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Hinesville Sees Uptick in Break-Ins During Holiday Season

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With the holiday season upon us, many folks are out of the house shopping or visiting family. Unfortunately, extended absence gives thieves a chance to operate more freely — and there’s been a recent uptick in home and car break-ins in the area, according to an article in the Coastal Courier.

Don’t let burglars dampen your holiday cheer! To help you make your home and car unattractive targets, here are some theft prevention tips from the Hinesville Police Department website:

10 Ways to Reduce Theft from Your Vehicle

  1. Lock all doors
  2. Remove all valuables
  3. Completely close all windows
  4. Install a locking fuel cap
  5. Close your garage after entering and at night
  6. Never leave your keys inside your vehicle
  7. Never leave your vehicle running unattended
  8. Park in well-lit areas
  9. Avoid isolated areas
  10. Install an alarm

Home Security Alarms

Home security has become one of the top things people look for in a property. Along with lot size, square footage, and location, the kind of home security system a house has in place is now truly a deciding factor for buyers. Due to this trend, having a security alarm is not only important when living in a house, but when selling one, as well.

Security Alarm System Overkill: The demand for security alarm systems is increasing, and more and more options are becoming available for residential use. While having more options is certainly good news for homeowners, it can, at times, make it difficult to find the right setup for your household.

When installing a security alarm system that is meant to protect your family and possessions, it’s easy to go overboard and end up with a system that is intrusive (and, in turn, might not get used at all). Most people do not require a fingerprint identification lock, but other forms of keyless home entry might be a perfect fit. The best option for your home should be a system that provides a significant amount of protection, but doesn’t interfere with the day-to-day life of your family.

The Basic Security Alarm: A standard home security alarm is often a good fit for most households. These systems generally include sensors on all the entry doors, some motion activated outdoor lighting, sensors on windows that are particularly easy to access, and, most importantly, a direct link to a monitoring service. This type of security alarm system will be an excellent deterrent for any would be intruders, but, at the same time, is generally fairly easy for a family to adapt to.

Security Alarm Benefits: Most would say that the biggest benefit of having a home security alarm is the peace-of-mind that comes with it. When something goes wrong (whether you are home or thousands of miles away on vacation), knowing that a system is already in place and that your house has a direct link to the proper authorities is very reassuring.

There may be immediate monetary benefits, as well. Having a security alarm that is connected to a monitoring service can, in some situations, lower homeowner’s insurance payments up to 20 percent. Many monitoring services will also offer a plan to monitor your home for fire, which some insurance companies will also take into account when deducing your premium. In every case, it will decrease the likelihood of losing money due to burglary.

Increase your Home’s Resale Value: Along with presenting a clean home, there are many improvements that can be made to a property that will increase its resale value. Adding on a garage, finishing a basement, and remodeling a kitchen, while all good ideas, can be rather costly endeavors. Landscaping a yard for security, installing a home security alarm, and putting in outdoor lighting are much less expensive projects. Despite the lower initial cost, prospective buyers still look upon these kinds of home improvements as important additions to the property they are viewing.

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Filed Under: landscaping ideas

Ideas could revive Bath

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Every year, seniors in Alfred State College Architecture and Design’s urban design studies classes reach a high level of skills and imagination, according to their professor Bill Dean.
Those high levels were on display for three hours Tuesday night at the VFW as ASC students presented roughly 100 Bath villagers with one idea after another on how to take what the village has to offer and make it sparkle.
They passed on dozens of ideas — covered walkways, a splash park, a clock center, landscaping around the Steuben County Historical Society building, a coffee and flower shop, an expanded farmer’s market, a walking tour guide – and perhaps, above all, attention to the village’s rich history.
Dean said the students come from various urban and rural backgrounds, and bring that perspective to the eight-week project.
“They do it all themselves,” he said. “We just provide the framework.”
For the students, the project gives them something to add to their portfolio, Dean said.
For the residents, the project offers new eyes on their beloved village.
While local resident Sheri Nobles approached Dean three years ago, the project took off last September, after approval by the village board.
After the class toured the village, they met with Bath officials to learn more about the village board’s vision for the area. They studied the village Comprehensive Plan and recent recommendations by the Buffalo-based consultant group peterjsmith.
They began to dream.
According to ASC Business Management Senior Ryan Webb, vital characteristics of the village include Pulteney Park and more than 200,000 square feet of green space. It also holds particular historic value, with the National Cemetery, Bath VA and a Civil War Memorial.
Ryan recommended the village set up a community fund to keep assets and resources in the community and identify projects. He noted there are grants available to help with projects and urged officials to update the village and town websites and connect to the social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
While many of those dreams may take shape in the future, if ever, the students and the residents were clearly galvanized Tuesday night.
“It just happens, sometimes,” village Mayor John Stranges said. “It was one of those nights when everybody was really into it.”
Stranges said the recommendations will be turned over to a committee set up by Arbor Development, a non-profit group that spearheads building rehabilitation in the region.
It is likely the group will target a couple of low-cost, easily accomplished projects to keep the momentum and set the stage for other projects, Stranges said.
Stranges said he favors moving the Civil War Memorial from its current location between Haverling and Geneva streets as one of the first projects.
“And there’s the park over by the library,” he said. “But I understand other people have other ideas. So we’ll have to see.”
**
The students’ renditions will be on public display in the municipal hall on Monday.
For more information on the program, visit its Facebook page: Urban Design Studio @ Alfred State College

