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With his distinctive aquiline nose and magnificent flowing beard, Albanias national hero, Skanderbeg, has long been a familiar presence in the countrys streets and squares. The 7ft warrior king known as the Dragon of Albania, slayer of the Ottoman Turks, is celebrated in numerous monuments and reliefs, his imposing stature and fiery eyes keeping watch over the territory he fought for in the 15th century.

Now his face will loom larger over the capital than ever before. Construction has begun on an 85-metre-high block of apartments, offices and shops in the centre of Tirana, designed in the shape of Skanderbegs head. Images of the project depict an amorphous white tower ringed with balconies that ripple in and out to form a lumpy approximation of the heros features, imprinting his profile permanently on the skyline in concrete and glass. Wealthy future residents will be able to look out from the warriors eyes, hang out on his ears or dine alfresco on the end of his nose from which greenery will dangle in an unfortunate snot-like drip.

The surreal vision is the work of Dutch architects MVRDV, who are no strangers to concocting buildings shaped like supersized novelty objects or figurative sculptural projects, as they prefer to call them. Their disastrous Marble Arch Mound in London, which arguably cost the Conservative council its leadership of the local borough, was merely the latest in a long line of cartoonish creations that seem to have been plucked from the depths of a joke shop bargain bin. The architects have designed a museum in the form of gigantic comic speech bubbles, an art storage depot in the shape of an Ikea salad bowl and an apartment complex that spells out the word HOME in the form of its blocks. But it seems they have saved their most banal metaphors for the Balkans, perhaps assuming that fewer of their clients and critics will ever see the buildings in person.

A short distance from where the giant Skanderbeg head is planned to rise, there already looms another tower designed by MVRDV, named Downtown One. Topping out last year, its 140-metre concrete frame makes it the tallest building in the city, and it continues the pop-nationalist theme. Rather than a face, this hefty slab of luxury flats and offices features a pixelated map of Albania protruding from its facade although the form is so indistinct, it looks more like the concrete formwork slipped on the way up, leaving a wonky mess in its wake. The dramatically carved volumes imagined by MVRDV appear to have been value-engineered into more shallow dimples, giving the impression that the building is prematurely eroding.

These days, cities around the world increasingly look like each other, says Winy Maas, founding partner of the Dutch architecture firm. I always encourage them to resist this, to find their individual character and emphasise it. Tirana has the opportunity of a blank canvas for high-density structures. It can be progressive in that sense and build up character and a sense of place.

But many local residents arent so sure about the sense of place being created by Maas, and the roster of other international architects who have been flown in to reshape the city. A handful of towers are rising around Tiranas central Skanderbeg Square, with four already complete and at least another six in the pipeline. There have been vocal protests against the destruction of Ottoman-era villas to make way for the slew of high-rise developments, with critics bemoaning the loss of heritage and rocketing property prices, and accusations that the projects are being used as money laundering schemes for organised crime.

Two historic villas were demolished to make way for the Skanderbeg tower in May 2020, when the city was in pandemic lockdown. At the same time, the citys cherished National Theatre, dating from the 1930s, was also bulldozed to make way for a project by Danish architect Bjarke Ingels, to widespread condemnation.

The future of Tirana will be full of ghost skyscrapers, says Vincent WJ van Gerven Oei, a Dutch writer who has lived in Tirana for the last 12 years and closely tracked the citys development. I love MVRDV the things they build in the Netherlands are among my favourite buildings but then they come to Albania and become lousy assholes. They think they can get away with crappy design, checking off all the stupid nationalist tropes you can think of.

In a 2018 lecture, when the two towers were in development, Maas addressed the overt nationalist symbolism of designing a building in the shape of the countrys map. I had a discussion with some of the European politicians about that, he said. Because, can you do that? Is nationalism good or bad? But Albania needs it, to show its sexy and that its actually quite cool.

Dashing back and forth on stage, speaking like a hyperactive child who had consumed too many E-numbers, Maas rhapsodised his love affair with Albania. He described it as a country with no money, that drinks only coffee, and where there is nothing to do the perfect blank slate for his outlandish ideas, like a mini-China with bountiful opportunities for architects. Developers are getting richer, he said excitedly, but made no mention of where the money might be coming from to build such heady visions, given the countrys impoverished economy.

A 2020 report by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime noted that the Albanian construction industry had become a popular hotspot for international criminal gangs to launder money, primarily from drug trafficking. It estimated that 1.6bn worth of dirty money had been laundered through the Albanian real estate sector in the previous three years, with 60% of project funding coming from illicit sources. Albanias own Office of the General Directorate for the Prevention of Money Laundering said that it observed considerable real estate investments with unknown source of funds, which it classified as suspicious.

Last year, anti-mafia prosecutors in Italy found that the Ndrangheta crime syndicate had identified Tiranas new high-rise developments as a prime opportunity for laundering their cash. In one wiretap, two of those arrested were heard discussing a building constructor in Albania who held three building permits for buildings worth 180m, but had only 10m to hand. The new skyscrapers are to be sold for 3,000-4,000 per square metre, one of the suspects says. And do you know how much it cost to build? 510. MVRDV says that, in accordance with Dutch law, it runs background checks on its clients using a third-party company that scans for criminal activity, among other things, and there is no suggestion of illegal funds. A spokesperson for the city of Tirana said: The duty of the municipality is to ensure that construction plans, aesthetics, architecture rules and mobility plans are respected. We understand we live in a toxic political environment in the Balkans and have repeatedly asked opposition leaders to point out: which one of these towers is suspect of such [criminal] activity? To date, we have no response and there has been no official claim with the Tirana prosecution.

The radical reshaping of the Albanian capital over the last two decades can primarily be credited to Edi Rama, who served as its mayor from 2000-2011 and has been the countrys prime minister since 2013. Rama was a professional basketball player and artist in the 1990s, and Maas says in his lecture: I know Edi from Paris, when he was a painter. Rama returned to Albania to become minister of culture in 1998, and embarked on a radical clean-up operation when he became mayor. He made headlines with his policies of painting grey soviet buildings in bright colours to liven up the city, planting trees, creating bike lanes and holding international architectural competitions reforms that landed him the inaugural World Mayor prize in 2004.

