SIOUX FALLS, SD (KELO) The buzz of chainsaws echoes through Sioux Falls neighborhoods this winter as crews try to keep ahead of the emerald ash borer. Tree service companies have been busy cutting down ash trees to prevent the spread of the troublesome bug.

Carving through ash trees in the biting cold.

It slows the hydraulics down a bit, but not too bad, Cody Pomerenke of Midwest Tree Service said.

The tall timber takes a tumble in this southwest Sioux Falls neighborhood.

Usually, we can just flop them right down onto the street and then we chunk them up, Pomerenke said

Tree trimmers are taking advantage of this seasonal window of opportunity to remove hundreds of ash trees in the city. The emerald ash borer is dormant at this time of year, so theres no risk of them moving from tree to tree once their winter home is cut down.

It will spread on its own, we dont want to give it any help, City of Sioux Falls Park Operation Manager Kelby Mieras said.

The spread of the emerald ash borer is being described as very slow. City officials credit that to prompt tree removal and homeowners treating their ash trees. The mild winter has helped, too.

While todays not stellar weather to be removing trees, its a whole lot better to work in and the crews and the contractors are making great progress, Mieras said.

Tree trimmers have until Memorial Day to finish their work for the year. After that, the ash borers become active again and the chainsaws will be idled through the summer.

The Citys goal is removing 2,100 trees before summer. Right now, theyre nearly a third of the way there, with some 600 trees cut down.

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Tree trimmers are making progress in ash borer battle - KELOLAND.com

Vice President of Capital Construction John Rhone spoke about the Silver Line project at the Feb. 6 meeting. (Makenzie Plusnick/Community Impact)

The 26-mile passenger rail will span from Shiloh Road in Plano to the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Construction of the line, which will run through seven cities, is expected to be complete by December 2022. In Richardson, the Silver Line will stop at a new station at UT Dallas and at the existing CityLine/Bush station.

In the first quarter of this year, crews are working to relocate wet and dry utilities and construct retainer walls, DART Public Relations and Communication Officer Marvin Jackson said.

It is industry practice to begin work on a project this size while design is still underway, according to DART spokesperson Gordon Shattles. The final design for the Silver Line is expected to be delivered during the third quarter of 2021.

Vice President of Capital Construction John Rhone spoke about the new self-propelled diesel multiple-unit vehicles that would be used on the Silver Line. The vehicles will be more environmentally and community friendly, he said.

We considered different types of diesel vehicles; we considered electric vehicles similar to light rail, and this is the vehicle that we chose, Rhone said.

The trains will have 230 seats as well as room for 250 standing passengers. They will also have automatic passenger counters and closed-circuit television systems, Rhone said.

DART police will be present on every train and strategically stationed at different stations along the line, Rhone said.

The transit agency is attempting to mitigate sound emitted by trains through the use of heating, ventilation and air conditioning closures, which Rhode said is one of the noisier components of existing DART vehicles. New wheel skirts should also reduce noise, he added.

Residential neighborhoods will be designated as quiet zones, or areas where trains will not activate their horns. However, Rhone said horns will be required during the testing phase.

A 26-mile hike-and-bike trail along the rail is at 10% design completion, Rhone said. DART is still in negotiations with Archer Western Herzog, the company contracted to design and build the trail, Rhone said. The project is funded through an interlocal agreement with the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

I really can't get into a lot of details outside of that because we are in negotiations as far as pricing, but know that we are working very hard to deliver this trail, Rhone said.

For dates of upcoming Silver Line community meetings, visit this link.

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Citizens hear update on progress of $1.2 billion Silver Line project - Community Impact Newspaper

The United States has a longstanding legacy of systematic racism that dates back centuries. This pervasive system has impacted our public policy, laws, and interactions with the communities around us. My time in the military has allowed me to see firsthand how the barrier of racial discrimination can be brought down within institutions. I hope to see the same change across the United States.

Brookings has taken powerful stances on race, equality, and civil rights, and will continue to do so in the present and the future. We are in the position to produce impactful scholarship that creates a difference in the issues of race and discrimination.

Brookings is a nonpartisan institution, but it is not values-neutral.

Like Trumans military desegregation order, leadership against racism starts at the top

A note from Brookings President John R. Allen on the release of our workforce demographic data

Not just a typographical change: Why Brookings is capitalizing Black

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The US military has made progress in ending racial discrimination. The rest of our country must as well. - Brookings Institution

The Tucker Boulevard entrance to St. Louis City Hall.

ST. LOUIS Mayor Lyda Krewson wants a rewrite of a city report that listed developer Paul McKees massive north St. Louis redevelopment plan as among those making satisfactory progress.

She does not believe that accurately reflects the circumstances, the mayors chief of staff, Steve Conway, said. She just wants it accurately portrayed.

Krewson vetoed a measure passed last month by the Board of Aldermen that reported on 21 projects that over the years had gotten tax-increment financing, or TIF, incentives from the city.

Krewsons administration in 2018 sought to cancel the citys 2009 development agreement with NorthSide Regeneration, citing a lack of progress and the developers use of a now-lapsed state tax credit program.

The city move sparked lawsuits pitting McKees largest creditor a Washington, Missouri, bank against the city.

Asked whether the administration was concerned that approval of a satisfactory designation could be cited in the litigation, Conway responded: That would probably be something we would think about.

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Krewson vetoes bill that said McKee NorthSide project making "satisfactory progress" - STLtoday.com

OSAGE | Local anglers had an opportunity to hear about the mystery fish" -- also known more commonly as the muskie, from Levi Nettleton, recent naturalist intern with Mitchell County Conservation.