Filed Under: landscaping ideas

Popular Blogs of the Week – Gulfport, FL Patch

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From politics to home decor, our Local Voices Bloggers fill us in on what’s important, interesting and funny about Gulfport and seaside living!

Here’s a sampling of some of the more popular posts from the past week.

  • A Walk Through the Florida Botanical Gardens: Ideas for Greener Landscaping, Gardening, and Holiday Fun
  • Unlock the Ocean Portal – Creating Memories at Rainbow River
  • Color Is Key to Your Home or Office; What Color Reflects Your Personality?
  • Tampa Teen Sentenced to 15 years for Freedom High Bomb Threat
  • Sweet Potato Fries Cooked in Truffle Oil Are Amazing

About this column: You can be a blogger for Gulfport Patch, too. Just go to the Local Voices section and click the “want to blog on patch” button at the bottom of the column. It’s a simple, free and fun way to express your thoughts and feelings on any topic to a wide audience. So what’s stopping you? Start blogging on Patch today!

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In This State: Tim Matson is Vermont’s supreme ponderer of ponds

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TIm Matson

Tim Matson of Strafford, a photographer and freelance writer and pond consultant, figures he has helped design and rehab some 500 ponds in Vermont. Photo by Dirk Van Susteren

In This State is a syndicated weekly column about Vermont’s innovators, people, ideas and places. Details are at http://www.maplecornermedia.com/inthisstate/. This week’s piece is by freelance writer and editor Dirk Van Susteren of Calais.

Like a modern-day Johnny Appleseed, Tim Matson travels the countryside bringing value to landscape – only he plants ponds not fruit trees. By his reckoning, in 25 years he has helped design or revitalize some 500 ponds in Vermont.

Matson has found an income stream with ponds, and why not? John Chapman (Appleseed), was known to pick up a free lunch here and there during his meanderings with seed bags across the Midwest.

Pond consulting augments freelancing for this writer-photographer from Strafford. If Vermont decides it ever needs an official pond guru, as it has a state flower and bird, Matson would be a top candidate.

Pond consultant and author Tim Matson offered consultation on this Orange County pond, a little gem that cost less than $2,000 to build. (Photo furnished by Tim Matson)

It all began in 1971 when Matson, then 28, joined thousands of other counter-culture types in immigrating to Vermont, where farmland was cheap and native residents were generally tolerant of newcomers, even those with long hair.

Matson had done a stint in the military, where he had the good luck, in his mind, to avoid Vietnam by being accepted at Army photography school. After his service he wangled a job in book publishing in New York, where his father had been a noted literary agent.

He wound up at divisions of Simon Schuster, pulling a decent salary as a jack-of-all-trades, copy editing, buying reprint rights, writing book jacket copy, sometimes even taking photos.
Matson, now gray-haired, dates himself by mentioning he had a role in helping to bring Yippie Abbie Hoffman’s book, “Revolution for the Hell of It,” to paperback.

On a cold December day in a field in central Vermont, where he is scoping out possible pond sites for a landowner, he mentions with a laugh that it was his photo of author Joe McGinniss that graced the back cover another political classic of the times: “The Selling of the President, 1968,” the story of hucksterism in Richard Nixon’s campaign.