One of the first projects MVRDV scooped under Ramas reign was the Toptani shopping centre in 2005, which was conceived as a hollowed out pixelated mass covered in giant LCD advertising screens. Having won the competition, Maas heard nothing until a few years later, when he realised the building had in fact been built by other architects, and drastically watered down in the process. The digital facade was exchanged for standard grey cladding panels, while his vision for an open arcade became a generic closed-off mall.

Projects here are often realised in a totally different way to how the architects originally intended, says Van Gerven Oei. Theres the reality of the digital render, always beautiful, brilliant and groundbreaking, and then the reality of Albanian construction companies, who want to do the easiest, fastest thing at the lowest possible price.

Not to be dissuaded by the Frankenstein mall, MVRDV continued to seek work in Albania. Several unrealised projects followed, from a colossal pile of oblong apartment blocks planned for a lakeside site in 2008, dubbed Tirana Rocks, to a coastal resort for a Russian client designed as an artificial hillside that would glow eerily at night better than any James Bond movie, Maas promised. He explains how Downtown One began as a three-dimensional Albania-shaped building, but proved too expensive, so they decided to imprint the shape of the map on a simple rectangular tower instead. A further commission came in 2018 to transform the striking marble-clad Pyramid of Tirana built in the 1980s as a museum to celebrate the countrys former communist dictator which had become a popular place for the citys youth to scramble up and slide down. MVRDV were appointed, without a public competition, to transform it into a tech hub smothering the sloping sides with concrete steps in the process. Finally, when it comes to the Skanderbeg tower, the origins are as blunt as you might expect. As Maas recalls: Then Edi said: I want to do something with history. And so the giant head was born.

Local people have joked that, as Rama cultivates an elder-statesman look his 6ft 6in frame and growing beard giving him an increasingly Skanderbeg-esque appearance the head-shaped building may end up looking more like a lasting monument to the artist-politician who reshaped the capital, forever gazing out over his vision of empty towers.

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What the Marble Arch Mound architects did next: a skyscraper shaped like Albanias national hero - The Guardian

Introducing Rakewell, Apollos wandering eye on the art world. Look out for regular posts taking a rakish perspective on art and museum stories.

Rakewell is interested to note that not only is Keanu Reeves confirmed to star in his first leading role in a television series, but that he will be playing an architect. And not just a fictional architect, of which there many examples in cinema. For The Devil in the White City, Reeves has been cast as Daniel H. Burnham, who, as the co-designer of the worlds first building with an all-steel frame, was a pioneer of skyscraper architecture and who, as head architect of the Worlds Fair of 1893 in Chicago, had a hand in making the city what it is today.

Chicago, you say? But hasnt Keanu played an architect in the Windy City before? He certainly has, although your roving correspondent with something of a thing for ridiculous films wouldnt call it the most authentic depiction of the profession on screen. But if you like lakes and houses, baffling time-travel scenarios, and Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves starring in the same film but not stuck on a bus, then The Lake House (2006) is unmissable, mystifying fun. The premise is that Keanus architect and Sandra Bullocks doctor live in the same North Shore lakeside house on stilts only they are in the property two years apart, in 2004 and 2006, respectively. With the help of a magic mailbox, the determined couple send each other letters, fall in love and wonder how they can beat the pesky time-space continuum that is keeping them apart. Reevess character is working on suburban condominiums instead of starting a firm with the unpromising name of Visionary Vanguard with his younger brother, also an architect. Both are cowed by their rather more visionary father who is youve guessed it another architect, played by Christopher Plummer (hooray!) as a charismatic cross between Frank Lloyd Wright and Le Corbusier. As the one decent architect in the family, it is he who designed the titular house. Rakewell cant quite remember if the ending makes any sense, but Chicago comes out of the picture with great credit.

The Devil in the White City, on the other hand, is an adaptation of Erik Larsons true-crime thriller of 2003, which also deals with the murderous exploits of the serial killer H.H. Holmes, who despatched his victims during the Worlds Fair. Although the book is just as preoccupied by Burnhams masterminding of the event, Rakewell wonders how much screen time Keanu Reeves is really going to share with a slide rule. Still, it has to be an improvement on Knock Knock (2015), in which the actor again played an architect. This time, he is a married man left in the house on his own; a married man who unwisely opens the door to two attractive passing strangers. Lets just say that sexy times lead to harrowing times and let us hope for more, both for Keanu and for ourselves, from the real-life tribulations of Daniel H. Burnham.

Got a story for Rakewell? Get in touch atrakewell@apollomag.comor via @Rakewelltweets.

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Is Keanu Reeves about to become the architect of his own destiny? - Apollo Magazine

The following editorial from Aki Ishida kicks off the Focus section of the July/August 2022 edition of The Architects Newspaper, which showcases the latest and greatest innovations in glass. You can view the entire section, complete with product roundups and case studies, in full here.

In recent decades, technological advancements in chemical coating, structural engineering, and fabrication methods have altered architectural possibilities for the use of glass. As new techniques expand the range of effects and performance of clear glass, glass transparency has become increasingly multivalent and complexit is blurred, both materially and metaphysically. Historical associations of glass with exclusivity and exquisiteness have resulted in todays predicaments of excessive consumption, as evidenced by all-glass iPhones, the curtain walls of luxury high-rises, and other glass buildings and products. At the same time, when we spend more than 90 percent of our day indoors, glass that connects us to the outdoors remains indispensable to architecture.

Beginning in the late 1990s, I worked for four years at the office of glass artist/technologist James Carpenter when glass knowledge was still exclusive relative to today, as now many architecture offices have their own glass and curtain-wall experts. At the time, Carpenters studio worked at the forefront of experimenting with reflective coating (including the polychrome effects of dichroic glass that characterized much of Carpenters early work) and the first use in the United States of cable-net glass walls, designed in collaboration with German engineering firm Schlaich Bergermann Partner.

