them in the new building going up where the old church once stood.

The Charity Neighborhood Baptist Church had operated at the historic Savoy Theater building at 1515 Bedford Ave. since 1975, members of the church said outside the lot on Tuesday, but moved out after a 2012 sale of the building for $575,000 to 1515 Bedford Avenue Realty LLC.

The church agreed to sell after signing a contract with the company stipulating Charity Neighborhood would receive approximately 5,000 square feet of ground floor space for use as a religious sanctuary, the document reads, and another 2,000 square feet in the basement for a community facility.

But the churchs leader, Bishop Kareem Evans, said the developers representative Yosi Cohen told him several months ago the church would receive space in the basement only not on the ground floor, as promised.

Now, the church community is calling out the developer publicly to right the wrong and will go to court over the issue if necessary, Evans said.

This was our building from the beginning, he said.

Calls for comment to the developers office and Yosi Cohen were not returned Tuesday.

The church has support from high-profile attorney Sanford Rubenstein, who spoke on their behalf Tuesday, members of Black Lives Matter and Gwen Carr, mother of Eric Garner and aunt to Evans, who has attended the church since 2009. She took issue with the developers trying to force her congregation into a basement.

Nobody would build a church in the basement, she said. We dont want them to disgrace us to dishonor us. They would have never done this in other certain neighborhoods.

Black Lives Matter activist Hawk Newsome, left, stands with Gwen Carr, the mother of Eric Garner, who is a member of the Charity Neighborhood Baptist Church, slated to take space in the newly constructed building at 1515 Bedford Ave. in Crown Heights. (DNAinfo/Rachel Holliday Smith)

BLM activist Hawk Newsome stood with Carr outside the construction site at Bedford Avenue and Lincoln Place with a sign reading, A man robs god when he doesnt honor an agreement with a church.

It takes a special kind of evil to cheat a church, he said.

Construction has been ongoing at the site since the Savoy Theater building was torn down in early 2014. The building going up on the site will be 10 stories tall and include 114 residential units when complete, building records show.

Read this article:
Developer of Church Lot Cheating Congregation Out of Space, Group Says - DNAinfo

Home Page Siding Comparison

This overview of home siding material options allows you to compare siding head to head in all the essential categories. You will also find individual pages for many of these materials where you can learn more detail as your research the right siding choice for your home or business. Information on each of the variables and choices is located below the table.

Type of Siding

Durability

Maintenance

Colors

Styles

Installation

Low Maintenance

Many

$.65-$2.00 square foot

Low Maintenance

Many

$2.50-$5.00 sf

Low Moderate

Few

$4-$6/sf Brick Veneer, $6-$10/sf Full Brick

Low Moderate

Several

$4-$6/sf Stone Veneer, $14-$18/sf Natural Stone

Moderate High

$2.50-$8.00 sq foot

High Maintenance

$6.80-$19/sf

The durability of the siding products you are considering is an important factor. How many years of dependability will you get from the siding? When will it need to be replaced because it can no longer protect your home or has become a visual liability?

The most durable siding options are stone and brick. When properly installed, they will last for centuries, potentially. These are also the most expensive siding choices, and that is no surprise. Vinyl and aluminum siding is very durable and resists weather quite well. In time, all siding will fade. You might want to replace it due to its appearance before it begins to fail your home. Here is what you can expect in terms of durability and longevity from todays most popular siding options.

The longevity and lifespan you get from the siding, considered with the cost of it produces value. Low cost and excellent longevity is the epitome of value, but you dont get that in the siding industry. Longevity and cost tend to go hand in hand, but there are some sidings that offer better bang for your buck than others. Here are costs along with an evaluation of the sidings value. All prices are per square foot.

The more style, color and texture options you have in a product, the more likely you are to find one that produces the look youre trying to achieve on your home.

What are the possible downsides of each type of siding? There are many reasons to be overly cautious about choosing siding for your home remodeling project. Here are some notes about each type.

Narrow your options based on your budget. Then, consider the products that will help you attain the look you want for your home. Dont overlook the maintenance requirements of each product in terms of the time and/or money it will take to keep it looking good and performing as it should.

You might also want to consider how long you intend to be in your current home. The longer you plan to be there, the more sense it makes to choose a high-end siding product. Consider all of these factors and youll come up with one or two siding products that will meet all off your requirements.

More here:
Comparison of Siding Costs, Durability, Installation and more

Further efforts in these endeavors will continue this October at the AAMA National Fall Conference in Greenville, SC.