Nettleton, who will be a senior science education major at the University of Northern Iowa this fall, told attendees muskies are known as the mystery fish because of their unpredictability.

Muskies are very unpredictable, he said. You can find them in waters that are 6 inches to a 100 feet deep. They look like a pike, but they have six teeth instead of five teeth like northern, and northern are spotted.

Nettleton said a female Muskie can lay up to 265,000 eggs, but their survival rate is very low. They spawn best in water temps of 55 to 65 degrees, laying their eggs randomly in shallow waters where predators can consume the eggs.

Many fishermen believe the muskie is a major consumer of other game fish such as bass and walleye, but they are apt to eat softer fish like bullheads and minnows, Nettleton said, noting they also eat insects, crayfish, small mammals and waterfowl.

"Many believe they are aggressive, but that isnt true, unless they are feeding," he said. "They are complicated for naturalists to study.

Nettleton said Muskies habitats also vary, meaning they can be found in weeds like tobacco cabbage or 30 feet deep in open water.He said fisherman can find them in different places throughout the year.

Nettleton shared his enthusiasm for catching the large game fish, something he started four years ago.

Once you do it, it can become an addiction," he said. "There's a lot of skill in muskie fishing, and sometimes, muskies are called the fish of a 100,000 casts.

Nettletons study has rewarded him well, as he caught and released 36 muskies last year and 12 so far this year.

Fishermen seeking muskies typically use 7- to 10-foot rods, according to Nettleton. He uses a 300- to 400-foot reel with 22 pounds of drag, with 50-100 braid line and steel or fluorocarbon leaders.

He also carries needle-nosed pliers longer than 8 inches and a rubberized net, so he doesn't harm the Muskie.

He gave some additional pointers:

Leave the catch in the water and support and release it when the fish is calm.

Cut the hook if the fish has been deep-hooked.

Don't fish over 80 degrees.

If trolling, start at 2 mph, increasing to 4 mph.

Do figure-eights to attract muskies.

Nettleton, who whose biggest catch was 53 inches long, said there are Muskies in the Cedar, Iowa, Shell Rock, and Winnebago rivers, as well as in Clear Lake.

The largest populations of muskies are in Minnesota, according to Nettleton, where the largest caught was 56 inches long and weighed 54 pounds.

North Iowa anglers have landed some big fish over the years, reeling in massive walleyes, northern pike, catfish and muskies. This gallery con

Continued here:

Mason City Winnebago River work improves transit and safety, still in progress - Mason City Globe Gazette

When you own a one-of-a-kind communications platform that politicians, celebrities, media outlets, brands and governments all use to connect with audiences, you only need to run yourself so well to be financially successful.

Thats arguably one takeaway from Twitter's(TWTR) - Get ReportQ4 report, which led its stock to rise 15% in Thursday trading. Three months after missing its consensus Q3 revenue estimate by $50 million, the company topped its Q4 revenue consensus by $15 million (EPS missed due to a pickup in spending).

Annual revenue growth accelerated to 11% from 9%, and ad revenue growth improved to 12% from 8%. International ad revenue rose a paltry 3% as Twitter continues addressing issues related to mobile app install ad sales in Asia, but U.S. ad sales rose 20% with the help of strong video ad growth.

Twitter also saw its monetizable daily active users (mDAUs - users who are logged into Twitter and able to see ads) rise 21% annually to 152 million, topping consensus by 4 million. mDAUs in the U.S., which still accounts for close to 60% of Twitters revenue, rose by 4 million to 31 million.

Relative to peers, a lot of Twitters numbers still dont look that impressive. Whereas Twitters revenue rose 11% in Q4 to $1.01 billion, Facebook(FB) - Get Reportsaw its revenue grow 25% to $21.08 billion. Mark Zuckerbergs firm also reported having 1.66 billion DAUs for Facebook proper and Messenger (up 9%), of which 190 million were in the U.S. and Canada.

Snaps(SNAP) - Get ReportQ4 revenue ($561 million) remained much lower than Twitters in spite of 44% growth. But the company did report its DAUs grew 17% in Q4 to 218 million. North American DAUs, which include Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, totaled 86 million.

Ive often been critical of Twitter over the years from a product standpoint, and a lot of the things that Ive criticized still dont by any means look fixed. These issues run the gamut from ugly user behavior (and the ways that Twitters mechanics can incentivize such behavior), to the challenges that users can face when it comes to finding accounts and content that might interest them, to the fact that regular Twitter users can feel ignored in a way that regular Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat users usually dont.

But Twitter has admittedly made some meaningful improvements over the last couple of years. Notable changes for the better include the 280-character limit, feed algorithm and notification improvements, a revamped private messaging experience and (though more work still needs to be done here) larger attempts to improve the quality of discourse on the platform.

And (in spite of recent stumbles) there have been meaningful improvements on the advertising side as well, with Twitter improving its targeting and measurement abilities and stepping up investments in video ad products and self-serve ad solutions.

When one combines such service and advertising improvements with the fact that Twitter still gives its users a unique ability to both see what high-profile public figures are saying and put their fingers on the pulse of whats happening in the world at a particular moment, you have a recipe for growing revenue and user bases that remain a small fraction of Facebook and Instagrams. Even if a lot of things could still be done better.