Building on my professional experience as an architect, in my book Blurred Transparencies in Contemporary Glass Architecture (2020), I examined the intertwining of material, culture, and technology through six case studies and argued that readings of transparent glass are increasingly blurry.

Glasss fragility, which intensifies its exquisiteness, has challenged architects and captured their imagination. From the 11th to the 16th centuries, the secrets of glassmaking were highly coveted by the Venetians until three glassmakers were smuggled in by King Louis XIV of France to realize Versailless Hall of Mirrors. Crystals, glass slippers, coffins, and mirrors often appear symbolically in fairy tales, which describe the collective dreams of a culture. In modern architecture, glass is a material imbued with idealism, symbolism, and utopian vision. Walter Gropius, for example, referenced crystals in the Bauhaus manifesto, writing that the new structure of the future [] will one day rise toward heaven from the hands of a million workers like the crystal symbol of a new faith. It was thought that in early modern sanatorium buildings, including the Zonnestraal (1931) in the Netherlands, solar transmission through the glass walls would heal sick patients, transforming them into healthy workers. Today, these historical examples continue to affect meanings associated with glass.

Following the financial fallout of 2008 and amid increasing concerns about global warming, glass came under attack for being environmentally irresponsible and unaffordable. Bird lovers villainized New Yorks Javits Center as a hazard for birds that flew into its reflective glass walls. In 2014, FXFowle replaced I.M. Pei and Partners (now Pei Cobb Freed & Partners) original glass with fritted glass that is more visible to birds; avian fatalities dropped by 90 percent. In 2019, in response to a surge of glass skyscraper construction in New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio alarmed architects and developers by hyperbolically claiming that steel and glass have no place in our city or on our Earth anymore, although what he meant was that the energy code requirements should become more stringent, not that glass would be banned. Architect and academic Andres Jaques 2021 performance Being Silica was a critique of ultra-clear, low-iron glass made with a white sand extracted from a few exclusive locations around the world; the same sand is also used in fracking. Jaque remarked that low-iron glass, which costs three times as much as regular glass with a green tint, has become the material of choice for high-profile glass architecture, including Apple stores and the supertall luxury apartment towers on New York Citys Billionaires Row. In other words, ultra-clear glass symbolizes excessive wealth and environmental exploitation.

Despite the negative attention given to glass in recent years, much of which is based on valid societal concerns, most people would agree that a world without glass would be unimaginably grim and dull. Responding to the climate crisis shouldnt require a ban on glass, but rather more thoughtful applications instead of draping every face of the building with the material, top to bottom. Architects can educate their clients and the public to no longer associate floor-to-ceiling glass with the good life. Excessive fritting, coating, and tinting needed to meet the energy codes defeat the purpose of having glass in the first place.

Architects can also consider smarter couplings of building function and location with the material of glass. For example, SANAAs Glass Pavilion (2006) in Toledo, Ohio, is an all-glass building that recirculates the heat generated by the furnace in a hot glass shop to heat the gallery and office spaces in the winter. As Michael Na Min Ra of facade consulting firm Front shared in my book, this innovative approach to heating and cooling made an all-glass building sensible in the cold climate of Toledo.

Moreover, as architects such as Lacaton & Vassal have shown, transparent walls and windows can be made operable and adjustable, thus offering the occupants a sense of agency in managing their own environment.

Even though glass is no longer specified for its curative effects as it was for tuberculosis sanatoriums a century ago, transparent glass continues to capture our imagination and remains vital to our cities. As advancements in glass surface treatments and engineering continue to alter glass as a material, its visual perception will become further blurred, along with its cultural symbolism.

Aki Ishida is an architect, educator, and writer currently serving as interim associate director of Virginia Tech School of Architecture + Design in Blacksburg, Virginia.

Originally posted here:
Advances in technology shape contemporary glazing applications - The Architect's Newspaper

Like the Brutalist-style home that Volpato proposed for furniture company owner Nick Scali, his designs were booted by councils because they didnt conform with a neighbourhoods character. They stand out in the drab crowd like the Sea Princess amid a fleet of tankers, reported the Herald in 1982 reporting on Haberfield Councils rejection of another Volpato plan.

Decades before the idea of indoor/outdoor living took off in Australia, Volpato argued that British architecture was too influential, and irrelevant in the Australian climate.

His was a Mediterranean vibe: One of fun and openness with indoors and outdoors merging Id like to see the square massive style typical of Australian architecture disappear, he told Australian House & Garden in 1973.

Other than his familys archives of drawings and records, details of Volpatos work are scant.

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He was typical of many post-war European designers who often worked in obscurity, said Hawcroft. They worked as furniture or industrial and architectural designers when they didnt qualify with the Architects Registration Board. Volpato was self-taught, and though he enrolled in architecture in Australia, his English wasnt proficient enough to continue.

Their name is never really on [the plan], she said. They had to work within a bigger organisation, and so their design work was never attributed ... They dont get known in the same way as people like Harry Seidler, said Hawcroft, the author of the 2017 book, The Other Moderns: Sydneys Forgotten European Design Legacy about these migrants who arrived in Australia up to 1960.

These emigre architects and designers like Volpato were doing their thing, and out of sync with the rest, she said. Many people would say his houses are ugly because they are over the top. They appealed to a cultural group that was not the majority.

Clients either loved him or hated him. But the father of six was unfazed. His son Marco Volpato said his father always broke the norm. He had no fear in expressing his own designs, and turning heads.

Marco Volpato, an architect working in Switzerland and Australia, said the public was now more open to different and fluid styles like his fathers. I often catch myself saying, Hey thats one of Dads designs. Its easy to spot them around Sydney, they are unique and stand out in the crowd.

Gino Volpatos granddaughter Sara Iarossi, and daughters Liris Iarossi and Paola Candi go through some photos of his designs at the family home in Marrickville.Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

Volpato was indefatigable. When a Sydney council rejected a house saying it conflicted with the areas red brick character, he doorknocked 150 homeowners for their thoughts. They loved it. Volpato won. The council changed its mind.

