Join us tonight starting at 6pm to listen to local Portland Jazz/Pop singer and songwriter, Devin Phillips, perform live on the Bank of America Entertainment Deck while touring the Street of Dreams homes. There will be wine tasting provided by Oak Knoll and food available.
According to the Cohousing Assocition of the United States…Cohousing communities are old-fashioned neighborhoods created with a little ingenuity. They bring together the value of private homes with the benefits of more sustainable living. That means common facilities and good connections with neighbors. All in all, they stand as innovative answers to today’s environmental and social problems.
Although Cohousing communities may seem radical to some they are becoming more and more mainstream. As a matter of fact there are at least 3 cohousing projects under construction right now in the Portland Metro area. Plus, later this month a symposium is scheduled at Portland City Hall to discuss collaborative housing developements and a community-based approach to design and developement.
Read more about cohousing in the Oregonian…
and the Daily Journal of Commerce….
First-time home buyers are primarily concerned with affordability when choosing a new home, but their expectations may be too high relative to their current financial buying power, according to a recent Coldwell Banker® survey conducted among its brokers. While nearly half of the Coldwell Banker broker respondents reported that affordability was the No. 1 concern for this group, 81 percent said today’s first-time home buyers consider move-in conditions to be very important when searching for homes. In contrast, only 7 percent are looking to purchase “fixer-upper” homes that they could buy at a lower price and renovate themselves.
While it is not a substitute for fertilizer, compost contains nutrients and holds them in the soil until plants can use them. It also loosens and aerates clay soils, and retains water in sandy soils. Here are some common ways to use finished compost:
Soil amendment: Mix 2 to 5 inches of compost into vegetable and flower gardens each year before planting.
Potting mixture: Add one part compost to two parts commercial potting soil, or make your own mixture by using equal parts of compost and sand or perlite.
Mulch: Spread an inch or two of compost around annual flowers and vegetables, and up to 6 inches around trees and shrubs.
Top dressing for lawn: Mix finely sifted compost with sand and sprinkle evenly over lawns.
Click here to check out Metro’s guide to effective composting.
Consumer interest in real estate surged in July with significant month-over-month increases in both traffic (29%) and time spent on site (26%) on Realtor.com, the #1 homes-for-sale-site. In fact, year-over-year page views on Realtor.com increased by 22% as consumers spent more time this year searching properties in popular and unexpected metro areas than they did this time last year.
Read more on Market Watch.
Back to school time can be especially stressful after a recent move. These 5 tips will help your child make a smooth transition to your new school.
Keep a positive focus - As the first day draws near, begin talking to your child about her expectations, hopes and fears for the upcoming school year. Reassure her that other children are having the same feelings and that she’s sure to have a great year. Present school as a place where she’ll learn new things and make friends.
Early to bed, early to rise - If your child has enjoyed a vacation of late nights and lazy mornings, getting him up for school on the first day can be difficult. Help make this transition easier by starting his school-year sleep routine a week or two in advance.
Take a trial run - Take some time before the start of school to make sure you and your child know where to go and what to do on that first morning. Show your child where the bus stop is, or, if she walks, map out the safest route to school, avoiding vacant lots and places where there aren’t a lot of people. Warn your child to always walk with a friend and scout out safe houses to go to in case of emergency. If you can find out what classroom your child will be in, visit the classroom ahead of time so she knows exactly where to go in the morning. You may even want to call the school in advance to find out about any special first-day procedures.
Prepare the night before - To avoid the morning rush, organize what you can the night before. Lay out clothes, make a lunch and assemble any supplies your child may need. Be sure to get everyone up extra early so you’ll have plenty of time to calmly get ready and get out the door on time.
Get a healthy start - Encourage your child to eat a good breakfast and pack a healthy snack to help her get through the day.
Join us tonight starting at 6pm to view art by local artists Michael Neilson, Diane Uy, Pat Condron, Ron Dobrowski, Marla Schroeder-Swade, Amber Sosa, Rob Sanford and Frank Nichols at the Street of Dreams. Art ranging from stretched fabric tension structures to elegant photopraphy will be for sale.
The artists will line the street with thier art, answer questions and inspire your with their unique and innovative design ideas.
From the Oregonian, August 22nd
Air conditioning makes a summer hot spell bearable — but at a cost.
Air conditioners suck electricity, picking your pocket and increasing demand on polluting power plants. Conventional air conditioning uses chlorine compounds, which are suspects in depleting the ozone layer and contributing to global warming.
Home air conditioners make constant noise. They operate best in closed houses, so allergists warn of molds and dust, while psychologists worry that individuals become sealed off from one another.
But you don’t have to hurt the Earth, or your psyche, to stay comfortable in the summer. Some quick and easy solutions:
Cover windows against the sun. Exterior awnings or shades stop the sun’s rays before they hit the window and can reduce heat by as much as 75 percent. Thick, close-knit draperies trap heat, and even indoor blinds help turn back some of the sun’s rays.
In the cool of the evening, open windows at the highest and lowest parts of your house to create a chimney effect for removing hot air. A window fan facing out also sucks the heat out.
Sources: www.planetfriendly.net, www.earthshare.org, www.sustain.tribe.net
Wouldn’t you like to have your lights come on 1/2 hour before dusk every night so that you didn’t have to come home to a dark house? What about a single button to push that will turn off all the lights in the house before bed? How about putting your movie or music collection on a hard-drive so that it is easily accessible from any room in the house?
Learn how to incorporate today’s latest technology into your home this weekend at the Street of Dreams. Special learning tours will start every hour on the hour from noon - 4pm.
From The Oregonian, story by Eric Mortenson photo by Randy L Rasmussen
Every house on the market has its issues, and the Northeast Portland home that Emily Gardner was touring with broker Kirsten Kaufman is one of those the real estate fliers delicately refer to as “needs TLC.” It’s small, smells bad, needs fresh paint everywhere and the electrical system is funky. Filthy carpeting covers the hardwood floors. The basement has a mysterious puddle, and it looks as though squatters kept a diary on a closet wall.
But the street is quiet and the house has a garage tucked under the main floor — perfect for rolling bikes in and out to the street. From here, Gardner figures, she could whip down Ninth Avenue to Going Street, hop onto the Vancouver-Williams couplet with its comfortable bike lanes, cross the Broadway Bridge and in 15 minutes be at work downtown at the Bicycle Transportation Alliance.
Gardner is among a burgeoning class of prospective homebuyers. In addition to checking price, square footage and the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, some now are looking for houses that will allow them to ride a bike to work.