Apartment City

See more of the story One of Lucy Elliott’s life mottos is “Make Do,” a phrase her parents often used and one that sums up her years-in-the-making effort to create a children’s activity center in south Minneapolis. The retired educator has collected old materials for crafts and projects, as well as books and toys she’s used in her jobs and raising her own family, and set them up in a renovated auto garage at E. 34th Street and 42nd Avenue S. She’s calling it Belle’s Tool Box, an homage to her mother. Once Belle’s opens in September, Elliott said she hopes parents will bring their kids there and engage with them in different crafts and activities. She’ll encourage a phone-free policy in hopes that parents will follow their kids’ leads and focus on whatever book, toy or project catches their eye. Elliott said her family’s basement, garage and backyard were formative spaces as a child, where she was always working on a project and learning new skills. She said she hopes that Belle’s can ...

Kansas City Councilman Scott Wagner ’s drive to get a controversial housing measure before voters this year fell short on Thursday. Members of the city council’s Housing Committee put Wagner ’s ordinance seeking an inspection fee for rental units on hold, meaning the city will not meet a deadline to put a question on the November ballot. Wagner and officials from the Health Department had wanted to follow the lead of more than 50 cities around the nation and create a program whereby owners of rental properties would pay an annual fee. The city would use the money to hire inspectors, who would respond to complaints from tenants and neighbors about unsafe or unhealthy conditions. In response to complaints from property owners, Wagner dropped the proposed fee to $25 per building, with a higher re- inspection fee required of landlords who fail to correct problems. “That’s far less stringent than what we see in most areas around the country,” said Ruth Ann Norton , president of Ba...

DECATUR, GA -- The Decatur Housing Authority (DHA) will hold a Grand Opening Ceremony for Phases I and II of Trinity Walk, the exciting redevelopment of the former Gateway Manor and Oakview apartments in downtown Decatur, near Atlanta.  The new, affordable apartment community at 421 West Trinity Place is fully occupied and now boasts 121 one, two and three- bedroom energy - efficient apartment flats and townhomes in six contemporary, three-story buildings.  Thirty-two of the apartments were created for the elderly and/or disabled, while the remaining 89 units were designed for families.  The Grand Opening will be held at Trinity Walk on Tuesday, Sept. 12 at 10 a.m.  Invited guests include Decatur ’s Mayor and City Council, HUD officials, DHA staff project investors and partners and Trinity Walk residents , who worked with DHA, HUD and the City of Decatur to create a unique revitalization strategy for the redevelopment.“The former Gateway Manor development spanned two highly des...

Forest Cove Apartments, a Housing Trust Group development , has launched pre-leasing of its 120- unit luxury community , which is scheduled to open at 7674 E. Brainerd Road on May 1. With a variety of novel features, Forest Cove is singular in the Chattanooga market offering upscale amenities , lush greenery and park space, garages and a well- developed discount program for renters with local retailers. “Chattanooga has become a magnet for big employers, entrepreneurs and creative people attracted by its high-speed Internet, so we sought to create a cutting- edge apartment package unlike any other rental community in the area,” said Matthew Rieger, president/CEO of Housing Trust Group , a multi-faceted developer with operations throughout the Southeastern U.S. “We believe Forest Cove will be a pacesetter for apartments in the future. By combining greenery and park space with modern design and technology, we have designed Forest Cove as a retreat in a natural environment, and a plac...

On the morning that Alfonso Maldonado Silva was set to argue his first case before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena, Ca., he was too nervous to even drink a glass of juice for breakfast. So he decided to head to court early to review the case one last time. He said a short prayer asking for wisdom, then he showered, dressed in a neatly pressed gray suit , and on an overcast morning last April, headed out the door with his evidence binder in hand. He had been up since 5 a.m. Maldonado, a third- year law student at Western State College of Law in Orange County, had left nothing to chance. This would be his first time arguing a case in court before any judge. So he had arrived the night before to stay in a Pasadena hotel to avoid the clogged commute from his Corona apartment during rush-hour. The only thing on the 28-year-old’s mind was the law. Much was riding on this case. Maldonado and his fellow law student , Cristel Martinez Medina , were representing an undocumente...

As part of preliminary terms of a development agreement between Stanford and the city of Menlo Park, Stanford officials have said the university will pay for half of the cost – up to a maximum of $5 million – to build a tunnel or overpass to allow safe crossing of the Caltrain tracks at Middle Avenue in Menlo Park. The Menlo Park City Council is expected to consider the terms of the development agreement for Stanford's proposed project a 500 El Camino Real at its meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 29. Under the proposed agreement, the city will administer the crossing project , but Stanford will help pay for it. A study by consultants from the transportation firm AECOM to develop preliminary designs for the crossing is in progress. The university also agreed to provide additional below-market- rate housing – a total of 10 units, two or three units beyond what is required as part of the city's below-market-rate ordinance – and to donate $1 million, or $100,000 for 10 years...