His daughter Liris Iarossi said her father never stopped. He designed and made the mural at Munmorah Power station, a shopping trolley with a brake, an electric scooter, a tape dispenser for 3M, mausoleums, aged care facilities, and modern office furniture in marble, glass and granite.

When married in the 1950s, he created a sleek modern gown for his wife Adelia, who would have preferred something traditional. And like architects Mies van de Rohe, Marcel Breuer and Harry Seidler, Volpato also designed interiors and furniture.

Working for Sabemo, he designed Wollongongs Sacred Heart Chapel and Italian Centre. Iarossi said her father also designed the pews, the Stations of the Cross and the statue of Our Lady of the Rosary. My father was a hands-on person. He was there day and night, said Iarossi.

In the weeks before he died in 2008, he completed a self-portrait, dictated to-do lists of unfinished designs and artwork for his six children, patents that needed lodging and wrote extensive instructions for his funeral.

He also came up with a design for a floating building, suspended from above, that he instructed his children to pursue.

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Iarossi said her father never wasted a minute. He used to say, You know that minute that just went past? You will never get it back.

His extended family is enjoying the interest in his work. It makes me so happy knowing his legacy lives on and people are appreciating his work, said his granddaughter Sara Iarossi.

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Why is he only a thing now?: The Italian-born architect finding a new audience - Sydney Morning Herald

By: Zephyr Melton August 17, 2022

Gil Hanse is one of the most renowned course architects in the world.

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PARAMUS, N.J. Gil Hanse is a busy man.

The 59-year-old is one of the foremost golf-course architects in the world, and his fingerprints are everywhere in the game. From Olympic Club to Southern Hills to The Country Club (among many others), Hanse has left his mark.

This weeks U.S. Amateur host, Ridgewood Country Club, is no exception. Hanse led a restoration of the classic A.W. Tillinghast design back in the 90s, and three decades later, the course is as good as ever.

And despite the U.S. Amateur being one of the most hectic weeks in golf, Hanse made sure to carve out some time in his schedule to pop over to Ridgewood this week to take in a little of the action. On Wednesday, we found him following along early in the evening as Gordon Sargent and Ford Clegg battled into extra holes.

Hanse might be the busiest man in golf, but he was gracious enough to take a few minutes to chat about his favorite hole on property, the challenges of restoring classic courses and more.

Zephyr Melton: How do you feel the course is holding up so far this week?

Gil Hanse: Its great so far. I think its presenting a really great challenge for these guys the rough is thick and youve got to hit it straight. And I think for a U.S. Amateur thats a great test. I think the thing thats been interesting is that these greens have so much slope in them, that not only from a putting standpoint, but also from an approach standpoint, youve got to hit the ball to certain spots to get it to feed to where you want it to go. Thats been interesting to watch. The subtleties of the greens have been a challenge Im sure.

ZM: Do you ever get nervous watching players compete on courses that youve had a hand in shaping?

GH: Not in this format, because its match play. No one is focused on what they shot its just whoever wins, wins and youve got to get the ball in the hole. Thats a lot easier on the architect, because when you put score into the equation, then not only do you have your own expectations, but also the expectations of the members and if they think its playing too easy or too hard.

ZM: Whats your favorite hole out here on this championship routing?

GH: Well I always get the composite numbers wrong, but Id say its No. 13, the par-5. I love that hole. Every once in a while, youll get a magazine or a book ask you, If there was a hole that you didnt design that you wish you had, which would it be? Ive picked that hole a couple times. Just because of the beauty of it, the way the cross hazard comes into play. The mounds and the way they diagonally set. And with your second shot, if you play it close to the boundary, you open up the angle into the green, but if you play away from the trouble, youve got to come into the green with trouble. And the green in that little bowl I think is a beautiful setting. Id definitely say thats my favorite.

ZM: What are the challenges with restorations in keeping the essence of a course while also challenging the modern player?

GH: I think a lot of what challenges these guys is baked into the original design. Its greens and contours of slopes and rough, of course. But I think where we have to reposition fairway bunkers, we would tend to do that if the topography allows us to shift them downrange to challenge the modern player. And with tees, well extend them too, but not in a way that we would perceive as disconnecting holes like if you had to walk 90 yards back and then walk the same 90 yards back to the fairway. That takes away the essence of these great old golf courses.

But one of the things that Jim Wagner and I have learned, is that if we trust Tillinghast and Donald Ross and George Thomas, 99 percent of the time, they got it right, and its still relevant to todays player. So we try to keep as much of that as we can.

ZM: What makes a great golf hole?

GH: Its having options. What makes a great golf hole in strategy is that the level of precision required to just go play is fairly low, with wide fairways and generous landing areas. But the level of precision required to score meaning accessing hole locations and getting close and making birdies means that youre relying on angles and hazards and theres a thought process to that. And thats not easy to do, but its what we try to accomplish.

ZM: Last question whats harder: playing golf, or designing golf courses?

GH: Playing golf. (laughs) I seldom get frustrated designing golf courses, but I definitely get frustrated when playing.

Zephyr Melton is an assistant editor for GOLF.com where he spends his days blogging, producing and editing. Prior to joining the team at GOLF.com, he attended the University of Texas followed by stops with Team USA, the Green Bay Packers and the PGA Tour. He assists on all things instruction and covers amateur and womens golf.

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Gil Hanse Q&A: Renowned course architect talks the U.S. Amateur, his favorite hole at Ridgewood and more - Golf.com

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CEDARBURG, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Discovering large-scale problems, that could cost thousands of dollars.

Why some new homeowners are regretting their decision to skip an inspection.

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Home inspection expert explains why you'll regret skipping a home inspection - WDJT

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Sell Your House Direct Highlights:

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AboutSell Your House Direct is a nationwide service and online marketplace, specializing in selling homes throughout the west and southeast United States. They connect sellers and brokers to thousands of vetted iBuyers, resulting in a home sale at the best possible price and terms.