As befits the historic stereotype, Matson arrived in Vermont in a VW bug, a red one at that. He had grown “absolutely and totally sick of the city,” and unhappy with the political system, he says, he was moved by the “back-to-the-land movement” of the period.

His first brush with ponds was the waterhole at a farmhouse that he and a girlfriend had rented in Thetford. It turned out to be a perfect place for hippie parties, skinny-dipping and other wild affairs. He tasted the pond bait and was hooked.

Three years later, with help of a $7,500 advance on his second book (“Pilobolus,” a photo essay of the famous Dartmouth College dance group), Matson bought 45 woodland acres in Strafford and pitched a tent he called home and began building a cabin, with among other tools, a chainsaw. He got along without electricity, put in vegetable gardens, cleared a spot in the alders for his second pond, and then hired a guy with a backhoe.

“I grew up in Connecticut on the Sound, and found that I missed the water, and I wondered where it all was in Vermont,” he says. He couldn’t find enough of it close by, “so I had this pond dug.”

Marriage and two daughters (now grown) followed, and the pond became the focus of family life: Swimming in summer, ice-skating in winter, and, always it seemed, opportunities for social life and observing wildlife.

A snapshot taken years ago of pond designer Tim Matson’s daughters as they enjoy the water on a summer day at the family home in Strafford. (Photo furnished by Tim Matson)

Matson embraced rural life, and, as a freelance writer began writing essays and how-to’s about back-40 ponds for the likes of Harrowsmith, Mother Earth News, Country Journal and Yankee Magazine.

For children and the young at heart, he says, ponds are part zoo, playground, museum and amusement park.

“Kids love to hang out at them, make mud pies, fool around with salamanders, and watch dragonflies,” he says.

“I think too many kids today suffer from what a friend of mine calls ‘nature-deficit disorder’. … They are too much into phones and computers; they live in a screen world.”

Matson is bullish on family ponds of all sizes and shapes, but he’s quick to warn that a once-promising body of water can easily become a costly headache if poorly designed. They can turn to algae-infested quagmires They can even disappear due to drought or leakage.
A pond can also cost a lot, anywhere from $5,000 to more than $50,000, he explains.

Walking across the brown-gray landscape and looking for potential pond sites, and carefully choosing verbs that sidestep certitude, Matson says, “That could be a spot.”

He gestures toward a natural dimple in the field, where some topsoil already has been removed, but then he quickly notes there are no obvious sources of water. He says he will suggest in a report that water might have to be pumped in from a well to fill any man-made pond in this location.

On the plus side, this site has shade trees on the east and southeast, which means water would stay cooler in summer. Go down eight feet, and water would be deep and cold enough for trout.

Matson explains the need for in-flows and out-flows to keep the water in any pond fresh. And he often mentions to landowners that they may want their pond’s bottom covered with a plastic liner to prevent underground leakage. But plastic liners, covered with sand or gravel, can add thousands of dollars to pond construction.

A recently excavated pond site in central Vermont now awaits only water. (Photo furnished by Tim Matson)

Tim Matson

Matson scopes out a possible pond site near Montpelier. Photo by Dirk Van Susteren

He will strongly suggest to the landowners in this case, as he always does, that a test hole be dug before full-scale excavation is begun.

He notes that a landowner will sometimes have his or her heart set on a site, then run into problems with state wetlands regulations.

Matson says he spends about half of his consulting time recommending fixes to ponds that were put in 30 or 40 years ago by contractors with equipment but no expertise.

Some farm ponds he works on were dug back when the federal government, in the form of the Soil Conservation Service, gave money to farmers to build ponds to water livestock, to assure a supply of water for firefighters in the event of a barn fire and to serve as a catch basins to limit soil erosion.

Matson can turn to four of his own books to address all aspects of pond use and design, including “Earth Ponds,” published in 1982; “Earth Ponds Source Book,” 1997; “Earth Ponds, A-Z,” 2002; and “Landscaping Earth Ponds,” 2006.

He also has written non-fiction books about home brewing, living without electricity and navigating the funeral and burial business.

But his thing, clearly, is ponds. And he is finding that pond owners these days are confronting a whole new set of challenges that come with erratic weather, possibly the result of global climate change.

