Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

OAKLAND, Calif.

A window washer who fell 11 stories from a downtown San Francisco building onto a moving car last month is preparing to leave the hospital for a rehabilitation facility where he hopes to walk again.

Pedro Perez, 58, fractured his pelvis, broke an arm, ruptured an artery in his arm, and sustained severe brain trauma when he landed on the Toyota Camry after falling from the top of a bank building in San Francisco's financial district on Nov. 21. The car's driver was not injured.

Perez spent a week in a medically induced coma and still can't move his right arm and leg. But just a month after the fall, he has amazed doctors who originally said it would be months before he could leave the hospital, his wife, Maricela Perez told reporters on Monday.

"They are saying it's a miracle," she said through a translator.

Maricela Perez spoke in Spanish about her husband's recovery at his union shop in Oakland. She said he is in good spirits, complaining about the hospital food and even joking about returning to work down the line, although the couple has agreed it won't be as a window washer.

She said she thought he was dead for the first hour after she heard about the accident. At first, her husband could not recognize members of their extended family, but his memory is slowly improving, she said.

"As a wife, I am very grateful to have my husband for the holidays," she said.

Union organizer Colin O'Leary said worker's compensation would be expected to pay for the cost of Perez's hospitalization and rehabilitation. But without the man's income, the family needs money to help cover rent, utilities, food and school supplies for their two youngest daughters, ages 11 and 16.

Marciela Perez, who works in a plastic factory in San Leandro, California, where the family also lives, said she is working extra hours and the couple's 19-year-old daughter has dropped out of college to help her family.

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Man who fell 11 stories onto car to leave hospital

Maricela Perez, 39, of San Leandro, center, speaks about her husband Pedro Perez while sitting next to translator Colin O'Leary and her daughter Gaby Perez, 11, during a press conference at the SEIU-United Service Workers West office in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, Dec. 22, 2014. Window washer Pedro Perez, 58, survived falling 11 stories from a building onto a moving car in the financial district in San Francisco last month. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group) ( JOSE CARLOS FAJARDO )

OAKLAND -- The wife of a San Leandro window washer who survived an 11-story fall from a San Francisco building in November is asking for donations to support her three daughters, who are facing a meager holiday season.

Maricela Perez, 38, and her 11-year-old daughter, Gaby, appeared at an Oakland news conference Monday morning to ask for help in replacing the wages her husband has lost since he landed on a car Nov. 21.

Perez said her 58-year-old husband, Pedro Perez, broke his right arm, fractured his pelvis, ruptured an artery in his arm and suffered severe brain trauma. He still can't move his right arm or his right leg. He's had "surgery after surgery," his wife said through an interpreter and was in an induced coma for an entire week because the pain was so great.

Maricela Perez, 39, of San Leandro, center, smiles while answering a question about her husband while sitting with translator Colin O'Leary and her daughter Gaby Perez, 11, during a press conference at the SEIU-United Service Workers West office in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, Dec. 22, 2014. Window washer Pedro Perez, 58, survived falling 11 stories from a building onto a moving car in the financial district in San Francisco last month. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group) ( JOSE CARLOS FAJARDO )

"His eyes were shut for an entire week," Perez said. "At first when he woke up, he could only say a few words and couldn't remember familiar faces, and his memory would fail him. But now he is calling us by our names and has conversations."

When she got the first phone call, Perez was told her husband was dead. It was only in the car on her way to San Francisco that she received a second call telling her he was alive.

Perez said her husband has left a hospital intensive care unit and is preparing to enter a rehabilitation facility in Pleasanton, a stay that could last months.

"But now Pedro is not working, and the family has encountered very difficult times," said Colin O'Leary, a translator at the news conference and organizer for Perez's union, Service Workers International Union. "Maricela works in a plastic factory at night and has had to take on extra hours. Her 19-year-old daughter had to quit college to start working and make ends meet."

O'Leary said Perez has health insurance and that his hospital bills and rehabilitation are going to be covered by workers' compensation insurance. He also is receiving disability payments, but it won't be enough.

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Family of window washer who survived 11-story fall asking for donations

By Madeline Seveland

Carver County Water Management

The Carver County Water Management Organization (CCWMO) is planning for a big year in 2015 with a list of projects that will reduce pollutants to our lakes and rivers and conserve drinking water. Many of these projects will be visible to the public and so wed like to highlight a few for you to look for in 2015.

The CCWMO has partnered with School District 110 and the City of Waconia to install a water reuse system at Bayview Elementary that will capture stormwater runoff from eight acres of surrounding residential land and use it to irrigate the high school football field and adjacent ball fields.

This will protect Burandt Lake from polluted stormwater runoff and preserve drinking water resources.

The stormwater runoff will be treated before being used on the fields. Phase I was installed in 2013. In 2015, phase II of this Bayview Elementary Reuse project will install three additional water tanks increasing storage capacity to 15,900 cubic feet (or four nights of watering the football field).