Installation Standard Review Focuses on Stucco Interface

Having been earmarked for review by the Document Management Committee, AAMA 2400-10,Standard Practice for Installation of Windows with a Mounting Flange in Open Stud Frame Construction for Low Wind/Water Exposure, was the subject of preliminary recommendations submitted by volunteer Kim Flanary (Milgard). Aside from editorial updates to better align with ASTM E2112-07 (2016), proposed changes focused on window installation with stucco siding. To cure the problem of stucco cracking due to thermal expansion or contraction of window frames, it was recommended to specify use of a stucco key in the post-installation section. A stucco key, installed so that backer rod and sealant are not required, establishes a quarter-inch gap around the window to allow for thermal movement and provides a finishing point for the stucco.To finalize the AAMA 2400 update recommendations, the Council established a task group, to be chaired by Flanary.

AAMA 504 Load Test Parameters Specified

AAMA 504-05,Voluntary Laboratory Test Method to Qualify Fenestration Installation Procedures, is being updated by the responsible task group (Chair: Jim Katsaros [DuPont]). Recently, Draft 9 was balloted to the product group, with most comments being judged as substantive. Section 9 has posed the most areas of concern, and has been rewritten to address test cycling load magnitude, cycle duration and total number of cycles to be administered (per ASTM E2264 as referenced in the 504 document). The task group agreed to set the number of cycles at 10 for a duration of 10 seconds each. Load magnitude and references to the ASTM E330 (structural test under a static air pressure difference) Procedure A, vs. ASTM E2357 for air leakage testing, still need to be clarified. The rewritten portions will be re-balloted.

Flashing Standards Refine Test References for Water Drainage and Crack Bridging

With the final number of required voting individuals weighing in at the last minute, Draft #3 of the pending update to AAMA 711-13,Voluntary Specification for Self-Adhering Flashing Used for Installation of Exterior Wall Fenestration Product, was successfully balloted to the product group. Several substantive comments were reviewed during the Summer Conference by the Flashing Committee (Chair: Jim Katsaros [DuPont]). The standard spells out methods for testing resistance to water penetration around nails and evaluates how well a self-adhering flashing tape remains bonded to the substrate after thermal cycling at three levels of heat exposure and water immersion.

Given that 711 has no allowance for a flashing tape that drains tape to the exterior, the latest round of discussion resulted in the recommendation that AAMA establish a measure of such drainage, using a test fixture that has already been developed. ASTM E2273,Standard Test Method for Determining the Drainage Efficiency of Exterior Insulation and Finish Systems (EIFS) Clad Wall Assemblies, was posed as the reference for acceptance criteria.

The status of the crack bridging study, being performed for the review of the AAMA 714 standard for liquid-applied flashing, was examined, centering on conclusions indicated by round robin testing. The protocols of ASTM C1305,Standard Test Method for Crack Bridging Ability of Liquid-Applied Waterproofing Membrane, were reviewed for applicability. It was noted that testing at the manufacturers recommendations for test specimen thickness as opposed to the thicker samples specified in ASTM C1305, yielded mixed results. It was ultimately decided to modify 714, Section 5.6, to test specimens of the manufacturers specified thickness at class I and class II, and to specify the C1305 testing temperature at -26C (-15F). Given that some manufacturers recommend a range of thickness, a note would also be added to specify that the manufacturers minimum recommended thickness should be used for testing. Table 7 for acceptance criteria was updated accordingly.

ROESE Functionality Needs Definition

The ROESE Feasibility Task Group (Chair: Jim Katsaros [DuPont]) reviewed the status of the HIRL (Home Innovations Research Labs) /DOE Project as part of its effort to develop a standard for installation of windows into FPIS walls that would specify the use of Rough Opening Extension Support Elements (ROESE) for certain situations. It was noted that the FPIS document published last year by the HIRL/DOE group lacked material requirements and did not include standards for the structural support of a window. HIRL was reported as conducting a study on the latter that disproportionately emphasized foam products. An advisory letter was sent to HIRL on XX date (see Rich Rinka for specifics that letter already went out).

Ballot Responses Sought for Joint Installation Document

The Joint AAMA/FMA/WDMA Replacement Window Task Group (Chair: Jim Katsaros [DuPont]) notes that the latest draft of the document is still open pending responses to the latest ballot which was due July 10. Voting members are requested to respond as soon as possible.

