Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

By Sanjay Salomon

Boston.com Staff

September 11, 2014 10:22 AM

In this special section to Boston.com, we consulted a wide array of experts from various sectors of the real estate market for their advice on making the homebuying and selling process go as smoothly as possible. In this edition, we spoke with Mike Walsh, president of Walsh Home Inspections, about what a home inspector looks for on the job.

Exterior

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Everyone looks at the curb appeal of a home. But Walsh said its a different story for those in his line of work.

Things might look good when you stand back. Rotted wood might look good, chipped paint might look good. But up close, its a different story, he said. Inspectors look at the state of everything outside the home, including the gutters, the paint job, porches, windows, everything that is outside the home.

Inspectors also look at the grating to make sure water flows away from the home, not towards it.

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By Robert Frank, September 10th, 2014

St. Peter and St. Paul Church is being squeezed between city hall and vandals as parishioners prepare for Orthodox Pope Tawadros IIs Jan. 23 visit to Pointe Claire. The city shocked church officials in May by flatly rejecting their plan to build a new community centre on the site of a long-derelict elementary school at the corner of Sources and Lakeshore. We were going to have more green space than the site now has, church deacon Shahir Guindi told The Suburban. Since then, has been desecrated by graffiti and construction material was dumped on the site. We had to clean that up, Guindi said in an interview. Pointe Claire responded by pressuring the church. The city was all over us, he said, threatening to fine us thousands of dollars per day if it was not cleaned. It has never been as clean as it is now, he added. Guindi said that former Pointe Claire Mayor Bill McMurchie had been an enthusiastic supporter. Indeed, when The Suburban asked McMurchie last year about the project, he said that he welcomed the churchs plan to demolish the school. It is good news for the citizens in the area and consequently for the City of Pointe Claire, McMurchie stated. The previous owner wanted multistory buildings which were not acceptable to the city. Originally we were going to keep the church and demolish the school, Guindi recalled. The idea to demolish both and build an integrated church and community complex came from the city, not from us. We scrapped the plans that we had already spent more than $100,000 to develop and went back to the drawing board. After the city bashed our proposal [Mayor Morris Trudeau] and council refused to meet us, Guindi complained. Instead, the interim city manager and an urban planner met four church leaders, including parish priest Fr. Peter Saad. They told us we will be increasing the residential density of that lot and suggested that we sell the property. They said We outwaited the guys who wanted to rezone for Wal-Mart and we can just outwait you, he continued. They didnt understand that were not in this for the money. The church is not trying to make a profit. It is multi-generational. Our priority is youth. We invest heavily in young people. Guindi pointed out that the church went to well beyond what is legally required, in order to respect surrounding residents. We had planned an underground parking garage so visitors wouldnt have to park on the street, he explained. The facilities would benefit the whole community and not just the church. The community centre was going to be the first phase of construction, because you can pray in a gym, but you cant play in a church. The idea was to accommodate youth. According to Pointe Claire spokeswoman Marie-Pier Paquette-Sguin, Mayor Trudeau was too busy to speak to The Suburban about the church. I wasnt a party to everything, so I prefer not to comment, Councilor Paul Bissonnette, who has represented the district since 2005, told The Suburban. I dont know all the information. If Im not sure of everything, if I dont know everything, Im not making comments. Bissonnette preferred that Pointe Claires new city manager Robert Weemaes speak to the issue. Weemaes arrived at Pointe Claire city hall Aug. 25, almost three months after the church decision. Weemaes former employer, the city of Gatineau, reportedly paid him more than $400,000 after council unanimously voted to dismiss him last year. Gatineau Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin said at the time that the career municipal civil servant haad published an open letter in 2011, critical of Gatineaus citys elected officials. According to Guindi, Pointe Claire is also giving Pope Tawadros II the cold shoulder. Neither the mayor nor Councillor Bissonnette have accepted the churchs invitation a reception that expected to attract about 1,000 dignitaries -- including federal, provincial and other municipal elected officials -- to welcome the Orthodox pontiff on his first visit to Canada. Copts have faced centuries of persecution in their native Egypt, particularly in recent years until the Muslim Brotherhood was ousted in a coup dtat last year.

Click here to see the full newspaper. Updated on September 10, 2014

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Coptic church harassed in leadup to papal visit

James Wood

Multimedia Journalist

The Grace United Church congregation has been out of their building since July 7 of this year, while the spire and design has been a landmark of downtown Lloydminster since 1961.

The spire points straight up out the building, and the bricks built in almost four-leaf clover shapes dominate the south wall. However, construction barricades and the sound of workers have been the main fixture of the church in the past few months, as the entire north portion of the complex is slowly demolished.

We knew that something was going to happening this summer, said Reverend Paul Duval, leader of the church for the past two years.

We made a fabulous arrangement with the Presbyterian Church over the summer and that was when it started. The actual demolition process probably didnt start till the first week of August, and weve been moving things out and tying things down, covering up furniture and instruments and that kind of thing, and the construction crew has been here since August 12 or so.

The sense of not having their own space is one that followed the congregation around for the past few months, but DuVal says that people are happy that work is being accomplished on the site now, after major delays a year before.

It is a little unsettled for sure, you dont have all of the resources and all of the facilities that you normally would, said DuVal.

We were used to having a whole bunch of separate rooms and large group spaces, as well as small group spaces. We thought we might have been out of the church a year ago. So, were getting used to it, its not quite ideal, but its going to be OK. Now that things are moving, there is a sense of confidence and a sense of optimism that the end is in sight.

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Wandering Flock

The remarkable significance of the Catholic church of St James in Reading will be conveyed to visitors over this weekend's Heritage Open Days.