Pond owners are seeing “pond scum” algae growth much earlier in the season, which may necessitate constructing better drainage or aeration systems. Hurricanes like Irene and Sandy, with their downpours, can cause erosion at pond sites.

There’s also concern – with cases in Vermont of the West Nile virus and eastern equine encephalitis – that poorly designed ponds can become breeding grounds for infecting mosquitoes.

Ponds need a little current and steep-enough banks to limit mosquito breeding in stagnant and shallow waters, Matson says.

He mentions that dragonflies should be welcomed because they eat mosquitoes. And crayfish are good too, because they feed on algae.

Another benefit of such flying and wriggly critters: Children love to observe and mess around with them, says Matson.

“You want the kids outside getting their clothes dirty,” he asserts.

Filed Under: landscaping ideas

Ideas could revive Bath – Bath, NY – The Courier

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Every year, seniors in Alfred State College Architecture and Design’s urban design studies classes reach a high level of skills and imagination, according to their professor Bill Dean.
Those high levels were on display for three hours Tuesday night at the VFW as ASC students presented roughly 100 Bath villagers with one idea after another on how to take what the village has to offer and make it sparkle.
They passed on dozens of ideas — covered walkways, a splash park, a clock center, landscaping around the Steuben County Historical Society building, a coffee and flower shop, an expanded farmer’s market, a walking tour guide – and perhaps, above all, attention to the village’s rich history.
Dean said the students come from various urban and rural backgrounds, and bring that perspective to the eight-week project.
“They do it all themselves,” he said. “We just provide the framework.”
For the students, the project gives them something to add to their portfolio, Dean said.
For the residents, the project offers new eyes on their beloved village.
While local resident Sheri Nobles approached Dean three years ago, the project took off last September, after approval by the village board.
After the class toured the village, they met with Bath officials to learn more about the village board’s vision for the area. They studied the village Comprehensive Plan and recent recommendations by the Buffalo-based consultant group peterjsmith.
They began to dream.
According to ASC Business Management Senior Ryan Webb, vital characteristics of the village include Pulteney Park and more than 200,000 square feet of green space. It also holds particular historic value, with the National Cemetery, Bath VA and a Civil War Memorial.
Ryan recommended the village set up a community fund to keep assets and resources in the community and identify projects. He noted there are grants available to help with projects and urged officials to update the village and town websites and connect to the social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
While many of those dreams may take shape in the future, if ever, the students and the residents were clearly galvanized Tuesday night.
“It just happens, sometimes,” village Mayor John Stranges said. “It was one of those nights when everybody was really into it.”
Stranges said the recommendations will be turned over to a committee set up by Arbor Development, a non-profit group that spearheads building rehabilitation in the region.
It is likely the group will target a couple of low-cost, easily accomplished projects to keep the momentum and set the stage for other projects, Stranges said.
Stranges said he favors moving the Civil War Memorial from its current location between Haverling and Geneva streets as one of the first projects.
“And there’s the park over by the library,” he said. “But I understand other people have other ideas. So we’ll have to see.”
**
The students’ renditions will be on public display in the municipal hall on Monday.
For more information on the program, visit its Facebook page: Urban Design Studio @ Alfred State College

Filed Under: landscaping ideas

Carson City road maintenance report for Dec. 17-23 | Carson City Nevada News …

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Change the way you do business. Dominate the competition. Create a professional, lasting impression with a Sign Pro sign.

Every Sign Pro sign is custom-made to your specifications. Indoor or outdoor. Short-term or long-term.

Sign Pro staff will work with you to select the most appropriate vinyl’s and materials to serve your needs. Each product we use has been chosen for its quality, durability and economy.

Signs create the first impression of your business. Our professional staff can brighten and outdated image, replace a worn sign or create a whole new look. Your product knowledge combined with our attention to detail will create the winning formula for visual success.

Sign Pro’s state-of-the art equipment offers hundreds of type styles and design choices. We can use your artwork of create dynamic images from scratch. We can enhance your ideas with borders, shadows, special effects and distortions.

Sign Pro will translate your multi-colored world into two or three dimensional reality.

  • Window and Wall Graphics
  • Exhibits
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  • Banners
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  • Magnetic’s
  • Full-color Imagery
  • American with Disabilities Act Signs
  • Wood/Plastics/Metal

Add distinction to your business exterior by using creative graphics that invite your customers to step inside. Tell your customers about your products before they walk through the door.