SOURCE Sell Your House Direct

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This Company is Taking the Stress Out of Home-Selling - PR Newswire

Ahead of hurricane season this year, Ferncrest Manor Living Center in New Orleans submitted a summary of its evacuation plan to the Louisiana Department of Health just like the 93 other nursing homes in Louisianas most storm-prone parishes.

Ferncrest Manors plan garnered special attention from state health officials. The nursing home listed a campground with rustic cabins and recreational vehicle park in Tangipahoa Parish as a possible evacuation location for its medically-fragile residents.

State health officials and the fire marshals office identified significant problems with the site Yogi Bears Jellystone Park in Robert during an inspection earlier this summer. They reported standing water in building entrances and a hole in the roof of the facility. They saw mice and feces on the grounds. Officials concluded nursing home residents wouldnt be able to navigate the cracked, muddy sidewalks or handle the lack of outdoor lighting either. In addition to those deficiencies, Ferncrest Manor wanted to bring too many residents to the site. At the beginning of hurricane season, the population of the nursing home was 114, and the capacity of Jellystone Park was 99. It didnt have adequate showers or sinks for that many people, according to a letter sent June 20 to Ferncrests administrator Jesse Shaffer.

The Department recommends that this unlicensed evacuation site NOT be utilized at this time, Tasheka Dukes, director of the Louisiana Department of Healths health standards section, wrote to Ferncrest Manors leadership.

Ferncrest Manor did not respond to request for comment about its evacuation plan, but the staff at Jellystone Park campsite said the nursing home canceled its evacuation contract with the campsite about six weeks ago, shortly after it would have received the health departments letter. Doreen Foret, who helps supervise the campsite, said the nursing home had contracted with Jellystone Park since 2006 to provide evacuation space, though the home never actually sent residents to the Robert campground for a hurricane or any other emergency.

In all, state officials recommended 16 nursing homes from hurricane-prone areas reconsider evacuation sites they planned to use, according to documents provided to the Illuminator in response to a public records request.

In May and June, state officials inspected all 12 unlicensed facilities the nursing homes proposed for shelters. Nine were deemed inadequate.

Only three unlicensed sites, which collectively serve five homes, passed inspection, according to letters the health department sent to nursing home owners and administrators in late June.

Under current law, Louisiana cannot force nursing homes to change these evacuation locations before the end of this hurricane season in November, Stephen Russo, a health department attorney, said in an interview last week. Still, health inspectors have put the nursing home owners on notice that they will be watching them closely if they choose to use any of the questionable locations. The owners could put their nursing home licenses at risk if they move to one of those locations and something goes wrong, Russo said.

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Most south Louisiana nursing homes evacuate residents to licensed health care facilities such as other nursing homes and rehabilitation centers in safer parts of the state for hurricanes. They are also allowed to set up unlicensed emergency shelters at sites that include schools, churches and conference centers. Unlicensed facilities are under more scrutiny following the disastrous evacuation of seven nursing homes ahead of Hurricane Ida. Last August, Bob Dean moved nearly 850 people from his southeastern Louisiana facilities to a former pesticide warehouse he owns in Tangipahoa Parish.

The residents ended up on air mattresses on the ground without enough clothing, toilets or food. Hundreds eventually had to be rescued and 15 died within a month. At least five of those deaths were attributed to the evacuation. The health department shut down Deans homes and pulled his lucrative nursing home licenses in response to the scandal. Several evacuees and their families have sued Dean, who is fighting both the lawsuits and government sanctions.

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The Louisiana Legislature reacted to the Dean debacle with a new law to strengthen nursing home emergency plans and evacuation standards, but it wont be fully in place until May 2023. Until then, the state doesnt have many tools to push back against nursing homes and their choice of evacuation sites, even if health officials have concerns, Russo said.

Some problems health officials identified at unlicensed shelters are similar to those found at Deans warehouse. Several nursing homes were told their unlicensed sites werent big enough to hold the number of residents they planned to house. Many also lack enough showers, sinks and kitchen capacity.

Deans warehouse was also overcrowded, exacerbating the facilitys shortage of toilets and showers. His staff struggled to feed the residents in the days after the hurricane because there wasnt a working kitchen on the site.

Nursing homes that wanted to adjust their evacuation plans in the aftermath of Deans evacuation problems had plenty of time to do so. The homes owners werent required to submit their evacuation plan summaries for review until March, six months after Ida and Deans warehouse debacle.

Documents reviewed by the Illuminator show five nursing homes listed Creekside Junior High School in Pearl River as an evacuation location. The health department expressed several worries about the site, including that the building might not be able to withstand a strong hurricane. Gym of the junior high school is to be used for community sheltering, for several facilities, only for Pre-Storm and Post-Storm; the gym is not structurally sound to safely shelter nursing home residents during a hurricane/storm, Dukes, from the health department, wrote to the five nursing home owners.

Officials also wondered how Creekside Junior High would function as a shelter for nursing home patients when students would also be expected to use the school for class. Health officials have also asked the Archdiocese of New Orleans to find an alternative to the evacuation center it built in Bunkie for its nursing homes. The site, run by the Notre Dame Health System, doesnt have enough hand washing stations or showers to meet residents needs, officials said, and the archdiocese hasnt identified a place nearby to house nursing home staff who would have to work at the evacuation center.

The archdiocese planned to put residents from three nursing homes Chateau De Notre Dame in New Orleans, Our Lady of Wisdom Health Care Center in New Orleans and Wynhoven Health Care Center in Marrero at that location, according to records from the health department.

The archdiocese said the Notre Dame Health System is still negotiating with the state health department over its evacuation plans. We are working towards resolutions to all of the concerns and confident issues are being addressed sufficiently, archdiocese spokesperson Sarah McDonald said in a written statement Monday. The leadership and staff of Notre Dame Health System want to assure families and residents that in the event of an evacuation all appropriate health and safety measures will be in place for the proper care of residents, she said.