AAMA 800 Fine Tuning Continues

The current revision draft to AAMA 800 was successfully balloted to the product group. The Sealants (AAMA 800) Maintenance Committee (chair: Mark Toth [H.B. Fuller) reviewed substantive comments to the ballot, which focused on how the standard addresses long term UV exposure. A disclaimer that had been added to Note 2 in Section 5 on Exterior Perimeter Sealing Compounds used the term long term without defining what long term meant, so it had to be resolved whether to define the length of exposure or to simply state that the standard did not address this aspect. The latter approach was adopted and Note 2 accordingly revised to state that long-term exposure is beyond the scope of the document and directing the reader to contact the manufacturer. Meanwhile, the Exterior Sealant Long-Term Durability Work Group, formed at the February annual conference to more fully address the issue, had not as yet met.

Meanwhile, the AAMA 812 Insulating Expanding Foams Task Group (Chair: Beverly Selle [Dow Chemical]) awaits results of balloting before determining additional efforts.

Standard Updates Continue

The 2017 Summer Conference logged continued progress in the development of new and revised standards:

Read the rest here:
WIC Talks Standards Updates, Test Parameters at Summer Conference - Glass on Web

If youre concerned with reducing your carbon footprint while remodeling your patio or building a new home, theres good news: cedar and other wood products are an economical and eco-friendly building resource alternative to cement.

Concrete, which requires fossil fuel for production, releases a ton of toxic carbon dioxide into the atmosphere for every ton produced. Wood, on the other hand is a natural resource grown only with natural materials sun, rain and soil right in our backyard.

One Planet Living

Issaquah Cedar and Lumber provided sustainable cedar for construction of the Grow Community on Bainbridge Island. This multifamily green housing project is one of nine endorsed One Planet Living Communities in the world and the second to be built in North America. This is part of a trend, spurred by popular demand from homeowners, for developers to commit to building a community that supports these ten principles:

Building with wood: Good for the air we breathe

Working forests play an integral role in controlling toxic carbon emissions. The commercial forests in Washington and the harvested wood products they produce absorb and then store about 25 percent of the regions total emissions.

Forests are giant carbon sinks, actively cleansing the air we breath. Growing trees, particularly during the first few years after planting, suck toxic carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and turn it into clean solid carbon and atmospheric oxygen. This is done through photosynthesis.

When trees are harvested and made into lumber, the wood continues to store carbon permanently and keep it out of the air we breath. In fact, about 50 percent of the weight of the wood used to build our houses, cabinetry and furniture is the toxic gas, safely sequestered as nature intended it to be.

The forests in Washington that are producing cedar and other wood for lumber adhere strongly to widely certified standards of sustainable forestry. This means growers are committed to:

Cedar proven to be most eco-friendly for siding and decking

A recent study performed by Canadas leading forestry research laboratory, FPInnovations-Forintek, measured the environmental impact of various building materials from cradle to grave.

Complex analysis was conducted on Western red cedar decking and siding, wood-plastic composite decking, brick, fiber-cement and vinyl against a range of measurables such as resource use, water use, energy use, transportation and waste created. Western red cedar products substantially outperformed other materials in every category.

The life cycle study covered four stages of production: resource extraction and manufacturing (cradle-to-gate manufacturing), transportation to customer, installation and use, and end-of-life disposition (landfilling). Products were measured and evaluated against six criteria that include information about the environmental impacts associated with a product or service, such as raw material acquisition, energy use, carbon footprint, emissions to air, soil and water, and waste generation.

Western red cedar has been a bestseller at our store for years, says Stacy Kovats, marketing director at Issaquah Cedar and Lumber. Our customers trust its strength, durability and beauty for building everything from fences and decks, to home siding.

Additionally, all of the products at Issaquah Cedar and Lumber are locally sourced and produced on-site by people who live in the community. That means building with wood is not only good for the environment but also supports the local economy.

Issaquah Cedar and Lumberhas been in business forover 115 years. We supply the Puget Sound area with the highest-qualityWestern red cedar products and materials, including decking,siding,beams,shakes, shingles and custom-milled cedar materials.

Go here to read the rest:
Building with wood can lighten environmental footprint - The Seattle Times

This press release was orginally distributed by SBWire

Cherry Hill, NJ -- (SBWIRE) -- 07/31/2017 -- Alan Cherry's Exteriors, one of the best roofing contractors in Marlton, NJ, is happy to announce they offer siding installation to residents in South Jersey and the greater Philadelphia area. Right now is the perfect time for homeowners to prepare their home from hail and wind damage before this year's hurricane season.