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Twitter Still Has Its Issues but There Has Been Some Progress Lately - TheStreet

SOUTH BEND, INAddressing concerns over his campaigns marked lack of inclusion, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg touted significant progress he made Friday connecting with black Fortune 500 executives. Ive heard your concerns, and over the past few weeks, Ive made great efforts to not just talk to but listen to prominent members of the African American consulting community, said the former South Bend mayor, emphasizing that he had hosted several round tables across the country where he had personal, one-on-one conversations with black VPs of weapons manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, and Silicon Valley tech giants. While I might not have lived the same experiences, I hope that my campaign will feel inclusive to all executives of color, in all management levels, regardless of whether they attended Harvard or Yale. As someone who worked at McKinsey myself, I know firsthand that we cant win the presidency without them. At press time, Buttigieg unveiled a new plan to diversify his campaign staff by hiring a single black finance executive to the Pete 2020 board.

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Buttigieg Touts Progress Connecting With Black Fortune 500 Executives - The Onion

With transport now accounting for a quarter of global emissions, businesses are increasingly seizing the opportunity to lead on tackling the climate crisis by switching their vehicle fleets to electric.

Charging ahead on electric fleets: Will automakers keep pace with corporate demand? is the 2020 EV100 Progress and Insights Annual Report from The Climate Group, tracking the progress of more than 60 global companies as they transition to electric mobility.

It shows that corporate and leasing fleet commitments will see the roll-out of more than 2.5 million zero-emission vehicles by 2030 saving 42 million metric tons CO2e, the annual emissions of 11 coal power plants. Companies are making good progress toward their goals and have already rolled out more than 80,000 EVs and nearly 10,000 charge points for employees and customers.

However, the report also shows that a lack of EV supply is the biggest barrier to faster progress for 79% of EV100 members up by a third from last year.

As more and more companies join EV100 and commit to go electric by 2030, automakers must turbo charge EV supply to meet the growing demand and governments must deliver supportive policies.

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Charging ahead on electric vehicles: 2020 EV100 Progress and Insights Report - The Climate Group

The surest sign of a team transformed might have come from a player sitting out of bounds at midcourt.

As Cody Riley waited to check into UCLAs last game, the sophomore forward yelled defensive instructions to his teammates.

Thats a big change for us, coach Mick Cronin said. Progress.

In recent weeks, Cronins team has been doing all sorts of new things. The Bruins have been talking, defending and winning. UCLA (12-10 overall, 5-4 Pac-12 Conference) has won four of its last five games heading into a desert duel against Arizona State (13-8, 4-4) on Thursday night at Desert Financial Arena, a surge that precipitated another kind of triumph.

The Bruins are also winning on the recruiting front.

Jaylen Clark, a senior shooting guard from Rancho Cucamonga Etiwanda High who is considered an elite defender and the kind of gritty player who fits perfectly into the Cronin mold, committed to the Bruins on Wednesday after having watched their victory over Utah in person last weekend as part of his official visit.

Clark is expected to sign with the team in April, giving UCLA another talented wing player to go along with incoming point guard Daishen Nix.

Its starting to feel like a turning point for a team likely to miss the NCAA tournament for a second consecutive season, an upward trajectory borne out of defeat.

Failure is the best teacher, junior guard Chris Smith said, and weve had quite a bit of that.

Not recently. Picked by the media to finish eighth in the Pac-12, the Bruins now sit alone in sixth at the midpoint of conference play, only 1 games behind first-place Oregon. UCLAs trip to the desert, which also includes a game against No. 23 Arizona on Saturday, could determine whether the Bruins make something more out of this season than incremental progress.

Sweep the two games, and they could start thinking about making an improbable late-season run.

Split them, and theyre pretty much back where they started, left to focus on small gains.

Lose both, and their midseason surge would end with a splat.

Freshman guard Tyger Campbell acknowledged a new buzz among the Bruins after they completed their first weekend sweep in Pac-12 play with victories over Colorado and Utah.

Theres a different energy, Campbell said. You know, were winning so were all excited, were all geeked up but were not trying to get too high on it.

As evidence of his efforts to stay level-headed, Campbell mentioned the teams two big practices before departing on a trip that will start with an opponent fighting to stay in NCAA tournament contention. Arizona State proved to be a bad matchup for UCLA last season, handing it double-digit losses in each of their two meetings, including one in which the Bruins scored the games first 11 points.

The Sun Devils slew of small guards, led by Remy Martin, scurried for open three-pointers or monstrous dunks, getting whatever they wanted against a defense that seemed powerless to stop them. Smith said Arizona States style made stopping it difficult.

Theyre just like a freelance group, Smith said. Just guys that can spread you out, you know? You try and shrink the floor on teams, but they just drive and kick. Their coach, you know, he lets them play. So, its a lot of creativity on their side of the court.

UCLAs defense has stiffened considerably in recent weeks, allowing an average just 63.8 points over its last five games. The telltale defensive statistic has been the Bruins ability to defend the three-point line; theyre allowing opponents to shoot only 30.5% in the games UCLA has won compared to 44.4% in its losses.

Coincidentally, Arizona State has made exactly 30.5% of its three-pointers this season, worst in the Pac-12.

More than the numbers are starting to align for the Bruins given how far theyve come the last few weeks, particularly on defense.

Defensively, if youre not a unit, youre not going to hold people to the points that weve been holding them to recently, Smith said, so I think for sure, were coming together, were clicking finally.

UP NEXT FOR UCLA: AT ARIZONA STATE

When: Thursday, 8 p.m. PST.

Where: Desert Financial Arena, Tempe, Ariz.

On the air: TV: ESPN2; Radio: 570.

Update: The one statistic that wont guarantee victory for UCLA but could almost assure the Bruins of defeat, especially on the road, is turnovers. They have committed an average of 12 turnovers in their Pac-12 victories and 15 in their conference losses, including 22 in their last road game at Oregon. The Ducks generated 34 points off those turnovers on the way to a 96-75 blowout. Live-ball turnovers turn into points for the other team, Smith said, which pretty much destroys team morale on your end.