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Over a dozen nursing homes could evacuate to facilities that failed state inspections - Louisana Illuminator

Garth Schutte, 40, is under a conservatorship. His family isn't allowed to know where he is or speak to him. What's funding this is your tax dollars.

SACRAMENTO, Calif Garth Schutte, 40, has been taken by the state.

His mother, Jill, and older brothers, Ian and Russell, aren't allowed to speak to or see Garth. They don't know where he lives.

That's because Garth has been placed under a limited conservatorship.

In California, a conservatorship is a legal tool approved through the probate court which takes away the rights of someone who is unable to care for themselves and gives them to another person.

While general conservatorships strip someone of their civil rights entirely, limited conservatorships have seven separate powers that can be taken and given to another person depending on the conserved persons unique needs and ability to handle certain aspects of their lives.

But Garth has not been conserved by just anyone; he is under the custody of a $12 billion state agency:The Department of Developmental Services (DDS).

DDS serves hundreds of thousands of Californians with disabilities and their families with services and support. The Schutte family shared their story with us in hopes it will shine a light for others who receive these services especially those considering conservatorship.

360,000 people could potentially be subject to this system, said Ian.

360,000 is the number of people the Department of Developmental Services serves as of our interview. In 2023, that number is expected to increase to over 400,000.

I want to help as many of those 360,000 people as I can because even it just happening to one person is awful, said Ian.

We never expected anything like this, said Jill. If I couldve predicted this... we wouldve left the state of California.

Garth has developmental disabilities; autism and obsessive-compulsive disorder, court and medical records show. For the first 39 years of his life, he relied on his mother to assist him with everyday things like showering, shaving and even using a catheter because ofa diagnosis of catatonia.

He was catheterized in the home and I was trained by three different medical staff, said Jill. Kaiser was providing all his medicine and his catheter, which was being mailed to the house. You cant buy catheters theyre prescription only.

The catheter is part of how Garths conservatorship began.

In Aug. 2020, record-breaking heat hit Sacramento. Jill noticed Garth wasn't eating or drinking quite as much and took him to the doctor.

Garth says things differently and he mentioned to one of the nurses, My mom puts a red plastic straw in my private part,'" Jill said.

Hospital staff are mandatory reporters. By law they have to report any sign of potential abuse Jill said Garth was trying to explain how he needed to be catheterized and it sent an abuse alert to Sacramento Adult Protective Services (APS) as well as Alta Regional Center the state-run facility under DDS providing services and support directly to people with disabilities as well as their families.

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When we look at California state law regarding mandated reporters, the reporters only report suspicions. Its the sheriff and police that do the investigation, said Jill. Adult Protective Services expand the investigation, not the regional center.

Yet court records show Alta Regional Center took Garth and placed him in a state-funded care facility.

Jill, Ian and Russell were not notified, despite Jill having Kaisers model of power of attorney over Garth.

For three months, no one told their family where Garth was.

We had absolutely no idea. They would not even say, is he in Sacramento? Jill said. We did not know.

This wasnt unfamiliar territory to the Schutte family.

Fifteen years prior, Garth had been taken by an Alta Regional Center employee who was helping watch Garth in Jills home. In court records, the regional center wrote Jill was unable to care for Garth, but a court investigators report later said Garth was taken in a deceptive manner.

The first time Garth was taken, it took Jill nine months and an attorney to get him back. 15 years later, in 2020, they were at a loss, which is why the Schutte family decided to get conservatorship over Garth, despite not doing so for Garths 39 years of life to help maintain his independence.

As they began the lengthy legal process, Garth was suddenly dropped off at Jills home by medical technicians after three months with no knowledge of his whereabouts.

I was shocked. I was thrilled, said Jill.

Less than 24 hours later, three Sacramento sheriffs deputies arrived saying Garth had been returned to Jill due to a clerical error.

The deputies took Garth outside and spoke with him alone. Ian recorded all 47 minutes the deputies were there; throughout the recording, Garth expressed his desire to remain at home with his mother to the deputies several times.

After Garth made his wishes clear and the deputies did a home inspection, their concern vanished.

Were glad hes got such a good home here, a deputy said.

The deputies updated Adult Protective Services and Alta Regional Center on their welfare check. Before leaving, one deputy offered the Schuttes advice: The most important thing you can do is go get that conservatorship as quickly as you can because thatll prevent them from pulling all this.

The Schutte family took it to heart and moved forward with the legal conservatorship process.

By petitioning the probate court for conservatorship, several things are instigated, including the court appointing an attorney for the potential conserved person.

The court appointed attorney Dewey Harpainter to represent Garth. Harpainters office is in Auburn.

As Garths attorney, Harpainter is legally required to advocate and represent what Garth wants. Jill says Harpainter refused to meet in person with Garth.

At one point I said, If youd like I can drive Garth up to Auburn. I will sit in the car so you can have private questioning with him,' Jill said. He denied that at least five times.

When the Schutte family attorney brought this up in court and requested a new attorney be appointed for Garth, the judge refused, Jill said and court records show.

At the time of our interview with the Schutte family in early June 2022, Harpainter had yet to meet with Garth.

That changed less than a month later after we reached out for an interview. Court records show Harpainter eventually met in person with Garth after we began investigating. The meeting took place just six days after our initial interview request to Harpainter.

Harpainter did not respond to repeated requests for an interview.

When a conservatorship is requested the court also appoints an investigator to interview the conservatee, assess the family dynamic, and write a report that goes directly to the judge.

The court investigator called me and we talked over many, many things, said Jill. I (also) encouraged him to talk to Garth privately.

After the investigator spoke with Garth in a one-on-one phone call, he wrote that Garth expressed a very strong desire to remain at home and told the investigator, (I) dont wanna go to a group home. I would like to live at home.

Criminal background checks were done on Jill and Russell who were petitioning for shared conservatorship custody. The investigators report also went through Adult Protective Services records and past abuse referrals, which were deemed inconclusive.

It means they didnt have evidence to confirm or deny Garth was abused, APS told us.