A very visible project in Waconia that will protect Lake Waconia is the Fountain Park Retrofit. Located outside Waconias City Hall, a stormwater pond (historically called Frog Pond) and the surrounding area will be retrofitted to capture and treat stormwater runoff from downtown Waconia. Pollution reducing practices will include raingardens, porous pavements and a sand filter to capture and hold phosphorus.

Phase II of the Benton Lake Restoration Plan is planned for 2015-16.

Benton Lake is impaired (polluted) with excessive nutrients, in part caused by the high numbers of rough fish like carp living in the lake. Phase I installed a fish barrier to prevent additional carp from getting into the lake. Phase II will include removal of the current carp population and re-establishment of a healthy fish population.

In 2014, CCWMO was awarded a number of grants to help clean our lakes and river including the Exclusion Grant and Community Partners Grant both funded by the Clean Water Legacy Funds (2008 amendment).

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2015: A big year for cleaning water

Advice and installation help at the John Bridge Tile Forums

How to build and tile steps and walkways (sidewalks)

John P. Bridge, May, 2001 (Revised December, 2009)

Way back in the day, I spent about 6 months of my apprenticeship training studying step/stair building and layout. One of the points that was constantly emphasized was that stairs are a hazard to your health a necessary one but a hazard no less. There are certain conventions that are essential to a safe and eye-pleasing step project.

Think about it. When you walk you tend to build up a cadence where, unless something inhibits you, each step taken is about the same as the previous one in length and speed. The same tendency is in force when you are ascending or descending stairs or steps. If all the steps are not the same height and width, it tends to throw you off balance, and this can lead to a serious mishap.

A good rule of thumb when building a series of steps is called seven-eleven. No, thats not a convenience store chain, its a stair-building convention. The front of the steps or risers are about 7 inches in height, and the tops of the steps or treads are about 11 inches in width. Now this is not a hard, fast rule, but it should always be taken into consideration when a project is planned. In my opinion risers should never be higher than 7 inches, and treads should never be narrower than 11 inches. A step that is about 6 to 6-1/2 inches high and 11-1/2 to 12 inches wide is just about ideal in my book, whether you are building one step or a hundred. People have gotten used to this norm through decades (centuries) of climbing stairs and steps.

Once again, though, although there is leeway in the height and width of steps, all steps in a series must be uniform. The height of the risers cannot vary by more than 1/4 inch, and the width of the treads must be constant to within 1/4 in. On commercial tile projects the tolerance is usually less than 1/8 in.

Do not build steps in tread widths that cause people to take more than one step per tread. A normal person should be able to walk up or down a series of steps without breaking stride. A tread width of, say, 16 inches or more might cause a persons foot to land on the edge of the tread, half on and half off. The foot tends to slip or tilt toward the next riser, a sure recipe for disaster, especially when walking downward. When ascending such steps its very possible someone might trip on a riser and fall forward.

In outdoor construction, nothing is level. All surfaces are tilted somewhat so that rain water doesnt collect on them. This includes steps, whose treads should be pitched ever so slightly toward the front. In the width of a 12 in. tread, a 1/16 to 1/8 in. pitch is ideal just enough to keep water from collecting but not enough to cause a slip. It should go without saying, but Ill say it anyway step treads absolutely must be constructed from materials that will provide plenty of grip for the feet. Brick, rough stone, and non-slip quarry tiles are good choices. If your steps are to be simply concrete, finish the treads with a fine broom.

Steps in Conjunction with Walkways

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How to Build Steps, Walkways and Handicap Ramps | Tile ...

Log

More sand

In a program to aid senior citizens, Officer Ted Hatch on Dec. 6 delivered a pail of sand following a request from a home on Wescott Road. The program is sponsored by Triad and Gorham police to help seniors sand steps and walkways.

Car burglary

A caller on Dec. 8 from Libby Avenue reported a motor vehicle burglary on Main Street.

Dog walker trip up

After a home alarm sounded on Dec. 10, homeowners on Mountview Drive told police that they believe it was a mistake by the dog walker.

Arrests

John J. Kennedy, 44, Curtis Street, South Portland, on Nov. 22 on a charge of operating under the influence and operating without license, on Sebago Lake Road.

Austin J. Watts, 20, Anderson Avenue, Westbrook, on Nov. 21 on charges of operating without license more than 30 days and operating under the influence (alcohol), in Gorham.

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Gorham police log, Nov. 20-Dec. 8

Sporre tree removal service in Wesport CT 06880 2014
Removing large tree with crane in Westport CT.

By: Ian Sporre

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Sporre tree removal service in Wesport CT 06880 2014 - Video

White Rock Coun. Helen Fathers speaks at the Dec. 15 council meeting.

image credit: Sarah Massah photo

White Rock tree-preservation proponents can breathe easier, after city leaders voted last week to approve bylaw amendments that would require all residents to apply for a permit before taking down a tree.

However, not all councillors were in favour of the amendments, which put a moratorium on tree removal in the city until a 20-year Urban Forest Management Plan for future tree removal on private and public lands receives public consultation in the new year.

Coun. Megan Knight, who voted against the amendments Thursday evening at a special council meeting, said that her concerns focused on the timeline of the amendments.

