April 2013 Vol. 11, No. 4
The April 2013 issue of New England Condominium newspaper focuses on Landscaping & Lawn Care.
In this issue, you can read about New England Condo Expo, invasive species, controlling pet waste, and irrigation.
Visit our archives to see other articles that were published in 2013.
News Briefs
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05.23.13 Faced with a condominium shortage in the Hub, Boston-area brokers are resorting to creative methods to find homes for their clients. [Boston Business Journal]
- 05.22.13 Responding to concerns from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and affiliated trade groups, bipartisan legislation to make much-needed improvements to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Lead: Renovation, Repair and Painting (LRRP) rule was reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives today. [National Association of Home Builders]
- 05.16.13 A second lawsuit has been filed seeking damages after a gas explosion three years ago ignited a massive fire that killed a Stratham, NH, woman and destroyed part of a condominium complex. [Manchester Union Leader]
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05.11.13 Developer Mark Steiner is lobbying Waterford, CT, First Selectman Daniel Steward and state Sen. Andrea Stillman, D-Waterford, to create a special taxing district at the state-owned former Seaside property on Shore Road. [The Day]
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05.02.13 A Hamden, CT, woman said she'd risk being taken away in a police car if it it meant saving trees in her condo complex. ... Patty Dest did what she said she was going to do, make some noise, and put a stop to a plan approved by the Board of Directors. That plan is to remove eight trees. [www.wtnh.com]
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04.09.13 Changing zoning laws that might lead to restricted home building – or none at all – along the beach has been ruled out by state legislators as towns guard their lucrative source of property tax revenue. [CT Post]
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03.26.13 The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency says people who buy federal flood insurance need to plan for big rate hikes. FEMA director Craig Fugate says some people now paying hundreds of dollars a year could wind up paying thousands because Congress says the program must at least pay for itself. [Washington Post]
- 02.15.13 In a significant opinion, the Massachusetts Appeals Court has made it easier for condominium associations to recover for common area construction defects. In Wyman v. Ayer Properties, LLC, the Appeals Court held that the economic loss doctrine did not preclude a condo association's negligent construction claim. [bostonmetrobusinesslawyer.com]
Featured Articles
New England Condo Expo Has it All! — May 21, 2013
Free seminars, networking opportunities and a chance to get all your condo
questions answered — the 2013 New England Condo Expo brings it all together, in one day, under one
roof.
Read More
Invasive Species
In Worcester, Massachusetts, the north side of the city has been stripped of its
shade trees, victims of a slow but persistent invader from China—the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB). The value that mature hardwoods provide in
dense residential areas is more fully appreciated now that they’re gone. “My mother’s house is now more expensive to heat in winter and keep cool in summer, since
the trees in her neighborhood were removed. Those trees used to shield cold
winds in winter, and gave protection from the sun’s heat all summer,” states Geoff Ford, vice president of the pest division at Ford Hometown Service
in Worcester.
Read More
The Irrigation Situation
One of the things that attracts people to a condo or HOA are the beautiful
grounds and lush landscaping that surrounds the property. Because of the
topography of New England, it’s almost always necessary for properties to use irrigation technology to keep
their lawns, trees and shrubs healthy and green.
Read More
The Grand Design
Whether enhancing a towering high-rise or a sprawling suburban development,
landscaping not only helps a condo or HOA increase and retain property values,
but has a positive impact on residents themselves. Beautiful, functional green
spaces and plantings increase pride of ownership, influence morale, and just
generally make a place more pleasant to be in for owners and visitors alike.
And unless there happens to be a master gardener or landscape architect on a
building board or grounds committee, chances are that the community’s administrators will have to call upon a professional landscape specialist to
help make the most of their property’s potential.
Read More
