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Wednesday, August 20, 2014 | 6:00 a.m. CDT; updated 7:21 a.m. CDT, Wednesday, August 20, 2014

COLUMBIA John McLeod is frustrated with sewage overflows from two manholes in a private park near his home that have become "geysers of sewage."

Ridgefield Park is a private park in southwest Columbia, and McLeod, who lives at 2307 Ridgefield Road, is president of the Ridgefield Park Association. Homeowners in the surrounding neighborhood own the park.

According to Columbia Public Works Department documents, the two problem manholes in the park have overflowed a combined 20 times in the past five years, with 12 overflows recorded in 2013 alone. The manholes are visible from the County House Trail, which runs through the park.

McLeod believes the best solution would be replacing the sewer as soon as possible. The city plans to install a new sewer line in 2021, and city sewer utility manager David Sorrell said that project would significantly reduce the frequency of overflows at the park.

The Ridgefield Park sewer upgrade, estimated to cost $700,000, is one of many sewer projects in line for help across Columbia. According to city documents, there are 13 city sewer projects in progress and 25 others scheduled for construction by 2019 before the sewer would be replaced in Ridgefield Park. The cost of the 25 projects is an estimated $22 million, and the city still needs $18 million in funding.

Projects that are scheduled before Ridgefield Park include repairs downtown in the Flat Branch watershed, sewer main construction near the upper part of Hinkson Creek and maintenance to reduce sewer backups near Stewart Road.

The problems at the park are primarily due to inflow and infiltration of groundwater or rainwater into the sewer system through leaky pipes or improperly installed downspouts, problems that can cause manholes to overflow.

McLeod said he has spoken four times about the sewer troubles of Ridgefield Park at City Council meetings, most recently on July 21.

"The work we want done, they want to do it in seven years," McLeod said. "We want it done now."

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South of downtown, park has its own sewer troubles

Three months after the successful launch of expanded recycling opportunities at Campbell River depots, the city has seen a rise in the amount that is being recycled.

On May 19, Campbell Rivers expanded residential recycling program included changes that allow for polystyrene plastic (such as Styrofoam) and soft plastics (such as plastic bags and film wrap) to be accepted at the Campbell River Waste Management Centre on Argonaut Road and the privately-run depot at 1580 Willow St. (Island Return-It Centre).

While the blue box program also expanded in mid-May, polystyrene such as Styrofoam, and soft plastics are not accepted through curbside pick-up.

The expanded recycling program has been a big success because residents have really made it a priority to make use of these new recycling opportunities, said Ron Neufeld, Deputy City Manager for the City of Campbell River. If we make sure Styrofoam and soft plastics are properly separated we can make an even bigger reduction in the amount of waste going to the landfill and continue to extend the life of that facility.

Through Multi-Material BC (MMBC), a non-profit organization managing the packaging and printed paper product stewardship for the Province of British Columbia, polystyrene foam is now collected at depots across the province. Where equipment is available, it is decontaminated before having the air removed through a squeezing process that leaves it densified. The densification process squishes the foam into irregular shapes that are then shipped out on pallets. If a densifier isnt available, the foam is stored and shipped in megabags. Processors will use the material to manufacture products such as picture frames, construction trim, moulding, park benches and fence posts.

Both the Styrofoam/soft plastics depot collection and increased blue box collection have seen a rise in the amount that is being recycled since the expanded program was launched this spring.

Theres been a lot of interest about this expanded service and its great to see the number of people who are taking the opportunity to learn more about recycling and where to send their recyclable materials so they can be reused, said Amber Zirnhelt, the Citys manager of long range planning and sustainability.

Full details of acceptable items can be found at the Citys website (www.campbellriver.ca) under City Services, Garbage, Recycling and Yard Waste. For the most up-to-date list of depot locations and which recyclable materials they will accept, visit http://www.cswm.ca/depots. For more information on MMBC visit: http://www.multimaterialbc.ca

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Campbell River depots see increase in recycling

YARDLEY BOROUGH The North Main Street Sidewalk Project took a step forward Tuesday night with the awarding of a bid for tree removal.

Thirteen trees will be cut down in phase one of the two phase project to make way for a new sidewalk, which will link the boroughs downtown to residential neighborhoods located north of Afton Avenue, including the new Yardley Walk development.

Phase one will extend the existing sidewalk on the east side of North Main Street from the Grist Mill parking lot north to roughly 112 North Main Street. Phase two will extend the walkway to McKinley Avenue.

Council voted on August 20 to give the phase one tree removal job to Kents Quality Tree Service, the lowest bidder for the project. The price-tag is $8,700, but additional work could be done not to exceed $12,000 total.

Councilman Rich Wayne noted that 22 trees in all have been identified for removal along North Main Street. Thirteen are slated for removal during the first phase with the balance being removed during the second phase.