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UCLA is making progress on and off the basketball court - Los Angeles Times

A new paper from the Ruderman Family Foundation shows that while things may be getting better, its happening very slowly.

There is Atypical, on Netflix, a coming-of-age comedy that features young adults on the autism spectrum, and This Close, on Sundance Now, about besties who are deaf. Both shows are part of a gradual trend toward the authentic casting of characters with disabilities. But according to new research, they also are anomalies.

A new white paper from the Ruderman Family Foundation reports that some 80% of all disabled characters on the small screen are portrayed by nondisabled actors. The imbalance is an indication, the reports sponsors say, that efforts to diversify Hollywood are far from inclusive. And even with examples of authentic casting on Atypical, the lead character, who is autistic, is played by an actor who is not.

We wouldnt accept it with other minorities, said Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation, which published the report. But with disability, it is still routinely accepted. And thats wrong.

The research, covering about 280 network and streaming shows from 2018, found that roughly half featured characters with physical, cognitive or mental health disabilities. Yet, the report said, even where disability is present in television and films, it is almost always portrayed as an undesired, depressing and limiting state.

There were signs of shifts. Of the top 10 Nielsen-rated shows from 2016, just 5% of disabled characters were played by disabled performers. In 2018, that figure jumped to 12%.

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For the disabled in Hollywood, report finds hints of progress - The Columbus Dispatch

Ontarios long-awaited connector trail along the Snake River is another step closer to seeing the light of day after the Ontario City Council approved a resolution on Thursday night during its work session.

Otherwise known as The Tater Tot Trail, a name that was proposed by Kraft Heinz one of the owners allowing an easement agreement for the trail to happen, the trail is intended to stretch along the snake river from the citys water treatment plant, underneath the overpass on Idaho Avenue near Walmart and stretch all the way to the interchange near Loves Travel Stop.

Other owners the city worked with on easement agreements include Oregon Department of Transportation and Walmart.

City Manager Adam Brown said a condemnation process which was on the agenda as new business with a resolution was the first step in the negotiations, to acquire the property from Walmart.

He stated how the corporation requested that the city go through the condemnation process in order to formally acquire the land being requested. Brown did clarify to those in attendance that Walmart asked us to take this route, adding, its not adversarial at all.

He said Community Development Director Dan Cummings prepared a legal description of the property, which is part of the condemnation process.

The next stretch of negotiations involves the larger portion of land that will comprise the trail and that is currently owned by Kraft Heinz. One of the stipulations of the citys proposed agreement with Kraft Heinz included the naming of the trail.

And Brown says he finally got a conference call.

The city manager previously told the Argus that what made the proposed trail unique was the limited amount of property owners along the way that the city would have to work with on obtaining easement agreements in order to get public access to those areas paralleling lands owned by those entities.

Councilor Michael Braden made note of the possible risk in the city purchasing the piece of the land from Walmart before knowing whether or not an agreement with Kraft Heinz can be reached. Brown acknowledged that there is a risk, but remains hopeful in the citys negotiations.

No dollar amount was mentioned, however in a follow-up interview this morning, Brown said, he did not know the cost.

Thats the next step, he said, adding that it must be appraised, and that appraisal is slated to happen today.

Read more:

City makes progress in Tater Tot Trail negotiations - Ontario Argus Observer

"You can't stop progress," is a cliche sometimes used to justify plans to build more warehouses in and around Joliet.

The adage doesn't quite seem to work when applied to the prospect of the former Joliet Country Club being converted into a warehouse complex.

Joliet can't support a country club anymore.

That actually had been the case for years as the club struggled with debt left over from the construction of a new clubhouse, saw membership decline in the wake of the recession, and eventually gave up ownership of its property to the ROC real estate group.

It became public knowledge in 2018 when the club announced that it was giving up management of its facilities to ROC, which opened the course to the public.

The renamed Joliet Golf Course open to the public had one season in 2019.

ROC announced last week the club is now closed.

ROC is considering warehouses for the site, although there is no rezoning proposal yet before the city.

Still, the idea is jarring enough that Councilwoman Jan Quillman declared her opposition to it at the City Council meeting last week.

"I don't want warehouses there. It's too beautiful," Quillman said.

She may be right.

But city officials may have found out what if feels like for residents on the outskirts of the city who have objected for years as Joliet approved rezonings that allowed warehouses close to their neighborhoods.

"You can't stop progress," may be a line used when NorthPoint Development takes its proposal to annex 1,260 acres into Joliet for the Compass Business Park to the Joliet Plan Commission on Feb. 24.

It may be said again on March 17 when the City Council is tentatively scheduled to vote on the NorthPoint plan.

But no one said it to Quillman on Tuesday.

Instead, the council may have sent a signal to ROC to abandon any warehouse plans it may have.

"You heard some of the council comments yesterday," Councilman Pat Mudron said the next day. "They're going to have a hard time getting enough votes."

Mudron said he would probably have to recuse himself from voting on any rezoning for the golf course. He was president of the country club when it dissolved and, as he said, "turned over the keys" to ROC.

ROC's attorney said the owners are still considering options for the Joliet Golf Club.

They even approached the Joliet Park District in January to see if the park board was interested in buying the golf course. The park board, which has three golf courses now and is dealing with its own financial challenges, said no.

In the weeks ahead, we may find out what progress looks like on the 1,260 acres NorthPoint wants to annex into the city and what it looks like at the former country club at 1009 Spencer Road.