Since 1975, Alan Cherry's Exteriors' customer first mentality has helped make them a major player in the competitive roofing industry in the area. From roof repairs to window installation, customers are always left happy and satisfied. Aside from roof, window and siding installation and repair, Alan Cherry's Exteriors also offers interior renovation like flooring, bathroom and kitchen remodeling.

Customers really appreciate the level of customer satisfaction the crew at Alan Cherry's Exteriors goes to in order to make their customers happy. In a recent review on Facebook, Belinda Legrand-Haynes of Philadelphia exclaimed, "After careful consideration, my husband and I chose to go with Alan Cherry's Exterior, and we are really glad we did. We had such a nice experience from beginning to end. Krystin received the call from us and was pleasant and courteous. Mike was professional and knowledgeable of the product he was selling. What can we say about Josh such professionalism and easy to work with. Such excellent work and neat. I would definitely recommend Alan Exteriors for roof, windows and any exterior work."

Of their forty Facebook reviews, the company has been able to maintain a near perfect 4.8 out of five-star rating. Anyone interested in more information on Alan Cherry's Exteriors or the services they offer can head over to their website at https://www.cherryswindowsidingroofing.com/. The Cherry Hill, NJ roofers can also be reached by dialing 856-347-8292.

About Alan Cherry's ExteriorsAlan Cherry's Exteriors is a full-service contractor that performs installations and repairs on siding, roofs, and windows, as well as kitchens and bathrooms. Family owned and operated since 1975; the company is a go-to source for repairs in South Jersey and Philadelphia.

For more information, visit them on the web at http://www.cherryswindowsidingroofing.com.

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/alan-cherrys-exteriors-the-premier-siding-installer-in-south-jersey-840996.htm

See original here:
Alan Cherry's Exteriors: The Premier Siding Installer in South Jersey - Digital Journal

It remains unclear how seriously any of those individuals are being considered.

Since Kelly took his position as President Donald Trump's right-hand man, he is expected to have an outsized role in the process of finding his replacement.

"I think he will have a great deal of say in who goes over to replace him because he has had this position," a source close to Kelly said. "He now has a very soft spot in his heart for the Department of Homeland Security," the source added, saying that it's "now his baby."

Kelly is especially concerned about his replacement continuing the trajectory he feels he got the department on, particularly on issues like morale of the workforce, the source said.

Multiple sources close to the White House and the administration expect the process will take some time, and that having acting DHS Secretary Elaine Duke, who was confirmed this spring as the deputy secretary, reduces the pressure to speed things up.

"Elaine Duke is a steady hand at the wheel so you don't need to rush this process, because she's very, very steady," said a congressional aide. "She can run the ship well, so they can take their time."

Here's a look at some of the options being discussed.

Jeff Sessions

Given Trump's public berating of Sessions in recent weeks, there was speculation that the President could move Sessions to the opening at DHS to get him out of the Justice Department without firing him.

Doing so would eliminate what was a growing source of frustration for the President -- namely Sessions' recusal from the investigation into Russian election meddling and the special counsel at DOJ -- and puts an experienced hand atop an agency key to Trump's immigration and counter-terrorism agenda, all without firing a man who was defended aggressively by members of Congress and conservative organizations.

But the White House has denied that option is under consideration.

"There are no conversations about any Cabinet members moving in any capacity, and the President has 100% confidence in all members of his Cabinet," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said when asked about the rumor on Monday.

Mike McCaul

The Texas congressman, who's also the chairman of the House homeland security committee, is considered a strong contender for the position given his experience and border-state ties. He also would likely face an easy road to confirmation among his peers in the upper chamber.

He also has had a good relationship with Kelly during his tenure, the aide said.

"How the administration has leapt from one chaotic episode to the next and seeing how Trump loyalists like Sessions and (New Jersey Gov. Chris) Christie have been treated by the President will likely cause pause," the well-placed source said.

And like during the initial process of selecting Trump's secretary of homeland security last November, McCaul faces fierce opposition from groups advocating for the restriction of immigration and hard-line enforcement of immigration laws.

NumbersUSA, which lobbies and mobilizes for strict immigration laws, put out a statement of opposition just at the suggestion of McCaul's name.

"Congressman McCaul's record in the House suggests that he doesn't have the inclination or experience to continue and improve on the great start that General Kelly has had in leading DHS to be a pro-worker institution," said NumbersUSA President Roy Beck. "His actions in recent years put him in the bottom third of Republican representatives in terms of immigration enforcement and policies that achieve Pres. Trump's priority of putting American workers first."

Elaine Duke

Duke's time serving as acting secretary could end up serving as an audition of sorts, with former DHS officials singing her praises as a longtime civil servant.