Those numbers could fluctuate somewhat, said Wayne, based on requests being made by several North Main Street residents living in the phase two project area. They are asking that several problematic trees be considered for removal during the first phase.

Council vice president Kathryn Cadwallader said moving ahead with tree removal is a good idea, a feeling echoed by councilmember Uri Feiner, who added that it would be helpful for property owners to receive timelines for when the trees will be removed.

Wayne noted that residents may notice x marks on trees and utility poles, but said they are for a separate PECO project. They are not part of the boroughs North Main Street Project.

Wayne, who ran for office after a previous council nixed the North Main Street sidewalk project, said he anticipates the new sidewalk to be completed by the end of this year.

In other action, council gave the Harvest Day Committee approval to hold a wine tasting during the fall street festival on Saturday, Sept. 20 in the borough. Continued...

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Tree removal to clear the way for North Main Street Sidewalk project in Yardley Borough

Another Toynbee Tile has been uncovered at Greenwich Street and North Moore, this time in front of the Tribeca Film Festival headquarters, according toGothamist.

Toynbee Tiles were first recorded in the 80s as the crop circles of busy city streets and have since been covered by the Times, NPRand conspiracy theorists everywhere. Heck, thereseven adocumentary about it.

These license plate-sized secret messageshavegraced the pavements of cities all over the world and are apparently made usinglinoleum, asphalt glue and tarpaper which all work together to bake theminto the sidewalk. According to Phillyist, they generally appear at intersections and consist of the same eerie phrase with minor variation:Toynbee idea / Resurrect dead / Movie 2001 / Planet Jupiter.

Our top-notch street tile analysts at theObserverare baffled, but youve got to admit that every segmentof that phrase would make an excellent band name.

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Toynbee Tile Mystery Continues With New Discovery in Tribeca

Cotswolds Conservation Board trains record numbers in rural skills

4:30pm Wednesday 20th August 2014 in News By William Crossley

THE Cotswolds Conservation Board secured more than 2.4m of investment in the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and trained a record 340 people in rural skills over the past year, according to the boards annual review.

The review is the first to be produced after the board launched a five-year management plan for the AONB last year and summarises its work over the 12 months until the end of March.

The Cotswolds AONB, which was set up in 1966, covers 2,038 square kilometres, including much of West Oxfordshire north of Burford, Witney and Woodstock.

Forty rural skills courses, including dry stone walling, hedgelaying, blacksmithing, making lime mortar and Cotswold tile roofing, were attended by 343 people, a 49 per cent increase over 2012-13.

The board also became an approved LANTRA (rural sector skills council) training provider and created the Cotswolds Dry Stone Walling Academy at its headquarters in Northleach.

Other achievements highlighted include projects to achieve a reduction of 500 tonnes in carbon emissions across the region and supporting nearly 300,000 worth of community projects with just under 50,000 in grants.

The Cotswold Voluntary Wardens put in more than 45,000 hours of work on projects including improving flower-rich grassland sites, coppicing woodland, clearing streams and building walls.

The boards director, Martin Lane, said: Through the hard work of all our staff, voluntary wardens, members and many partner organisations, including 15 local authorities, we were able to once again secure significant investment and bring a wide range of benefits to the Cotswolds AONB and its communities.

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Cotswolds Conservation Board trains record numbers in rural skills

One recent structure fire in Pearland reinforced the value of fire sprinkler systems. Not only were there no reported injuries, but the structure also sustained minimal damage.

On August 18, 2014, the Pearland Fire Department was dispatched to a commercial fire alarm on the west side of Pearland where upon arrival, they discovered a sprinkler head activated in a tenant space near the kitchen. The fire started near a wall outlet, traveled up the wall and activated the sprinkler system.

The fire sprinkler kept the fire from causing severe damage to the commercial establishment and prevented it from spreading to adjacent tenant spaces and extinguished the fire before the Fire Department arrived.

This incident demonstrates the effectiveness of automatic fire sprinkler systems. Had a sprinkler system, or automatic fire suppression system, not been present in the building, the outcome may have been very different, said Roland Garcia, Fire Marshal.

While fire sprinklers are required in all new apartments in Pearland, as well as specific commercial structures, most people dont consider installing automatic fire suppression systems in private residences. For a small investment, often less than cabinet upgrades or new carpeting, these life- and property-saving systems can be installed.

The Pearland Fire Department encourages individuals building a new home, or renovating an existing residence or other property, to seriously consider the installation of automatic fire sprinkler systems. For additional information on fire protection systems, visit pearlandtx.gov/firesprinklers or contact the Pearland Fire Marshal at 281-997-4650.

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Pearland Fire Marshal encourages installation of fire sprinklers

Seared flat iron steak with caramelized red onions Seared flat iron steak with caramelized red onions

Updated: Wednesday, August 20 2014 12:41 PM EDT2014-08-20 16:41:41 GMT

Chef William Hall from Picano's Italian Grille shares his recipe for seared flat iron steak with caramelized red onions.