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Progress seen from a different perspective - The Herald-News

Its still the sad state of affairs that no universities in Omaha offer an MFA program, usually considered an essential qualification for professional visual artists.

Amplify Arts has stepped into that breach with its Work in Progress program, and the art from its first cohort of studentsTravis Apel, Elizabeth Boutin, Anne Dovali, Holly Kranker and Tyler Swainwill be on view at Bensons Petshop with an opening on Feb. 7 from 6 to 9 p.m.

During the 10-month program, the artists received feedback through critiques, practiced critical writing and participated in collaborative, interdisciplinary endeavors.

Boutin creates emotionally resonant paintings inflected by her experience with the military. Conversely, Dovali works in mythic and fantastic realms, combining sacred and baroque iconographies with rhinestones and googly eyes. Sculptor Apel explores the natural environment, often incorporating organic material into his pieces. Krankers multimedia work reflects places fixed in memory, including domestic settings that may be reflected through her imagery or her use of home construction supplies. Sculptor Swain works in a Dadaist vein, fashioning detritus with a discomfiting aesthetic.

The exhibition continues through March 27. Petshop is located in downtown Benson. Find it on Facebook.

Originally posted here:

Work in Progress - Omaha Reader

Legislation passed by the state House Regulated Industries Committee will shield short-term rentals from excessive local regulation if the bill makes it through the Georgia General Assembly.

The measure would require cities and counties to treat short-term rentals like they would any residence and prevent local governments from banning them.

State Rep. Kasey Carpenter, R-Dalton, lead sponsor of House Bill 523, called it a property rights issue.

Short-term rentals also help property owners because they pay full property taxes without the heavy burden of local services and school systems, Carpenter said. They provide small communities with tourism dollars, but first and foremost these rules and regulations are an attack on personal property rights.

Carpenter said the bill would treat short-term rentals the same as long-term rentals and property thats not rented.

Short-term rentals where problems occur can be addressed like any other property, the legislator said.

I firmly believe that cities and counties have the opportunity to deal with these issues through their various nuisance ordinances, occupancy, and other ways, without having to issue bans and prohibitions, Carpenter said. Hopefully now that we have a piece in the works for tax collection, and it has been addressed, these cities and counties can realize the value these properties bring, and not over-regulate them or ban them out of business.

Marketplace facilitator legislation passed by the General Assembly provides a method to collect taxes from businesses like Airbnb and Vrbo, but that doesnt solve all the problems seen by those opposed to the bill.

State Rep. Jeff Jones, R-St. Simons Island, a member of the committee, voted for the legislation. The bill provides a carve-out for homeowner associations to regulate the properties under their umbrella as they see fit.

State Rep. Don Hogan, R-St. Simons Island, said hed rather the issue be handled at the local level.

I think that county commissioners ought to be able to make their own decision and pass local legislation on it, rather than the state getting involved in it, Hogan said. I know weve got problems in Glynn County on St. Simons weve got zoning on single residences and its really a bad situation when people rent out their homes on short-term rentals with people that nobody knows (and) dont know who theyre renting them to.

Its an issue close to the heart of Glynn County Commissioner Peter Murphy, who rejects the notion that the HOA carve-out will solve the problems he envisions occurring with the bill, among them being state control of a local issue.

Certainly, every locale will have a different set of circumstances regarding short-term rentals, Murphy said. To try to paint it with one broad brushstroke out of Atlanta is foolish.

He said the latest research identified more than 1,500 short-term rental properties on St. Simons. Thats 20 to 25 percent of all residential properties on the island.

Murphy said he discussed the issue with a Vrbo executive at a convention in Texas last year and learned the rental group backs some amount of local regulation, specifically because of what happened in Honolulu, Hawaii.

The city and the surrounding area were losing tax revenue because people werent paying their occupancy tax like the hoteliers were, Murphy said.

It was also driving up the cost of homes, he said.

All these stakeholders and constituency groups went to the legislators this was about a year ago and just banned short-term rentals, Murphy said, calling it a draconian response to a lack of local control.

Scott McQuade, president and CEO of the Golden Isles Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the facilitator bill helps but doesnt fix things like quality of life issues with short-term rentals. He also notes the bill bans registration of the rentals, which he sees as problematic in tracking tax and fees compliance, along with who needs to be contacted for emergencies and complaints.

It has been proven throughout the nation that the cities and counties that have smart and well-balanced local ordinances for short-term rentals have the best results, McQuade said. Smart local ordinances have proven effective in protecting the quality of life for residents while providing accommodations for visitors and creating a level playing field for tax compliance.

The CVB, the county and the local short-term rental committee were recently leading efforts to balance the needs of the business community with the needs of residents with the goal to draft a local ordinance to improve the quality of life in the Golden Isles. (This legislation) could potentially jeopardize all that hard work that has done over the last year.

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Wary eyes watch progress of short-term rental bill - Brunswick News

ESSEX FELLS - Players on the boys and girls soccer teams from fifth and sixth grade picked up the trophies they earned in a November tournament at the mayor and council meeting Tuesday, Feb. 4.

The girls started their season 7-0 before losing to Fairfield, then clinching the championship against Fairfield, which was undefeated, in the West Essex area recreational tournament.

The Essex Fells team finished with a 10-1 record.

We are so proud of you, the way you conducted yourselves, represented Essex Fells, but most importantly, represented yourselves, said Ash Breheney, the girls' head coach.

The boys team also finished with a 10-1 record after winning the tournament.

This was a season where we had a great group of kids that actually listened, said head coach Jeff Hug. They came together as a team.