Duke has a nearly three-decade career in government, the last eight of which were spent at DHS. She has expertise in acquisition and management. Duke was confirmed as deputy secretary in April on an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 85 to 14.

James Norton, a former DHS official in President George W. Bush's administration who worked with Duke, said her experience with acquisition and reorganizing DHS' emergency management after Hurricane Katrina make her a strong candidate.

"One of the biggest struggles for DHS is acquisition and to have someone at the top that understands that process is good," Norton said. "From the standpoint of a new cybersecurity organization (being debated in Congress), which would be the biggest reorganization of DHS since Katrina reform, she's well suited to that."

Norton also noted that her acting stint makes her one of the highest ranked women in the Cabinet, especially in the national security space.

"I think it's an opportunity to perform on a big stage," he said. Another former DHS official calls her a "bureaucrat's bureaucrat" who "doesn't make waves" and is respected on both sides of the aisle.

Kris Kobach

The Kansas secretary of state has been a prominent advocate of aggressive immigration policies at the state level, having helped write Arizona's controversial immigration law -- and has long been supported by the immigration hawks for a role in the Trump administration.

But another person close to Kelly called Kobach a "non-starter," and he is not seen as confirmable in the Senate, according to the congressional source. Kobach does have a role in the administration, as co-chairman of Trump's commission on voting integrity, and that tenure alone has brought controversy and court challenges.

The White House did not rule out Kobach as a possibility, but asked on Tuesday about the suggestion, Sanders indicated it wasn't in the works.

"I'm not aware of any movements for him," Sanders said, adding the White House would share personnel announcements as they come up.

Tom Cotton

The Arkansas senator is a national security hawk, a war veteran and has authored a bill favored by immigration restriction groups to cut back on non-skills-based immigration to the US. The White House has been working with Cotton and his co-author on the bill for possible re-introduction.

Cotton does not have a long history of working on DHS-related issues outside of that, however.

Asked by CNN on Tuesday at the Capitol if he was being considered, Cotton ignored the question and did not offer any denial.

Thomas Homan

The acting director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has established himself as a favorite of Trump's, accompanying him on Air Force One last week to speak at an event on Long Island before law enforcement on the administration's anti-gang policy.

Trump praised Homan at that event, saying he has "done an incredible job."

"He's a tough guy. He's a tough cookie," Trump said. "Somebody said the other day, they saw him on television, and somebody -- they were interviewed after that -- they said, he looks very nasty, he looks very mean. I said, 'That's what I'm looking for.'"

Homan is a long-time law enforcement officer, having worked as a police officer, on the border and on the ground in immigration enforcement. A former DHS official who worked with Homan suggested that Trump likes their New York connection and that he has served on the front lines.

But there is also concern about whether Homan would be able to be confirmed in the Senate. Homan has served as the face of Trump's harshest immigration policies, saying undocumented immigrants "should be afraid" of law enforcement under this administration, which may be difficult for purple-state Republicans to get behind. Homan would also face tough questioning about the future of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program from Republicans like South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, who support the program.

Homan has not been formally nominated for his position atop ICE and thus has not faced the Senate confirmation process.

One person close to Kelly said: "Trump loves the guy -- (but he) has some limitations as a manager."

James Loy

One of the people close to Kelly also suggested that Loy could be in the mix. Like Kelly, Loy is a veteran of the military, having served as commandant of the US Coast Guard.

Loy also was deputy secretary of DHS from 2003 to 2005 and was the administrator of the Transportation Security Administration before that.

He retired from government in 2005 and went into the private sector.

Loy did not respond to a request for comment as to whether he'd consider going back into government.

Rick Perry

The person close to Kelly also said Trump's energy secretary could be in the mix.

Perry was governor of Texas, a position that put him on the front lines of border security. In 2014, he deployed the Texas National Guard to the border to help with a surge of undocumented immigrants.

Asked about the possibility of a job switch for Perry, Shaylyn Hynes, a Department of Energy spokesperson, said, "While Secretary Perry is honored to be mentioned, he is happy where he is and very focused on carrying out the mission the President gave him when he was chosen lead the Department of Energy."

Rudy Giuliani

The former mayor of New York has been a perennial shortlist candidate for running the department going back to the Bush administration, but has never been formally nominated for the job. He gained nationwide prominence during the aftermath of the 9/11 attack and has built a career in the private sector around his expertise.

CNN's Ryan Nobles, Jim Acosta and Rene Marsh contributed to this report.

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9 people who might be the next DHS secretary - CNN