The church, which is between the Forbury Gardens and the prison, was the first designed by the Victorian architect AWN Pugin, who was later to produce the drawings for much of the Houses of Parliament.

Some of the stones used in its construction came from the rubble of the Abbey and the baptismal font is made from material found in the Abbey ruins a few years before the church was built.

Features of the weekend at the church include:

* Photographs of the church from a collection of those taken by Woodley Photographic Club

* An audio-visual presentation by Norman Horsham to be shown at intervals throughout the day.

* On Sunday, at 12.15pm, after morning mass, celebrated organist Richard Lester will give an recital, on the churchsTamburini organ, of music composed to be played in St Marks, Venice, in the sixteenth century.

* Talks about the churchs history at 11.30am and 3pm on Friday and Saturday, and at 3pm on Sunday.

Heritage Open Days help reveal Reading's fascinating history

Here is the original post:
Unveil the hidden history of St James's Church

Published: September 10, 2014 | Last Modified: September 10, 2014 10:06PM

By Farrah Duffany Record-Journal staff

SOUTHINGTON The Grace United Methodist Church building was falling apart just over 50 years ago and becoming crowded as membership grew.

Members of the church, which was built in the late 1800s on Main Street where the TD Bank is now, thought it was time for a new building. They reached out to church member Charlie Bass for guidance.

Bass was named the chairman of the churchs building committee and the group began searching for a new location. They eventually chose a spot at the corner of Pleasant Street and Spring Lake Road. The church is now celebrating the 50th anniversary of the building.

They still call it the new building, said Deborah Leonard, a member of the church for 30 years. Weve been through several wonderful pastors, and its just been a very warm and family-oriented congregation.

The church was built for $175,000 and paid for through donations.

We thought we couldnt afford not to do it because the church was growing out of proportion, Bass said.

Bass created a newsletter on church history to share with the community to mark the 50th anniversary.

Things began to change, Bass wrote about the congregations size. The Sunday School was growing so fast that we had to hold many classes at the YMCA.

Here is the original post:
Southington church celebrates half a century in new building

Wednesday, September 10, 2014 10:08 PM EDT

By BRIAN M. JOHNSON STAFF WRITER

BRISTOL The Bristol Historical Society is sponsoring a free tour of three local churches on Sunday.

Participants will tour First Congregational Church at 31 Maple St. from 2 to 2:30 p.m., followed by St. Joseph Church at 33 Queen St. from 2:45 to 3:15 p.m., and finally Prospect United Methodist Church at 99 Summer St. from 3:30 to 4 p.m. Each church is independently organizing their own guided tour, during which, they will speak about the history of the building and its congregation. Vivian Brackett will lead the tour at Prospect United Methodist, Arthur Shahverdian will lead the group at First Congregational and Rev. Joseph DiSciacca will walk with the group at St. Joseph Church.

Following the tour, people can meet back at the Bristol Historical Society at 98 Summer Street for refreshments. No prior registration is required.

Ellie Wilson, program chair, member of the Bristol Historical Societys board of directors and a parishioner at St. Joseph Church, said St. Joseph is celebrating their 150th anniversary this year. Because of this, and the fact that previous church tours were well received, she suggested the event.

All three churches are steeped in history, she said. There is a lot of history here in town that people dont know about. I think this will be a draw for people, and that it will help to keep an interest in local history going.

Tom Dickau, president of the Bristol Historical Society, said First Congregational Church is the first church that was established in Bristol. St. Joseph Church is the first Catholic Church in the city. The Sessions family contributed to the construction of Prospect United Methodist.

Dickau has been researching the history of local churches for the past year. This April he held a screening for a film he created which examined interesting facts about most of the churches. Dickau said that event attracted between 80 and 100 people, and he hoped to see some of the same folks come back for the tour. If the tours become popular enough, he said he might hold them at other local churches as well.

The first time I went to Prospect United Methodist was when I was making my film, said Dickau. It is absolutely magnificent inside. Few people get a chance to see other churches aside from the one they go to, unless they are going to a wedding or a funeral. I think this will be a wonderful event and I am eager to get started.

Excerpt from:
Bristol Historical Society to host church tour on Sunday

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Lee's Summit, Mo. (PRWEB) September 10, 2014

When Keith Griffith retired from his 22-year military career and attempted to transition into a civilian job, he knew within a short period of time that he wasn't cut out for the corporate world.

I no longer wanted the restrictions of a regular job, Griffith said of his short-term position as a biomedical engineer. I wanted to earn a lucrative living while I set my own time and agenda.

Griffith set his sights on opening his own business, choosing to launch a Mr. Appliance franchise. Mr. Appliance is a service-oriented business providing expert maintenance and repair of household appliances, in addition to dryer vent cleaning.

Now, Griffith is soaking up his decision-making status, saying the best part of business ownership is the ability to set the climate of his workplace. I truly get to be a trend setter for what this business will be like and feel like, he said.

Griffiths franchise consultant referred him to Guidant Financial to help him finance his franchise. Using their signature Rollover for Business Start-ups program, Guidant helped Griffith use funds from his 401(k) to invest in his franchise without triggering a taxable distribution.

Business financial matters were as good as a foreign language to me, Griffith stated. But the Guidant folks have been real pros. They've guided me through that unknown path, and I continue to learn more every day.

In his spare time, Griffith enjoys long distance running, hiking, traveling to new places and helping those in need.

Mr. Appliance of Liberty will open for business on Sept. 11. To learn more about the services Mr. Appliance offers or to schedule an appointment, call 816-698-5656 or by visiting http://www.mrappliance.com/liberty

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