As he called players to pick up their trophies, he introduced Cody Dong, a fifth grader who moved to Essex Fells from France last year, as my import from Paris.

After the ceremony, Cody said this was his first season playing soccer anywhere and he plans to return next year.

Ava Breheney, a fifth grader who played on the girls team, said younger players starting out in the rec program will have a great experience if they keep going with it.

I like that all the players are very nice to each other, and no ones rude or anything, she said. And we always play the game and try our best for everything.

Also during the meeting, the council authorized bid advertisements for gasoline and diesel fuel and for the 2020 state Department of Transportation municipal road project.

The mayor and council will meet next at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 18 in Borough Hall.

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Essex Fells rec soccer teams get trophies | The Progress News - New Jersey Hills

The latest Senate report on Russian interference in the 2016 election, released Feb. 6, contained several broad recommendations for how the government can improve effectiveness in securing American elections.

While the Senate Select Committee on Intelligences third volume lists seven recommendations for correcting shortfalls made by the Obama administration in responding to Russian election interference, the federal government has already made progress in several of the recommended areas since the committee started its report.

The committee recommends that the executive branch bolster partnerships with countries considered near abroad to Russia. The bipartisan report states that Russia has been using these countries as a laboratory for perfecting information and cyber warfare. For example, in the military conflict between Ukraine and Russian, Russian-backed hackers have targeted the government and shut down the countrys power grid.

Expanding partnerships with such countries will help to prepare defenses for the eventual expansion of interference techniques targeting the West," the report read.

U.S. Cyber Command has taken similar measures in recent years, partnering with the Montenegrin government for the last two years to search for malicious actors in networks in the lead up to both nations elections in 2020. The U.S. Secret Service also engages with foreign states on cybersecurity issues, like in 2017 when it trained local officials in Estonia.

Having U.S. cyber personnel near the Russian cyber hot spots will help the United States learn more about Russian behavior. Tom Kellermann, a former commissioner on the Commission on Cyber Security for the 44th President of the United States, said that partnerships will help the United States determine the root cause of Russian intrusions.

How did they get in in the first place and how did they stay in? How did they maintain persistence?" said Kellermann, now head of cybersecurity strategy at VMware. These are the critical lessons we should learn from assisting our allies in order to protect our democracy."

The committee also recommended that the United States lead the way on establishing international cyber norms, writing that U.S. leadership is needed to balance any formalized international agreement on acceptable uses of cyber capabilities.

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This is another area where the U.S. government has already made progress. At the United Nations, the United States has worked to establish international cyber norms and proposed creating a group to study how to enforce cyber norms, all while butting heads with the Russian and Chinese representatives.

According to Chris Painter, a former top cyber official at the Department of State, while the United States has led on establishing some norms, like critical infrastructure shouldnt be targeted outside of wartime, there is still outstanding work to be done on enforcing those norms.

We have to make sure that those norms are just not paper tigers, Painter said. They have to be accepted by countries around the world and there has to be accountability when people break them."

Another recommendation from the committee suggests that credible information about foreign information or cyber operations be shared as broadly as appropriate within government, Congress and, when appropriate, private-sector partners. The committee also adds that the federal government must have substantive and timely outreach with state and local governments when election infrastructure is targeted.

The federal government has made strides in this area, particularly with its outreach to state and local governments, an effort spearheaded by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency within the Department of Homeland Security. Top election officials in states have security clearances to gain access to more threat intelligence and CISA frequently holds phone calls with state operators of critical infrastructure, which includes election officials.

Within the intelligence community, NSAs new Cybersecurity Directorate is also making an effort to share contextualized threat intelligence with the defense industrial base.

As part of the recommendation, the committee also said that feds needed to create a mechanism for notifying the public of operations.

Delaying the release of information allows inaccurate narratives to spread, which makes the task of informing the public significantly harder, the committee wrote.

Both the IC and civilian government have partnered together to establish a process for public notification of cyberthreats. Back in November, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, NSA, DHS, State, CIA, NSA and FBI agreed to a framework in which they would discuss potentially exposing an interference operation after convening leaders from all the agencies.

The committees other recommendations were that the executive branch prepare for the next attack, integrate responses to cyber incidents, prioritize collection on information warfare, and clarification of roles and authorities within the IC.

View original post here:

The progress the government has made on election security - fifthdomain.com

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For years, safety advocates have criticized state speed limit law that makes California and Los Angeles streets increasingly more deadly. Lately, local and state efforts are seeing some momentum in the long campaign to reduce speeding.

Streetsblog readers may already know that driver speed is one of the biggest factors in how car crashes kill and injure people. The faster the speed, the more deadly the crash impact for pedestrians, for cyclists, and for people in cars including the speeding driver themself.

SBLA readers are probably also aware of the arcane 85th percentile state law that basically rewards drivers for speeding. The L.A. Times called the law absurd. If enough scofflaw drivers speed on a given street, then the city is forced to raise the speed limit there.

The same California law mandates that, for police to use standard speed enforcement (commonly called radar speed guns though generally using lidar in Los Angeles), cities must go through a cumbersome process of doing speed surveys every five to seven years. If cities allow speed surveys to go stale, then police generally cannot enforce speed limits.

For the past few years, the city of Los Angeles has been working to curb speeding within the limitations of the current absurd system.

