Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

HOUSTON -

The city of Houston has reached a settlement with a developer in connection with the unpermitted removal of four oak trees in Upper Kirby.

The trees were chopped down in the middle of the night as part of a construction project near the corner of Kirby Drive and North Boulevard from the public right-of-way.

A $300,000 settlement was reached last Friday.

"Our trees are valuable resources and their preservation is important to the city," said Mayor Annise Parker. "We have a fair process for developers, but when they violate our policies we will not hesitate to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law."

The Kirby Drive and North Boulevard oak trees had been planted by Trees for Houston volunteers acting on behalf of the Boulevard Oaks Civic Association more than a decade ago.

With the $300,000 settlement, the city has recovered more than $1 million for improperly removed trees this year, which is unprecedented.

Link:
City to receive $300K for illegal tree removal settlement

When Lynn Epstein and Craig Otto set out to renovate the kitchen in their Bellevue home, they wanted a different look for the tile backsplash behind the stove.

They began by checking out the usual suspects big-box home-improvement stores, as well as boutiques that sold ceramic tile without finding what they wanted.

We saw a lot of gorgeous tiles, but you end up seeing the same things everywhere, Epstein says.

It wasn't until they attended a gallery show of Stevo (Steve) Sadvary's mosaic art that inspiration struck.

He was experimenting with a different look and we thought, Hmmmm, that would transfer nicely,' Epstein says.

They commissioned Sadvary to create a one-of-a-kind piece tailored to their space and taste.

The idea of commissioning art sounds like an activity for wealthy people or international corporations. It conjures up images of ancestral oil paintings hung over the fireplace or a serious sculpture that's the focal point of a large garden.

Artists are happy to do that.

But they also can be commissioned for smaller or more commonplace projects, such as designing an ornate stair rail, a garden bench or the ceramic tile surround for a shower stall.

A surprising number of local artists at a variety of price levels are happy to take on commissions, says Joy Borelli-Edwards, owner of Borelli-Edwards Gallery in Lawrenceville

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Many Pittsburgh-area artists take budget-minded commisions to enable creative dreams

Blossom

Your smart garden options are growing, and Blossom, a new irrigation controller designed to compete with the Rachio Iro, hopes to stand out from the crowd. Like the Iro, you install Blossom using your existing wires, then control your sprinkler system remotely via an app. But Blossom is promising increased range and durability.

Blossom, the product of a new California-based startup of the same name, further differentiates itself from the Wi-Fi-only Iro by adding weather resistance, in case your controller is outside, and by broadcasting its signal via Power-line in addition to Wi-Fi. Power-line networking transmits signal through the wiring in your home, passing information between the controller and a bridge that plugs into your network. The bridge translates for the router, so the system can talk to the cloud. In theory, the signal strength isn't reduced as much by distance or location as it is when a controller relies solely on Wi-Fi.

Blossom

Adding cloud connectivity to your sprinkler system allows Blossom to help you take weather into account when planning your watering schedule. You can set things up manually if you'd like, or simply indicate the type of plant in each zone and let Blossom go to work. By watering based on this plant and weather data, Blossom claims it can get your plants the moisture they need while saving you an average of 30 percent on your water bill.

You can pre-order Blossom now via the Kickstarter campaign that launched today. It'll retail for $179 and can cover up to 12 zones. That's a good price compared to the 8-zone controller from Rachio that costs $250. Rachio also sells a $300 16-zone model. Early birds will get an even better deal, with a limited number of Blossoms available for as little as $89.

Blossom plans to ship in January of 2015, whether or not they receive funding. At first, the product will be offered only in the US, but the company plans to expand internationally late in 2015.

The system will track when sunset happens for you. Blossom

You can interact with Blossom via the iOS or Android app; the app will work with both phones and tablets, or you can use the browser interface from your computer. Get things rolling and you can name each zone and give it a picture. Turn each sprinkler set on and off with the push of a button, then schedule them individually yourself if you'd like. Blossom even has a time option simply labeled "sunset" which I'm hoping means it'll give your yard an automatic sprinkle at the golden hour, changing the time accordingly as the seasons progress.

As mentioned above, Blossom can automate these schedules based on plant type, which is an especially nice feature. App screenshots show five levels of moisture to pick from, starting with "Ultra Eco" and working up to "Very Wet," and you'll be able to tinker with the specific settings of each one.

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Blossom lets your sprinklers know when rain's coming

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo -

The cold weather that we've seen hasn't just been bad for people and pets, it's been bad for pipes too.

And it's not just plumbing - sprinkler systems can be affected by the Arctic chill as well.

Many large buildings such as Eastside Church of Christ in Colorado Springs have sprinkler systems.

The church shares a building with Pike's Peak Christian School and has a system that serves both.

The Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD) says that maintaining the sprinkler system is the way to avoid damage that could cost you thousands of dollars in case of a break and that there are things that you should look for.

"Exposed sprinkler pipe. Also, look for any indications of cracks within the pipe or any moisture that has built up. And check the temperature. If the temperature is under 40 degrees in the attic, there's a good chance that you're exposing those pipes," said Kris Cooper, the Deputy Fire Marshal for the Colorado Springs Fire Department.

CSFD said that they received around a dozen reports of frozen sprinkler systems during the last cold snap.

Read more:
Don't forget sprinklers when it's cold

Grand Haven High School Athletic Director Scott Robertson confirmed today that interim head football coach Jason Duram has been permanently hired as the programs varsity head coach.

"Jason did a great job leading the varsity team during this interim basis," Robertson said. "His passion for student-athletes and commitment to developing a successful football program was key in our decision."