Sign Pro is first in dependability, first in quality, first in customer service. At Sign Pro we want to be your sign company. Let us open the door leading to future success for your business, your products and you!

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Gifts for gardeners can be fanciful or just plain practical

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A metal sculputre of purple clematis climbs the wall at Blomiden Inn’s House of Gifts in Wolfville. Fredriction artist John Welling of Botinicals also makes jewelry and flowers that grow from a terracota base.A gift certificate to a local nursery for a tree, shrub or perennials makes a great gift.

Recently, I saw a cartoon online that made me laugh out loud, because it is so true.

It showed a gardener jumping up and down yelling, “Ten yards of compost? You DO love me!”

And the caption said, “The great thing about shopping for gardeners is you can give us rotten crap and we’ll be happy.”

It’s pretty hard to wrap 10 yards of compost, and even the most ardent gardener wouldn’t want it dumped under the Christmas tree, but if you have a gardener in your life, gift certificates can be one of your best friends.

From plants to topsoil, garden structures to labour, a gift certificate, from a landscaping company or from a sturdy garden helper, pertaining to something for the garden will make the green thumb in your life smile.

Birdwatching and gardening go hand in hand in many households, so you might want to do a gift basket including a feeder or two and several different types of seed, suet cakes and bird pies. A heated bird bath is also an excellent choice, as it is important that birds have an open source of water in the winter months.

The Birds Nature Shop in Mahone Bay has an excellent selection of bird feeders, baths, binoculars, as well as garden items such as wind chimes and water features.

The must-have gardening tool, in my opinion, comes from the imaginative people at Lee Valley Tools, where it is easy to spend your entire Christmas budget on gift ideas.

The Hori-Hori weeding knife is good for many tasks, including dividing perennials, planting bulbs, edging garden beds and, of course, removing unwanted plants from your garden beds. It comes with a carbon steel or stainless steel blade and a protective belt sheath.

The only thing it lacks is a GPS chip for locating it when it gets misplaced. (If some innovative designer invented something to find lost tools, they could retire.)

If you really want to score points with the gardener in your life, a selection of items in a basket, garden trug or bucket makes a terrific choice. Include a good set of gardening gloves from Atlas, Foxgloves, or Ethel. These are three of the top garden glove makers, with a variety of styles for every size of hands.

Add some SeaBoost liquid seaweed fertilizer, which is good for houseplants as well as for your outdoor gardening needs, a good hand protecting cream, like locally made beeswax-based Naturally Nancy’s Protective Cream, and a good sunscreen and sun hat.

Perhaps tuck in a steel or non-BPA plastic water bottle to keep the gardener hydrated during hot weather. Finish your gift basket off with a sampler of different seeds from any of a number of local seed companies, including Halifax Seed, Gardens North, Hope Seeds and Annapolis Seeds.

Enhancing your landscape and garden is an investment in your property, so you might consider having a landscape architect come in to design an addition to your existing plantings or “hardscaping,” which are structures like patios, retaining walls and walkways.

Perhaps your gardener would like a pergola or other timber-frame structure from Wise Owl Joinery Company in Port Williams or a welded metal signpost or sculpture from Avon River Metalworks in Falmouth.

James Chadwick creates wonderful garden art at Metal Petals, a garden art company located in St. Peters, Cape Breton, while Jerry Walsh makes a varied line of garden art, birdhouses, benches and more at Distinctive Garden Accents in Lake of the Woods.

For smaller works of art, check out the desktop and wall-mounted botanical sculptures by John Welling of Botinicals, available at the Blomidon Inn House of Gifts.

If none of these suggestions appeal to you, check out your local nursery or garden centre. Those that are open until the end of December or year-round carry a fascinating selection of garden-themed items, as well as gardening books and journals.

And if you’re really stumped, there’s always the gift certificates, as noted above.

For a gift that keeps on giving, consider making a financial donation to one of the public gardens in the province, including the Harriet Irving Botanical Gardens at Acadia University, the Halifax Public Gardens, the Rock Garden in Truro or the Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens.

These gardens rely on the generosity of donors to keep them growing and blooming for everyone.

