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MIAMI, Oct. 13 (UPI) -- A 1950s-era house and two V-8 engines may help Florida scientists learn which construction materials and methods better withstand hurricane winds. Studying construction methods and materials and how they withstand hurricanes' wind and water can prevent future damage, the Miami Herald said Friday. Florida International University's International Hurricane Research Center and Laboratory for Coastal Research scientists used the V-8 engines to produce winds of 115 mph, which they trained on the condemned to learn on how older buildings fare, the Herald said. Authorities said improving building against storms stronger is the best way to corral insurance costs, the Herald said. Insurers tend to charge higher premiums on older homes, assuming the dwellings won't fare will in storms because they were built under less rigorous standards.
They shade the rocky side streets of this town of 1,200 people just outside the reach of a sprawling metropolitan Des Moines, the falling leaves adding to its small-town charm.
First, Dutch elm disease killed many of the trees on Main Street in the 1970s, a signal of struggle ahead facing small Iowa towns.
Then last year, a vicious and surprising November tornado ripped through the southern edge of Woodward, ripping apart 40 homes and laying waste to many of the tall, leafy sentinels that make any prairie town feel warm and protected from the winds.
On Saturday, trees will symbolize new growth. Nearly 200 trees will be planted by newly inspired volunteers along a mile-long stretch of Iowa Highway 210, Woodward's front entrance.
Among the volunteers will be a family whose home was destroyed by the tornado, a family whose father and grandfather died two months ago while helping clean up the community, a student who doesn't have much but is willing to give and an elderly man who for years traveled the same stretch of road on his bicycle picking up garbage.
For many homeowners hoping to remodel their kitchens or add square footage, borrowing against their home equity is a logical way to finance such a project. That, or winning the lottery. But for some homeowners, a construction loan is another option. In decades past, construction loans were generally for homeowners who were building new homes on land they already owned outright. The loan covered only the construction process, and the homeowner typically had to seek out a long-term mortgage once construction was finished. ``There's a lot of misconception on construction loans,'' said Eric Kinney of First Horizon Home Loans in Los Altos, one of a team of loan officers there who specialize in such loans. ``Up to about 10 years ago, you had to have the property paid off, and there was a lot of hassle and paperwork.'' But these days lenders -- always on the lookout for new loan products they can market to the public -- have streamlined the way they administer these loans, making it easier to qualify, and even offering so-called ``stated income'' applications, in which creditworthy borrowers with appropriate assets can get loans without providing documentation of their income.
When it comes to stopping illegal immigration, there's little that the Forsyth County commissioners can do. But that hasn't stopped them from arguing about it. A one-page proposal on immigration that surfaced last week, which the county attorney acknowledges would have no practical effect, is generating a fierce debate among the commissioners about race, immigration and the county's proper jurisdiction. It also is dividing the board along political lines. The proposal, pushed by Democratic Commissioner Beaufort Bailey and discussed publicly for the first time Thursday, says that prospective county employees must "provide adequate documentation" of citizenship or legal residency. It also directs the county manager to organize staff training on federal immigration laws.
Royal Perth Yacht Clubs Opening Day ceremony today will mark the public unveiling of one of the most exciting new projects in the yachting community of Western Australia and Australia in recent decades.For two years a dedicated group, representing five of WAs major yacht clubs and Yachting WA, has been working on the design and construction of a new modern keelboat to meet a broad range of challenges that the sport and those organisations face in the future. The result has been the selection of a new design, a Bakewell-White 8 metre yacht, to become a common club keelboat amongst the major WA clubs, and to be the platform on which a range of regatta and interclub racing, and sailing development and training activities, will occur at those clubs. Today will see the unveiling of number one of six Bakewell-White 8 yachts presently under construction for delivery to RPYC.
The Wiseman Company and businesses in its One Harbor Center in Suisun City were recently recognized by Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District Superintendent Woodrow Carter for their adoption of Crescent Elementary School as part of the Adopt-a-School program. Over the last few years, they have raised more than $15,000 and their adoption of Crescent Elementary School. The Wiseman Company notes that the following businesses continue to generously support the program: Loan Center of California, First Northern Bank, ERA Home Traditions, Hillman, Lucas & Jones, Attorneys, Law Offices of Russo & Prince, Van Pelt Construction, Sheldon Gas Company, and Rail America. For more information about the Adopt-a-School program visit www.fsusd.k12.ca.us or call 399-5035. Farmer networks Rose Loveall-Sale, the owner of Vacaville's Morningsun Herb Farm, will be joining other prominent farmers and chefs, including Chez Panisse's Alice Waters, at Slow Food International's Terra Madre 2006 gathering in Turin, Italy.
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