Duram, a GHHS social studies teacher, has been on the varsity coaching staff since 2003, last serving as defensive coordinator before taking over as the interim head coach this past season.

"I am excited to begin a new chapter in the Grand Haven football program," said Duram, whose Buccaneers finished 3-6 this past fall. "We have assembled an excellent coaching staff, and look forward to developing the necessary belief, unity and character within our program to achieve success both on and off the field.

"We are fortunate to have such a supportive administration, school staff, student body and community. Together we will make this program successful."

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Jason Duram sheds interim tag

15 hours ago by David Lambert And Michael Westaway, The Conversation Ancient DNA can tell you a lot more than skull shape about the origins of the first Europeans. Credit: Flickr/Sebastian Dooris , CC BY

Much of the evidence of where the first Europeans came from was originally derived from comparisons of skulls but our work looking at ancient DNA is revealing new insight, with results published this month in Science.

Before we go any further, we need to look at what the skulls were telling us. Over a number of decades from the 1970s the US physical anthropologist William Howells recorded tens of thousands of human skulls held in museum collections across the world.

The patterns identified by Howells established that there were distinct correlations between geography and human biology, which provided insights into our understanding of the population history of the world.

In 1989 Howells included a number of fossil human skulls in this comparison to see if they could shed insights into the understanding of modern human dispersals.

Are the first Australians and Europeans related?

One of the patterns to emerge was that many of the earliest European modern human skulls from the last Ice Age, commonly referred to as the Cro-Magnon people, sat statistically very close to Aboriginal Australians and Papua New Guineans.

Did this reflect a close common origin between the first Europeans and the first Australians? Our research, led by Eske Willerslev from the University of Copenhagen, reveals the answer to this is "not really".

The genome recovered from an ancient skeleton, from a site known as Kostenki 14, has revealed an important story about the human history of Europe.

The remains there, found in 1954 at Kostenki, in south western Russia, were from a short, dark-skinned man who lived between 38,700 to 36,200 years ago.

Read more:
Ancient DNA sheds light on the origin of Europeans

Delays as lorry sheds bricks over road

Delays as lorry shed bricks over road

Delays as lorry shed bricks over road

First published in News Last updated by Maxwell Kusi-Obodum, Senior reporter

MOTORISTS sufferedsevere delays on a Hampshire main road after a lorry shed its load.

The truck blocked Dimmicks Corner in Locks Heath after spilling a consignment of bricks it was carrying onto the carriageway.

The incident, which took place next to the mini roundabout, causedtraffic to build up in the surrounding area.

The truck tipped over and crashed to the groundat 10.20am as it turned the corner.

Passers-by rushed to help the driver out of his cab.

The man in his 40s is believed to be unharmed.

Original post:
Delays as lorry sheds bricks over road

Simple Family room addition ideas
Simple Family room addition ideas.

By: Simple Home Art Decor Ideas

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Simple Family room addition ideas - Video

MEMPHIS, Tenn. Its not set to open until May, but you can already reserve your room at the Big Cypress Lodge, the hotel inside the Pyramid.

In addition to shopping for outdoor gear, the new Bass Pro will feature the 100-room hotel. We got a look at the only finished room during a recent tour of the Pyramid.

Rooms feature fireplaces, handcrafted furniture, and a very uniquely designed, screened-in porch, a woman with Big Cypress Lodge said.

Call 1-800-BC-LODGE (225-6343) to make your reservation. Rooms start at $259 a night.

Earlier this month, Bass Pro told WREG that for the past ten months, construction, creative, and design teams have been transforming the Pyramid into a cypress swamp with fish and alligators, as well as 24 faux cypress trees that stretch to the upper reaches of the building.

The opening date has been delayed several times, with the most recent date being this Christmas, but Bass Pro executives promise it will be well worth the wait.

More than 200 construction workers are reportedly in the Pyramid daily. After keeping anyone from seeing inside for eight months, Bass Pro finally let WREG inside at the beginning of November to show you how its transforming the old home of the Grizzlies and Tigers.

In addition to the hotel, there will be an ocean-themed bowling alley called the Fishbowl, two restaurants, and Ducks Unlimited Waterfowling center.

We are going to have a mock-up duck lodge, a Ducks Unlimited official said. There you can relax by the fireplace, watch videos, view art work and taxidermy.

Observation decks will also line the outside of the Pyramid.

Read more:
New hotel inside Pyramid accepting reservations

Two mothers of former pupils at a Medway school which has been investigated over alleged child abuse for apparently locking children in a cupboard claim their children were locked inside it with a key.

The pair, who also used to be parent volunteers at the Brompton Westbrook Primary School, where they say they did their teaching assistant training, say the way their children were treated has had a lasting effect on them, so much so, one, aged just 11, is on now antidepressants.

Trustees at the academy in Kings Bastion have appointed an independent investigator to look into claims that up to eight children have been locked in a room.

Mums Patricia Wilkins and Alison Lovett

A previous inquiry by Medway Council concluded that four staff had cases to answer for gross misconduct. No one has been suspended as a result of the allegations.

She does not trust adults now, especially teachers and I was never told she was put in this room and locked in it as a punishment" - Mrs Wilkins

This week, Patricia Wilkins and Alison Lovett, both 37, said their children used to fight tooth and nail not to be taken to school when they were pupils there as they were so frightened to go into class.

Mrs Wilkins, from Gillingham, said her daughter was a star pupil until she reached Year 3 and then things started to go wrong and she noticed a change in her.

She said: She was about eight when it first started, she was too frightened to talk to me about anything that had happened at school.

She went from being a normal child to one who hid away from people.

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Brompton Westbrook Primary school locked children in room claim mums Patricia Wilkins and Alison Lovett