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Lewiston seeks grant to transform Tree Streets neighborhood

LEWISTON — The city is seeking a large federal grant that would address housing and other issues in the poorest areas of downtown Lewiston , and neighborhood advocates say the funds could go a long way toward implementing goals they've had for years.  If successful in its bid, Lewiston could receive $1.3 million from the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development and what's known as a  Choice Neighborhood Planning and Action Grant. The city council approved the application last week, and will commit $237,500 in local Community Development Block Grant funds during implementation if the grant is successful.  The city hopes the funding can lead to long-term changes in the downtown neighborhood , where nearly half of residents live below the federal poverty level . According to 2015 census figures, the median family incomes in downtown census tracts 201 and 203, are $12,417 and $16,047, respectively.  The main purpose of the funds is to plan and execute major housing...

Moldy Pegasus Landing apartments not suitable housing, UCF says

May 8, 2010 | By Dave Weber, Orlando Sentinel Complaints of mold in apartments at Pegasus Landing prompted University of Central Florida on Friday to suspend its agreement to use the sprawling complex for student housing . That cuts off the flow of new students to the 744-unit complex on Alafaya Trail. But hundreds of students with leases could be left to fend for themselves if they want to get out of current contracts or contracts for next school year. However, university officials said they would offer "resources, guidance and references" through a telephone hotline and online network. Officials said it's too soon to say how the decision will affect the university housing market for fall semester. About 2, 500 students live in the complex, each paying from $545 to $640 a month on year-round leases. University officials say they have been pressing Capital Project Finance Authority , owners of the 34 apartment buildings about a mile from campus, since February to ...

Reading Room connects low-income children to literacy

A few months ago, the “ community room ” at La Mirada Apartments wasn ’t exactly a hub of community activity. A mop bucket and a rolled-up carpet occupied the space, and the roughly 150 children living in the apartment complex had no reason to give the room a second glance. But on June 19, a transformed room opened , with brightly colored walls , shelves of books and plenty of furniture for little people to spread out and read. The new focus of the room: literacy. The United Way of Manatee County debuted its READ UNITED Reading Room program for the children at La Mirada, in the Pride Park neighborhood . From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day, children can read, play and have access to books they likely would not see until school started again in the fall. “We are trying to bring reading and program access to students who need it the most,” said Cindy Cavallaro Day , a co-founder of Visible Men Academy and a consultant for United Way of Manatee County for the Suncoast Campaign for Grade...

New Auburn Avenue co-working space aims to foster big ideas

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Shares 355 By Amy Wenk and Maria Saporta As published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle on August 4, 2017 An Atlanta developer is planning an innovative co-working space along one of Atlanta’s most historic streets — a project that’s already lured high- profile investors including top Home Depot executives . Historic preservation developer Gene Kansas in front of the 135 Auburn Ave. building, which he and a group of investors have acquired to turn into a “Constellations” project on the second floor (Photo by Maria Saporta) Gene Kansas Commercial Real Estate plans to open Constellations, a $2 million project that will offer “culturally-inspired” workspace with the hope of bringing together great minds who care about making a difference in the city. It’s coming to the second floor of the circa-1910 former Southern School Book Depository at 135 Auburn Ave., a building that was designed by famed Atlanta architect Neel Reid . Constellations will replace the Southern Education Foundati...

In Exton area, an explosion of building activity

WEST WHITELAND >> Call it the development of Exton, 2.0. The area is undergoing a renewed interest with development that has the township buzzing with new projects. From a new supermarket – a Whole Foods, which the township has been told will open in January – to a post- operation rehabilitation facility , with plenty of housing in between, the Exton area is a hot spot for building again with more than 20 projects in the ground or on the drawing board. “There’s a lot happening now,” observed Mimi Gleason , West Whiteland ’s township manager. “A lot of it is because of the economy, the pent-up demand, and a lot of it is because the three supervisors we have now wanted to encourage redevelopment.” Advertisement The completion of the Exton Square Mall in 1973 helped put the Exton area on the map and through the decades leading up to the 2008 Great Recession the township saw steady growth with the development of other retail centers like Whiteland Towne Center , Fairfie...

The ghost estates that still haunt Ireland

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A decade after the crash, Shannon Valley housing estate , on the outskirts of Ballaghaderreen, in Co Roscommon, remains unfinished and partly in ruins. Although the number of “ unfinished housing developments ” has fallen sharply since 2010, Shannon Valley is one of hundreds that still dot the country. The Guls: ‘Every day I put rats in the bin’ Fatima Gul says her little brother, Yousaf, doesn’t like the rats. He jumps up on the sofa or the table in the living room when they come into the house. Their parents don’t allow Fatimar, who is 10, or her nine-year-old sister, Maryam, or Yousaf and his twin, Zohra, who are five, to play near the houses on the other side of their green. It’s too close to the rats and the rubble. Shannon Valley “ ghost estate ” outside Ballaghaderreen, Co Roscommon. Photograph: Simon Carswell" height="349" src="https://www.irishtimes.com/polopoly_fs/1.3181475!/image/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_620/image.jpg" width="620...