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Outdoor living spaces are becoming one of the hottest trends among American homeowners. Getting "away from it all" can be as close as setting foot on a new deck. Decks can be used for more than sunbathing and grilling, so they should be designed and built accordingly. In developing an outdoor retreat, consider the following:
Decking materials: Choose materials that "flow" with the rest of the house. What's the best out there? Wood, such as redwood or cedar, is highly recommended. It can be repaired, restored and refinished, adding years to the life of your deck. There are many synthetic materials to choose from as well. These do not need finishing, nor do they splinter. However, they are more expensive, have a tendency to sag and can become hot underfoot. Look into proper maintenance recommendations before choosing what's right for you.
TORONTO -- The crowd was smaller than it was 49 years ago -- when hundreds gathered at Malton Airport to watch the Avro Arrow's debut -- but for those who had helped to build the pride of Canada's sky, the glistening replica said it all. "A lot of people didn't think Canadians would be building something like that," retired aircraft engineer Stan Porter said of what had been a state-of-the-art jet interceptor. "Its job was shooting down Russian bombers," Porter said this week as sliding doors at the Toronto Aerospace Museum rolled open to reveal a full-scale, non-flying metal look-alike. After seven years of development at the nearby Avro Aircraft plant, the real plane was brought down by the federal government on Feb. 20, 1959. All five models that had been flown over two years were cut up along with an almost-complete sixth Arrow and two others that were taking shape.
BERLIN TOWNSHIP - Berlin Township is going to be a hotbed of construction next summer when three large projects are expected to be underway within a mile of each other along the south M-66 corridor.In addition to the full sized Menards on the corner of Sprague and South State (M-66), which is expected to begin construction next spring, a new 13,307 square foot Goodwill Store is slated for Sprague Road west of M-66.To top it off, Green Acres Phase II has already broken ground on a new 12,700 square foot addition south of Tuttle Road. Green Acres is a senior housing complex. .
A watchdog for juvenile corrections said plans to reopen youth residential services at the former State Training School at Plankinton will be a positive step for troubled youths and their families if a Wisconsin-based company has a better track record in incarcerating juveniles than its most recent predecessor there did. "Do I want these kids back in the state? You bet I do," said Deb Phillips of Whitewood, who founded the Parents Who Care Coalition after the heat-exhaustion death of 14-year-old Gina Score at the Plankinton facility in 1999.South Dakota will contract with two new intensive residential programs for youths in 2007 that will allow state agencies to bring home some of the 130 young South Dakotans who are currently placed in out-of-state facilities and to keep more kids in state in the future.Clinicare, headquartered in West Allis, Wis., will offer intensive residential services to 66 youths, male and female, at Plankinton beginning in January.
GALESBURG - There's good news for Galesburg motorists who have been navigating a maze of barricades downtown. Gunther Construction has completed all asphalt and utility adjustments for the downtown resurfacing project and all downtown streets are open to traffic. The contractor will have all barricades and cones removed this week and, weather permitting, will finish striping on Main Street and Cherry Street by Friday. Crews worked 12- to 14-hour days in order to get the work done in as short a time as possible. By contract, Gunther's had until Friday to get the streets reopened. Instead, the contractor worked long hours and paid his employees overtime in order to get the streets opened ahead of schedule. Due to those efforts, stage four, which was planned, is no longer necessary and the project will be completed one week ahead of schedule.
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