The court investigator recommended to the judge that his family care for Garth, and the conservatorship should be granted.

But the state regional center, Alta, told the judge a different story it claimed a number of allegations of abuse by the family from medical professionals in their written assessment of Garth.

Jill said shes had years of experience with Garth as well as a 22-year career as a disability expert for the California State of Rehabilitation and that, at no time did any doctor or professional advise me that anything being done was abusive.

The assessment also alleged Jill locked Garth in a windowless room, which Jill admits to, for Garths own protection. Because of his OCD, Garth often tries to break through the window glass in his room so he can pick up litter at all times of the day and night.

I mentioned that to a doctor the doctor said, Can you put a plywood or something based on the size of the window? Jill recalled.

She did, but not before she said she consulted with the fire department about it.

Its always putting Garth first, Jill said. His needs and wants but above his needs and wants... his safety.

The assessment also said Garth spoke directly to Roseville police after a lieutenant contacted Garth and the regional center following the Schutte's filing a missing persons report when Garth was taken in 2020. The assessment said Garth told the lieutenant he didn't want to return to his mothers house as well as recounted physical and sexual abuse by his mother and brother.

We reached out to the Roseville Police Department. They said they have no records of the call and therefore couldnt confirm it.

The regional center told the judge just because APS reports of abuse were inconclusive, it does not mean the claims are unfounded and that Jill and Russell would be inappropriate conservators.

Instead, they recommended the Department of Developmental Services be appointed as conservator. They also said DDS should ask for a power the family didnt: control over who Garth sees.

Ultimately, the judge listened to the regional center. He gave temporary conservatorship of Garth to DDS... not to the family as recommended by the court investigator.

With the conservatorship appointed, DDS decided Garth should move out of his mothers home and into one of their care facilities what they call a vendor.

After 39 years of living with Garth, Jill moved Garth into the new facility.

We did not want him to see our tears as we drove away, Jill recalled.

But the DDS care home struggled with Garth.

Because they couldnt help him sleep and he couldnt sleep - they call 911, Jill said she learned.

Court records show Garth had been hospitalized for 43 out of 88 days after being moved to care homes and under the care of DDS, meaning between November 2021 and February 2022 Garth spent about half his time at that point in emergency rooms rather than the care home.

Because Garth is under the conservatorship of DDS, taxpayers are footing the pricey ambulance rides and hospital stays.

One of the caretakers had so much trouble she actually asked for help from the family Garth had just been taken away from.

She would call (us asking), Can we come help her? Jill said. She actually wanted us to spend the night there.

Jill shared text messages between her and the care home facilitator with us. Here are a few, including the facilitator addressing the regional centers abuse allegations:

Garth no longer lives at this care home. Jill said he has moved residences five times in six months. With each move, Jills involvement in Garths life has been drastically cut by DDS, claiming Jill and Ian are triggering Garth. Jill believes whats triggering is the memory of the home Garth had with her.

As of mid-July 2022, Jill hadnt seen or spoken with Garth for 12 weeks. Visitation, including phone calls, between Garth and his family, has been severed... especially between Jill and Russel, the two who tried to get co-conservatorship.

We have not been (to his care home). We are not allowed to go there. We are not allowed to know the exact address, said Jill. We have not seen him or heard from him.

Its not for a lack of trying; Jill has repeatedly requested visitation with Garths regional center service coordinator, who is acting as his conservator in making decisions for Garth on behalf of DDS.

We cant provide you a date when you will be able to call or visit Garth, his service coordinator wrote in an email to Jill. She also said, Garth has not expressed any interest in having contact with you at this time.

Jill said shell respect his wishes, but wants to hear them from Garth himself.

Because we will follow the instructions, said Jill. [The regional center] could not do that.

We also reached out to Garths service coordinator asking to speak with Garth. Alta Regional Centers legal manager responded with the same message: Garth has expressed no interest in speaking with you.

We asked if Garth was informed that an investigative reporter wanted to speak with him and if we could ask him directly. We never got a response.

We were, however, able to speak with Garth directly during a visitation with his brother Russell.

Since DDS got conservatorship, Russell has laid low in hopes of continuing to remain in contact with Garth, unlike other family members who've lost all visitation. As of June 2022 he hadn't seen Garth for six months. Russell requested visitation and was approved. He, his wife Elizabeth, and their kids met at a local park while a care home worker supervised.

About halfway through their visit, we were able to speak with Garth.

I terribly miss my mom, Garth said.

When asked who he would like to live with, he told us his family, specifically his mom.

Garth also expressed the same desire weeks later directly to a judge.

On July 27, 2022, the Department of Developmental Services temporary conservatorship over Garth expired. The agency wanted to renew it and a court hearing was held in Sacramentos probate court.

Judge Gevercer granted us permission to film, despite DDSs repeated objections.

During the 40-minute hearing, the judge gave time for all to speak including Garth himself, who until this point has rarely had a voice in court.

I want to live with my mom, Garth said to the judge.

The judge told Garth to talk to his court-appointed attorney, Harpainter, about his desires. He also ordered DDS and the Schuttes to meet and hopefully reach an agreement over Garths current situation.

In the meantime, he extended DDSs conservatorship over Garth until the next hearing in December.

We requested an on-camera interview with the Department of Developmental Services for seven months. They declined all requests for interviews.

Prior to releasing our investigation, we sent them a three-page letter outlining our findings and asking 15 questions related to allegations of failed practices, including a 2022 state audit that found numerous failures for the last 10 years.

They refused to answer our questions and sent us a written statement (available in full at the bottom of this article) about how their priority was to keep their clients safe and a short video (below) of Director Nancy Bergmann reading the written statement. Neither answered any of our questions.

So, we attempted to talk to DDS attorney Meredith Nixon following the hearing. She also refused saying, no comment.