Chef William Hall from Picano's Italian Grille shares his recipe for seared flat iron steak with caramelized red onions.

Updated: Wednesday, August 20 2014 10:49 AM EDT2014-08-20 14:49:47 GMT

An aardvark at the Detroit Zoo recently gave birth to a baby.

An aardvark at the Detroit Zoo recently gave birth to a baby.

Updated: Wednesday, August 20 2014 10:38 AM EDT2014-08-20 14:38:47 GMT

As technology changes, so do choices when it comes to your child's education. For some, traditional schooling is best while others prefer homeschooling.

As technology changes, so do choices when it comes to your child's education. For some, traditional schooling is best while others prefer homeschooling.

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Grosse Pointe Re-opens access to Kercheval Avenue

VOL. 129 | NO. 162 | Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Some time in October, lovers of local craft beers could enjoy a cold brew in a new tasting room at Memphis Made Brewing Co.s facility in the Cooper-Young district.

Carpenters Dave Harris, left, and Eric Fields sand and stain baseboards inside what will become Memphis Made Brewing Co.s new taproom.

(Daily News/Andrew J. Breig)

Memphis Made Brewing, which launched its line of local libations last October, is adding a roughly 2,000-square-foot tasting room inside its 6,400-square-foot space at 768 S. Cooper St. In addition, Memphis Made Brewing is building a roughly 1,000-square-foot covered patio facing York Avenue.

Andy Ashby, the head of sales for the local beer maker, said the new additions, which will cost around $150,000, will allow Memphis Made Brewing to make deeper connections with beer lovers.

The tasting room will really allow us to reach out to the community, he said. It will allow folks to come up here and get a pint of beer, or half pint of beer, and drink it on the premises, or they can get a growler to go. Well also have events so we can meet the people who like our beer.

In addition to providing a place where people can enjoy a beer onsite, the new taproom inside the old Keathley Pie Factory building will give the public a better opportunity to understand the brewing process, Ashby said.

You go in, see the equipment and talk to the brewers and learn about the process, he said. Were really excited that when we open our taproom well be bale to educate more people in Memphis about brewing and the brewing process.

The additions come after Memphis Made Brewing doubled its production capacity. Earlier this summer, the brewery added three 30-barrel fermenters, which can each hold 930 gallons of beer.

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Another Round

Wednesday, August 20, 4:42 PM EDT

Compiled by Karen Brune Mathis

P&C Construction Inc. will combine four suites at a former pizza-burger location at 1402 San Marco Blvd. into one to create the Kitchen on San Marco.

The site is at San Marco Boulevard and Childrens Way.

Gary Montour, senior vice president with Colliers International in Jacksonville, represented the tenant. He said Tuesday the restaurant could open within 90 days.

The restaurant will serve as a teaching establishment where a staff of professional chefs provides a learning lab environment for culinary and pastry arts students from Culinard, The Culinary Institute of Virginia College.

Their focus is to give them a full feel of the entire realm of the restaurant industry, Montour said. San Marco is going to get a new restaurant.

Montour said it would be operated as any restaurant would. They have to make sure it is run like a business, he said, which means understanding a balance sheet, knowing how to apply for a bank loan for equipment, the terms of signing a lease.

The 4,533-square-foot project will be renovated at a cost of $617,005. Education Corporation of America owns Virginia College. Representatives of Education Corporation of America and The Culinary Institute of Virginia College did not return telephone calls for comment.

Last August, the Education Corporation of America vice president of student retail operations, Ron Patak, said students at Culinard will train at the restaurant during their 36-week course. Virginia College operates at 5940 Beach Blvd., at the intersection with University Boulevard.

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Food notes: Kitchen on San Marco OKd for build-out

Alex Romanowicz works on a door in Cambridge on a street with many home construction projects going on. Contractors have been seeing more business this year as consumers spend more on home remodeling and improvement projects.

Suzanne Kreiter/Globe staff

Homeowners are finally getting around to those home remodeling projects they were forced to put off during the worst of the recession, according to The Boston Globe.

According to the Globes report, demand for home improvement projects is forcing companies like New England Design & Construction to put customers on a waiting list for at least three months.

The Globe reports:

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Spending on home remodeling, which peaked at about $145 billion in 2006, is on track to surpass that high by the end of the year, according to figures compiled by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University.

This growth has also meant more jobs for carpenters, painters, plumbers, electricians, and other construction workers. In Massachusetts, the increase in remodeling activity has contributed to a recovery in overall construction employment, which has gained about 18,000 jobs over the past four years, about half the number lost in the recession.

Another key factor motivating homeowners is the prospect of improving their propertys value. Median home prices in Massachusetts are up by nearly 20 percent since dropping in 2009, according data from the Warren Group.

Are you renovating your home? Send us your home improvement photos.

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Globe: Home Improvement Spending On the Rise