In 2016, 75 percent of L.A. streets had expired speed surveys, which caused LAPD speeding tickets to drop off dramatically. Per LAPD testimony, the department issued 99,000 speeding tickets in 2010. In 2015, that number had dropped to 16,000. In 2017, LADOT stepped up work to complete speed surveys and to modify (mostly increase) speed limits so LAPD could issue speeding tickets. At that time LADOT brought the total number of enforceable streets from 19 percent in early 2016 to 53 percent in late 2017, emphasizing the Vision Zero High Injury Network (HIN.)

Last week, in an email to Streetsblog, LADOT spokesperson Colin Sweeney confirmed that all L.A. streets now have enforceable speed limits:

LADOT has updated all expired speed zone surveys. There are now a total 1,262 miles of radar-enforceable streets which includes 100 percent of the HIN. There are thousands of miles of additional collector and residential streets which do not have a posted speed limit. In these cases, limits are still enforceable by the prima facie rule as determined by Article 22352 in the CA Vehicle Code. Going forward, LADOT is proactively renewing speed zone surveys across the city over a five-year cycle to both level out the workload and prevent surveys expiring in the future.

Streetsblog made an inquiry to LAPD to see how enforcement is currently working. SBLA are still waiting to hear the number of speeding tickets issued citywide in recent years; this story will be updated when that data is available.

Streetsblog spoke with LAPD Captain Andy Neiman, Commanding Officer, Valley Traffic Division. Neiman reports that, in the San Fernando Valley, LAPD speeding enforcement has increased a great deal in recent years; he estimated anecdotally that he has seen speeding tickets up roughly 150 percent compared to 2017. He did state that nonetheless, speeding remains a serious issue on the long straight wide major thoroughfares all over the Valley.

Fortunately speed limit reform efforts are not limited to the local level. Recent developments indicate needed reforms are moving forward at the state level.

As a result of legislation by State Assemblymember Laura Friedman, the state formed a Zero Fatalities Task Force. It initially appeared that speed limit reforms might be subject to death by committee. Last week the task force delivered its recommendations report, and they do call for major speed limit law improvements. The report cites many problems with the current 85th percentile rule, including speed creep, in which speed limits go up over time as limits are raised, people drive faster, and then limits are raised again.

Find lots of detail on the reports statewide implications at Streetsblog California and southern California implications at LAist.From LAist:

It [current California speed limit law] would be like increasing a persons daily recommended calories because their neighbors overeat, [LADOT General Manager Seleta] Reynolds said in a statement to LAist. Cities like Los Angeles need the flexibility to set speed limits that fit. We were grateful for the opportunity to participate in this groundbreaking work and look forward to championing these recommendations that, if implemented, will save lives.

L.A. City Councilman Mike Bonin said he was grateful for the report, which properly diagnosed the problem, but hoped it had included stronger recommendations moving forward. Bonin has long been critical of the 85th percentile rule, calling it absurd and one of the stupidest pieces of legislation hes dealt with.

Not only is it a stupid law, its also a dangerous law because we know that the faster people are going, the more likely someone who gets hit by a car is going to die, he said. It actually has deadly consequences.

Bonin, who chairs the councils transportation committee, said hed like to see a speed limit system based on street type that also accounts for vulnerability and risk to all road users, rather than the current method that relies solely on how drivers behave.

This week, Friedman introduced A.B. 2121 which would make small steps toward reforming state speed limit law. A.B. 2121 would:

It is not the death of the 85th percentile rule, but given Friedmans tenacious success at wringing important results out of mundane task forces, it could be a few important steps toward much needed speed limit reform.

See the rest here:

Some Progress on Curbing Speeding L.A. Drivers, Much Reform Still Needed - Streetsblog St. Louis

Example of light rail in Taipei (Photo by Subscriptshoe9 via Wikimedia / CC BY-SA 4.0)

This year is the 15th anniversary of the ongoing proposed Nassau Hub planning effort and study. Under several grants worth $10 million, most of these funds from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) have been spent on this study with no significant progress to date.

Since 2005, Nassau County has conducted a series of ongoing planning and environmental efforts to support a number of potential transportation improvements, such as bus rapid transit, light rail or other options for the Nassau Hub. The cost for design, construction and implementation could be several hundred million dollars, depending on the transportation mode and route(s) selected. Some estimate a $450 million total cost.

The success of the LIRR $2.6 billion main line third track and $11.8 billion East Side access to Grand Central Terminal projects are also dependent upon the NICE bus being able to expand feeder service to LIRR stations. How will NICE bus be able to accommodate future expansion for accommodation of new LIRR riders with additional service?

One potential source of funding is the Federal Transit Administration discretionary competitive New Starts program. This project is not included in the latest FTA March 2019 New Starts Report for the federal fiscal year 2020. There is no indication that Nassau County has even initiated a dialogue with the FTA for admission into this program. Dont be surprised when the next FTA New Starts Report for the federal fiscal year 2021 does not include this project. The report is due for submission to Congress by March.

After 15 years of planning, the project not being admitted into the federal New Starts process is disappointing. This first step in obtaining permission to enter the project development phase of the FTA New Starts Program is just the start of a long multiyear process.

The initial approval to enter the project development phase is only the first step, and the project still faces myriad hurdles. Completion of this work includes the FTA issuing an environmental finding, along with reaching agreements with the project sponsor, in this case Nassau County, concerning proposed project budget, scope and milestones.

This is followed by the project being given permission by the FTA to advance to the next stage, known as final engineering. Progression of final design and engineering from 30 to 100 percent averages several more years. This could include review and approval by various village, town, county, state and federal permitting or regulatory agencies along with financial, user, operations and maintenance groups. How long would the Nassau County Interim Financial Review Board take before providing approval?