Two days prior to our investigation airing, the Department of Developmental Services announced immediate "actions to support" the individuals they conserve in a three-page press release. The release named three items DDS will do to improve the system for those in "conservatorships where DDS is the court-appointed conservator." They include forming a panel of experts to conduct a review of DDS' conservatorship program, forming a "working group" from multiple state departments to review their conservatorships, and "enhance oversight and review."

However, the press release didn't include direct actions or steps, like budgeting nor an exact time frame of when these items will take place. We reached out again asking for an interview so we could ask about the specifics of their new plan. They declined.

Jill had retired to care and spend more time with Garth. Following the hearing, she decided to return to work at an organization assisting people with autism, like Garth, so she can continue paying for the costly legal fees in hopes of gaining care for Garth.

The Schutte family plans to continue fighting in hopes of getting Garth home. They also hope in sharing their story, they shed a light on limited conservatorships and the system around it for others - as well as taxpayers.

Read this article:

'I want to live at home' | The battle of a conservatorship funded by tax dollars - ABC10.com KXTV

OLX Autos Outlook Business: Q&A

Spokesperson - Amit Kumar, CEO, OLX Group

To understand the trends in Indias automotive market we spoke to Amit Kumar, CEO, OLX Group on the road ahead for pre-owned cars in India and how COVID brought about a fundamental change in consumer behaviour towards the same.

Q1. Where do you see the trend of the growing popularity of used cars going in 2022? Has it slowed down? Has it accelerated further?

Owing to the increased need for personal mobility, affordability, support from financers, and low new car penetration in India, pre-owned car sales are expected to reach 1.5x times that of new car sales over the next five years.

A recent study conducted by OLX Autos with CRISIL on the pre-owned car market, reveals that by 2025- 2026, the Indian pre-owned car market will reach a size of over 7 Mn vehicles and outpace the new car market.

Q2. Going by the trends, which car models will be popular in 2022? Could you share some data on the most popular car bought and sold on OLX?

Based on the recent trends, the top three brands being sold on OLX Autos are Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Mahindra. In terms of the car models, the top-selling ones include hatchbacks such as Swift, Alto and i10. In addition, SUVs such as XUV500, Innova and Scorpio are also gaining huge traction. The average selling price of used cars was up by approximately 17%-20% year-on-year from approx. INR 4 lakh in January 2021 to INR 4.8 lakh this January 2022.

Q3. The current market environment has put a lot of stress on the supply of new cars chip shortage, restricted availability of raw materials, and longer wait times. How will this impact the supply side of used cars?

The demand for pre-owned cars is way ahead compared to pre-covid times. There are multiple factors behind this growth, the sector supply crunch, the need for personal mobility, and the desire for upward mobility. While chip shortage, rising cost of new cars and longer wait times are slowing the new car market, the pre-owned car market is gaining momentum.

As per our study with CRISIL, replacement demand this fiscal year made up only 19% of all new automobile sales, this typically ranges between 24-25%. This increase in demand is affecting the pricing for pre-owned cars, given their limited supply. This pressure on supply is also evident in the typical age of cars being traded which has increased from approx. 6-7 years during pre-covid times to approx. 8-9 years now.

Q4. How does OLX Autos perceive the used car market in India which has many venture-funded startups operating in the domain?

As stated the pre-owned car market will reach a size of over 7 Mn vehicles and outpace the new car market by 2025-26.

We at OLX Autos believe that given the per capita car ownership in India (23-25 cars per 1000 households as compared to 900+ per 1000 households in the US) is still amongst the lowest in the world it continues to be an aspiration for most Indians.

This unorganised industry is growing and therefore disruption is bound to happen. Startups are poised to take advantage and create that disruption to provide the phygital customer experience that customers are looking for. Ultimately, the player with a differentiated customer experience will succeed.

Q5. Tell us a bit about the recently launched home inspection model. How comfortable are users to sell their cars from their homes?

Pre-covid, most of our business (90%) was an in-store experience. However, during Covid, this was impacted and we created a new way of serving our customers. We pivoted to a model best suited to the customer preferences in terms of safety and convenience to meet the consumer-led demand.

Even though we are back to normalcy, consumers are preferring to take advantage of our home inspection facility which is witnessing a rapid growth

Q6. What has been the growth witnessed by OLX Autos in the last 2 years with the inclination towards personal mobility due to the pandemic-driven growth of the pre-owned car market?

OLX delivered a strong performance for the year, as it expanded its direct-to-consumer autos transactions business. Revenues increased 93% to US$3 billion. OLX Autos contributed significantly to this growth, with a revenue of US$1.6 billion, up 173% YoY. OLX Autos scaled operations significantly, with a record 175,000 autos transactions, up 79% from the previous year. Our core Classifieds business recorded growth across key markets, with monthly app user base rising 7% to 124 million, active listings growing 11% to 174 million and monthly paying listers increasing 10% to 4.1 million, as per a report on the global figures by Naspers.

Q7. How is OLX Autos reinventing itself to keep pace with the competition and changing consumer preferences?

OLX Autos is reinventing itself as a one-stop destination for anyone that wants to sell a pre-owned car, while also catering to the largest traditional dealer network in this space to help them grow with a wide variety of technology solutions.

Some of them being -

Home Inspection Model

Self Inspection Model

Online Price discovery

Q8. With many OEMs entering the used car space with their own branded outlets, do you see this as an opportunity or a hindrance to your plans in India?

This space is too large for any individual player to dominate in a market that is still 90% unorganized. We believe the more the players, the easier it will be to drive awareness about the various channels to sell cars and raise the bar for customer experience. In the past, we have demonstrated that despite the competition, we were able to achieve tremendous growth. This market will grow at a CAGR of around 15% over the next 5 years to reach over 7 mn which leaves a lot of room for growth hence the real battle is about understanding the needs and preferences of the consumers, creating awareness around better platforms that provide a differentiated customer experience.

We are focused and driven to provide great customer experiences that create positive word of mouth for our brand. This is an investment phase for us where we are building the right products, solutions, and capabilities that are scalable.

Read more:

COVID Has Shifted The Balance In Favour Of Pre-Owned Cars For A Long Time To Come - Outlook India