She noted that the turnaround was quick and that residents should have more time and transparency before the amendments went through.

By a 4-3 vote, council voted to amend its tree-management bylaw, 1831, to include protected trees within the municipal boundaries of the City of White Rock in place of designated areas as per a map.

According to the bylaw, protected trees include those that have a trunk diameter at breast height (DBH) greater than 30 centimetres, or has a combined DBH of its three largest trunks greater than 30 centimetres.

According to Coun. Helen Fathers, prior to the amendments, neighbours could have different rules for removing trees.

You and I could live on the same street and you could live on the east side and I would live on the west side of the street, and you would have to apply for a permit and I can just do what I like, she explained.

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Tree-cutting rules branch out in White Rock

NEW MARKET The Shenandoah Valley Battlefield Foundation has expedited the removal of ash trees as part of the restoration of the Third Winchester battlefield.

The foundation says the move was prompted by the damage being done by an emerald ash borer infestation. Dan Reinhart, the foundations resource management specialist, says theres concern that the invasive insect could spread and become a safety risk to battlefield visitors.

The foundation will use salvageable wood to build additional fencing as well as sell some lumber from the downed trees to help offset the costs of the project.

Work will begin in January and is expected to be completed within three months.

2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Tree removal expedited at Shenandoah Valley battlefield to combat insect infestation

James Bruggers, jbruggers@courier-journal.com 9:13 a.m. EST December 24, 2014

The State cites safety as a concern because of the distance the trees Tafel planted are from the roadway. A distance of at least 6 feet. "There are hundreds of telephone poles and other trees planted around the city that are closer to the roadway than these trees," Tafel said. Tafel has been given thiry days to remove the trees, or the State Highway Dept. will remove them and charge Tafel for the labor. Dec. 1, 2014(Photo: Alton Strupp/The Courier-Journal)

The state highway department has agreed to delay the removal of 17 trees that were planted along Brownsboro Road without permit.

A temporary reprieve was granted after a lawyer representing the City of Rolling Fields asked for more time to resolve the matter.

"We are honoring their request for an additional month," said Matt Bullock, the chief engineer for the Kentucky Department of Highways District 5.

"The City needs a bit of time to try and find an informal solution," Rolling Fields attorney John Singler wrote to Bullock on Dec. 12. "It would be most appreciated if you could hold off the chainsaws for a month to allow us to get together and see if some kind of mutually agreeable solution can be found."

COURIER-JOURNAL

Lawyer asks Kentucky to "hold off the chainsaws"

The trees were planted earlier this year after road construction had forced the removal of a number of shade trees. State officials said the trees will grow too big, will become a threat to motorists and increase road maintenance costs.

State officials have said any object including trees placed in a right of way of a state road needs an encroachment permit, and that Kentucky officials seek to preserve a "clear zone" to limit dangers to motorists. No trees can be planted in a clear zone with trunks wider than four inches in diameter at maturity, they said.

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Kentucky delays Brownsboro Road tree removal

SINGAPORE: A couple have successfully appealed against a district judges decision ordering them to pay their neighbour for his work in building their dream home, with the High Court ruling instead that the man must pay them more than S$67,000 in damages for failing to complete certain rectification work.

The court battle started last year when retiree Edward Teo, 61 who was hired by the couple to transform their property in Sembawang into an English country-style house similar to his sued them for failing to pay him for the renovation work he had done.

In turn, the couple Air Force Lieutenant-Colonel Ng Boo Han, in his 40s, and his wife Madam Audrey-Ann Koo OiLian, in her 50s sued MrTeo for delivering shoddy work and failing to rectify defects, but they lost the suit.

The couple had earlier asked MrTeo to renovate their home after seeing his house. In January 2011, an agreement was signed stating that the renovation works would be completed by Aug 11 that year, within a budget of S$350,000, from which MrTeo could draw S$17,500 as wages.

Their relationship soured after the couple became dissatisfied with the renovation work and refused to pay MrTeo the remaining 20 per cent of the contract price.

MrTeo sued them for S$89,000 which he said was the money owed to him for his work and additional tasks. He said the renovation work was done to imitate the rustic concept of his own house, but that the rusticity was seen as defects by the couple, who demanded rectification.

In December last year, District Judge Loo NganChor awarded MrTeo S$47,000 in damages. The judge also commented that the couple had been flim-flamming (MrTeo) and squeezing him for more, and that they had been trying to extract their pound of flesh, when they were not even entitled to a jot of blood.

The couple, having unsuccessfully counterclaimed almost S$200,000 for rectification work, then appealed against Judge Loos decision.

In the High Court ruling, which was released yesterday, Judicial Commissioner Edmund Leow based his decision on reports by a surveyor, identified as MrLoggie in court documents, whom the couple had hired to give expert evidence on the defects to their property.

JC Leow granted claims for six of the 15 allegedly defective items listed in the appeal such as the use of a zinc roof, instead of a ceramic tile roof as listed in the contract; and the use of a 4mm-thick glass for the study room panel, which is considered too thin, unsafe and below industry standards.

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Renovation Spat: Couple Win Appeal, S$67,000 in Damages