Based on the lack of progress to date, Nassau County may be unable to obtain federal funding for the Nassau Hub Bus Rapid Transit project until 2024. Who knows how many years it would take before anyone can board the first vehicle in passenger service?

Larry Penner is a transportation historian and advocate who previously worked 31 years for the United States Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration Region 2 New York office.

See the original post here:

Where's The Progress? Little Movement On Proposed Nassau Hub In 15 Years - Long Island Weekly News

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According to user ColtsMcgee on Reddit, Johns hand fell off today during a performance of Walt Disneys Carousel of Progress. Based on the image, it appears his right hand fell off during the first scene, or the 1900s section of the show.

This isnt the first incident for the Carousel of Progress in recent memory, because, in December, a guest climbed onto the stage during the same scene and touched some of the props. While all damages from that incident were repaired, many readers have messaged us since then to report on numerous issues with the attraction. For example, scenes have been running without background music, leading the audio-animatronics to sing eerily acapella.

Walt Disneys Carousel of Progress has been long slated for a refurbishment, and we reported back in August that the attraction will have a large scale refurbishment after Walt Disney Worlds 50th anniversary.

Stay tuned to WDWNT for updates on this story and many more.

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PHOTO: Animatronic's Hand Falls Off Mid-Show at Carousel of Progress in the Magic Kingdom - wdwnt.com

VAIL When he first arrived on the job early lsat year, Vail Health CEO Will Cook wore a tie to work and had a very long to-do list. The tie is gone now, and there are some important items on the list crossed off, or at least well begun.

Cook recently sat down with the Vail Daily to talk about the past year and the months to come.

That first year is everything I thought it would be, Cook said, particularly regarding being able to see quick results from new and continuing initiatives.

Cooks most recent experience was working in large hospital systems. In those big-city settings, You couldnt mobilize the community as easily.

In the Vail Valley, mobilizing people and resources can happen fairly quickly.

Vail Health in April of 2019 announced it would pledge $60 million over the next decade to bolster the valleys behavioral health resources.

While the idea for increasing services had been percolating before Cook took the job, he said hed made that focus on behavioral health a priority when talking to Mike Shannon, the former chairman of the Vail Health and Vail Health Services board of directors.

Cook recalled that he told Shannon I need the support of the board, both financially and politically, Cook said.

That request came early on in his tenure.

It was by far the most wonderful experience Ive had in a boardroom, Cook said.

Today, Vail Health has added 30 behavioral health specialists out of a goal of 50.

Cook credited Eagle Valley Behavioral Health Director Chris Lindley for the progress on the initiatives. Lindley is a galvanizer, Cook said, adding that Lindley was instrumental in putting together the core working group.

Even with progress over the past several months, Cook said theres still a lot of work to do. But, he added, the support is in place.

Another big initiative was the acquisition last year of Colorado Mountain Medical. That acquisition of the physicians group will help create a more proactive system, Cook said.

Getting people to see doctors on a regular basis means patients can sometimes get early help and referral to specialists on potentially disastrous health problems.

All of that costs money, Cook said. But if you dont (have early care) and have a heart attack, a $10,000 issue becomes a $100,000 issue.

Vail Health entering that part of the care spectrum requires a big provider network. Cook said Vail Health could build its own network and compete with Colorado Mountain Medical, or Vail Health could merge with the established provider.

That expansion also allowed Vail Health to negotiate reimbursement rates with Anthem, the only insurance company for valley residents with private insurance.

The insurance landscape is shifting, and may change even more as the fight over a public option insurance option heats up in the state legislature.

Co-sponsored last session by Rep. Dylan Roberts, D-Avon, and Sen. Kerry Donovan, D-Vail, the public option bill directed state insurance regulators to draft a proposal for a state option insurance plan. The proposal was vetted in stakeholder meetings around the state before beingpresented to the legislature earlier this month.Roberts is now working on a bill based on some version of that plan, which has been opposed by many hospitals in the state.

Cook said he needs to learn more about the bill before offering support or opposition.

I need to see more of the details, Cook said. Im open to solutions that enhance (care).

Providing care to more people is important, not just for residents, but for the local hospital.

Cook said people leaving the valley for care tend to go either to Front Range-based providers or Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs.

Cook said theres a widely-held perception that Vail Healths services and procedures are more expensive. But, he said, a recent Rand Corporation study showed Vail Health is less expensive, on average, than either Valley View or St. Anthonys Summit County.

Part of getting people to stop seeking care elsewhere is a matter of education, Cook said. Thats particularly true in the western part of the valley, he added.

We have to rebuild trust, in the western valley, Cook said.

Part of building trust is working to be a more transparent organization. Vail Health is a private, nonprofit operation. Board meetings dont have to be open to the public.

Cook said hes working to open up one or two meetings a year. But, he added, that wont happen for a while.

Transparency also includes being more open about Vail Healths finances.

Some transparency is coming in the form of a federal mandate to post prices for procedures and services. Cook said he intends for Vail Health to go beyond whats required by law.

But, he added, Vail Health which is a complex organization that includes both nonprofit and for-profit arms needs to be better about its financial reporting.

That includes billing, which Cook acknowledged is broken.

That takes time, he said. We have to untangle how its been done, and totally rebuild it.

As Cook is becoming better known in the community, he fields plenty of questions when hes out and about. Most of those questions are about costs.

Most of those questions are from people who want to understand what Vail Health is doing to make care more affordable.

The answers are complicated, and could be some time in coming, he said.

Vail Daily Business Editor Scott Miller can be reached at smiller@vaildaily.com or 970-748-2930.

Read more here:

Vail Health CEO gives a progress report on his first year on the job - Vail Daily News