Gardening addict Jodi DeLong is getting at least one new knee as a present for next year’s garden season. Talk about your favourite garden gifts at bloominganswers.com.

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New-look CBD plan to simplify the rules, allowing for new ideas | Rotorua …

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THE CBD: What's happening now and in the future? Where is everything going to fit in? What new proposals are in the pipeline? This graphic shows how the city centre is divided into different zones.
THE CBD: What’s happening now and in the future? Where is everything going to fit in? What new proposals are in the pipeline? This graphic shows how the city centre is divided into different zones. SUPPLIED 101212CITY1

The Rotorua District Council has released its proposed District Plan for consultation. The plan is the Rotorua district’s most important land use document, regulating everything from zoning to new buildings and activities. The Daily Post council and city issues reporter Matthew Martin takes a close look at some of the plan’s important features in a series of articles.

 

With the new Eat Streat concept about to be finalised and the redevelopment of the Rotorua Lakefront on the cards, residents can look forward to a new-look central business district.

Accordingly, the proposed District Plan accommodates these projects, tweaking the rules to allow for new ideas.

The new District Plan chapter for the cental city covers everything from signage and glare from light, to how high you can build, parking access, noise, landscaping – and is focused on walkability.

The council’s planning services manager, Liam Dagg, said the plan focused on the simplification of the city centre to allow for the market to determine the location of activities.

He said the number of sub-zones within the city had been reduced from seven to three. These three zones cover the city centre, Rotorua Central and the Lakefront.

“The rules of the city centre have been significantly revised to be more permissive and reflect the current direction of the market, while being flexible enough to provide for any future market change.

“The community expects our district to have a strong, vibrant city centre with a unique character. The District Plan aims to revitalise the city centre by consolidating business into the area and making it the focal point for commercial and cultural activity,” Mr Dagg said.

Rotorua Chamber of Commerce chief executive Roger Gordon has been working with the council, helping to develop a plan for the central city for the past few years.

“There was a level of concern back then regarding some of the proposals. But the council have worked hard to respond to those issues.

“We think this is a much more enabling document, rather than restrictive, which is absolutely tremendous,” he said.

The council’s economic projects manager, Nick Dallimore, said he was excited about the future of Rotorua’s central city.

“The last District Plan was at odds to what we wanted to achieve. Now the rules fit the vision.

“The big game-changers are the new intersections and re-design of Tutanekai St, and the Lakefront will be quite exciting over the long term as well as the strengthening of the city’s north-south connection.”

Mr Dallimore said the introduction of free wi-fi would also allow tourists and domestic visitors to check what’s happening in the city with ease.

To view the proposed District Plan visit www.rdc.govt.nz, or view a hard copy at the council’s customer centre or the library. Submissions can be made online at the council’s website, emailed to planenquiry@rdc.govt.nz, or posted to the Planning Services Manager, RDC, Private Bag 3029, Rotorua. A District Plan public open day is scheduled at Te Runanga Tearooms, Government Gardens, on Tuesday January 8 from 9am to 5pm. Submissions close on March 1.

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ASDA Submits Planning Application For Isle of Wight Store

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Artist’s impression of the store from spring 2012

By Lucy Morgan
Fri, 14 December 2012 8:20PM

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ASDA has today (Friday) confirmed that it has submitted a planning application for its first store on the Isle of Wight.

If approved by the Isle of Wight Council, the 45,000 sq ft store on St George’s Way, Newport will include a petrol station and café, as well as ‘green’ technology and a landscaping plan.

The proposed store is expected to create up to 450 local jobs and it is hoped more will be created during the construction process.

Consultation process 

ASDA says in drawing up the plans two public consultation events and a series of meetings with local groups resulted in “many useful ideas for improvements to the store”.

The two public consultation events were held in September 2011 and March 2012. Around 600 people attended ASDA’s exhibitions and of the 281 feedback cards that were returned, 93% supported the proposal, according to ASDA.

Following those meetings, ASDA has ammended its plans to include enhanced landscaping, including more trees and an ivy bank (replacing fencing at the front of the site, visible from St George’s Way); the retention of existing trees and hedgerows (where possible) plus new hedging; and solar thermal panels on the roof of the building and wind cowls to provide natural ventilation into the food hall.

If the plans get the go ahead there will also be electric charging points for cars and bicycles, described by the supermarket giant as a first for the Island.

The firm says it will continue to engage with the community throughout the planning process, until a decision is made by the Isle of Wight Council.

“Great deal of support” 

Oliver Jones, Senior Property Communications Manager, ASDA said, “We are delighted to confirm that we have now submitted our planning application for the St George’s Way site. The proposal had a great deal of support from the local community at our exhibitions and we have had hundreds of enquiries since from local people eager to know how the planning application was progressing.

“ASDA has been looking to invest in the Island for a number of years and the St George’s Way site offers an excellent opportunity to develop a good sized store that will bring more supermarket choice to local shoppers as well as up to 450 new jobs for the growing community in Newport.

“We have spent a great deal of time putting together a proposal which we hope meets local expectations and I urge residents that support the store to visit our website to find out how they can actively support it before a decision is made.”

You can find out more here.

 

 

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Windham council takes final votes

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Windham council takes final votes
WINDHAM
12/14/2012

By Bill Cleary

On Dec. 11, the Windham Town Council met for its last regular meeting of 2012 and took several votes to establish its agenda for the upcoming year and perform some housekeeping.

The council’s first two orders of the evening were held over from the council’s Nov. 13 meeting. The first, calling for the appointment of a councilor to the Windham Economic Development Corporation’s (WEDC) executive board of directors, was postponed due to the absence of Councilor Peter Anania, who had indicated an interest in the position and had gathered support from the council.

”Mr. Anania is a businessman in the town of Windham — he owns multiple businesses in the town,” said Councilor Scott Hayman. ”I think that his service on the Windham Economic Development Corporation could be a vital asset to what they have going on there.”

The council voted, 4-2, to appoint Anania to the board, with Councilors David Nadeau and Thomas Gleason dissenting. Councilor Dennis Welch was absent.

WEDC President Dan Hancock also expressed support for Anania as a member of the board and said he hoped to work more closely with the council in the future.

”I think we would welcome as much council involvement as you’re willing to give,” Hancock said. ”I think it’s important that we work together to accomplish what we’re trying to accomplish.”

The second held order called for the council to approve a representative to the Greater Portland Council of Governments’ executive committee. Although Nadeau had previously expressed interest in the position, the council voted, 6-0, to reappoint Town Manager Tony Plante.

The council voted 4-2, with Nadeau and Gleason again dissenting, to appoint Hayman as the council’s liaison to the Land Use Ordinance Committee. Hayman, who has been interested in serving on the committee since 2010, his first year on the council, questioned the role and necessity of the committee.

”I’m not so sure the impact fee process and job lies with the Land Use Ordinance Committee. I think that more or less should lie with staff and Tony to come up with those ideas of impact fees for us to act on,” Hayman said. ”I think that we may have potentially too many cooks in the kitchen on that task.”

Council Chairman Matthew Noel, with support from Nadeau and Hayman, proposed a discussion at the council’s next meeting, on Jan. 8, 2013, to examine the charge of the committee and its place in developing town ordinances.

The council unanimously voted to reappoint Nadeau to the Public Easement Advisory Committee.

The councilors also unanimously approved a master development plan for Lippman Park. The plan, proposed by Parks and Recreation Director Brian Ross, calls for the implementation of parts of a larger plan composed by consulting firm Mitchell Associates in August with the purpose of creating a community-useable park as quickly as possible.

At an estimated cost of about $470,000, Ross’ plan includes basic amenities and improvements, as well as a woodland play area, a picnic area, a nature center building and a fishing dock, and omits athletic fields, new trails and other extensive landscaping included in the Mitchell plan.

”I think it’s better to do it more quickly than not,” Plante said. ”The idea behind everything the council has been doing, behind the Lippmans’ generous gift, was to create a community park. I think the idea was that we would see the benefit of that sooner rather than later.”

The council can still take action at a later date to implement other proposed features.

Gleason left the meeting early for personal reasons following a brief executive session concerning legal matters. The remaining five councilors unanimously voted to approve a collective bargaining agreement with the town’s public works employees who are members of Teamsters Union Local 340 to expire June 30, 2015, and to issue a municipal quitclaim deed on a town-foreclosed property.

The Windham Town Council will hold a special meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday in the Windham Town Council Chambers for a presentation of the results of the annual town audit. The council’s next regular meeting will be at 7 p.m. Jan. 8.

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