saenzyvaldes.com

Danish clothing company sells T-shirts to support FARC and PFLP

Friday, January 20, 2006

A recently created Danish clothing company is selling on the internet T-shirts in order to support the clandestine radio station of the Colombian guerrilla group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the graphical workshop of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). In fact the money will be used by these groups to carry on their terrorist activities. FARC activities include kidnappings, masacres, bombs, extortions and the drug trade.

Fighters and Lovers is selling the T-shirts at 170 DKK (US$27.6), from which 35 DKK (US$5.7) are to be destinated to support both armed groups.

Anna Duever, Fighters and Lovers PR chief, said to Spanish news agency EFE that their objective is to “defend freedom and social justice, which is FARC and PFLP are fighting for”. Duever believes the fact the FARC has been included by the EU in its terrorist group list is a “political game”. “We pay our taxes in Denmark, and that money is used for financing the troops our government has sent to Iraq. That’s terrorism. Besides, in Colombia there’s a regime oppressing population and torturing and killing its people”, she said.

Colombian Foreign Affairs Minister, Carolina Barco, said to local media that “financing terrorist groups is unacceptable and goes against all the international norms. Yesterday [Tuesday 19] our ambassador contacted the Danish government, we sent a protest note and have demanded an explanation.”

A year ago, a Danish NGO named Oprør (“Rebelion”) stated it had donated money to the Colombian guerrilla. A new antiterrorism law in Denmark may punish it.

NYC students attempt to revive stoop culture

Saturday, February 17, 2007

A trio of freshmen at a New York design school say that residents aren’t taking advantage of a valuable and countless resource found all around the world: stoops.

In Sit Here, a campaign inspired by a recent class project, Sarah Feldman, Chelsea Briganti and Essence Rodriguez are using fliers placed around New York to encourage residents and visitors to get to know one another on their stoops.

Wikinews got a chance to talk to Sarah Feldman, web designer for the project. Feldman is also responsible for getting different news sources to contact the team, such as the Brooklyn Papers and New York Magazine.

Sit Here has been noticed in at least 15 different news sources, including Wikinews.

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The Tools Of Marketing Communications

By Bruno

Often advertising is considered a synonym of marketing Communications because it is the most visible tool of the Communications mix. But, of course, a large variety of communication instruments exist, each with its own typical characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. The tools of the communications mix are described below.

Advertising is non-personal mass communication using mass media. The content of which is determined and paid for by a clearly identified sender. (the company)

Sales promotions are sales-stimulating campaigns, such as price cuts or couponing. This is one of the most appealing instruments to customers.

Sponsorship implies that the sponsor provides funds, goods or services. The sponsee will help the sponsor with communication objectives such as building brand awareness or reinforcing the corporate image. Sports, arts, media, and even television programs can be sponsored. Events are often linked to a sponsorship. A company can sponsor an event or organize its own events, for instance for its sales team, clients and everyone else related to the company.

Public relations consist of all the communications a company instigates with its audience or stakeholders. Stakeholders are groups of individuals or organizations with whom the company wants to create goodwill. Press releases and conferences which are some of the major public relation tools, should generate publicity. Publicity is impersonal mass communication in mass media, but it is not paid for by a company and the content is written by journalists. This means that negative publicity is also possible.

Point-of-purchase communications are communications at the point of purchase or point of sales. It includes several communications tools such as displays and advertising within the shop. These purchases are generally referred to as last-minute purchases and are made without thinking.

Exhibitions and trade fairs are, particularly in business-to-business and industrial markets, of great importance for contacting prospects and users.

Direct marketing communications are a personal and direct way to communicate with customers and potential clients. Personalized brochures and leaflets (with feedback if possible!), telemarketing and direct mailings are possible ways of using direct marketing communications.

Personal selling is the oral and/or demonstration of one or more sales-persons aimed at selling the products or services of a company. It is a personal contact between a company representative and a prospect or client. It might be one of the best ways of selling a product, but it is the most expensive method as well.

The Internet offers new ways to communicate interactively with different stakeholders, together Marketing communications try to influence of persuade potential consumers by converying a message. This message transfer may be directed to certain known and individually addressed persons, in which case it is called personal communications. The message transfer may also take place to a number of receivers who cannot be identified. Using this mass media to reach a broad audience is called mass communications and is the exact opposite of personal communications. Personal communications are mainly direct and interactive marketing actions to sell a product. All other promotional tools are mass marketing communications.

About the Author: Bruno is a web entrepreneur and social media marketing consultant working for the Norwegian dog community website Hundefeber.no. He also owns a lovely Pomeranian and a Mops dog.

Source: isnare.com

Permanent Link: isnare.com/?aid=574355&ca=Marketing

Society? Past And Present Views On Belly Rings

Society’s Past and Present Views on Belly Rings

mikeg123

Belly rings have a fairly rich history that many people do not know about. They were actually quite popular with multiple ancient civilizations. In more recent history, navel rings were actually ostracized by much of society, but in the past 20-30 years they have become quite popular. This article will discuss how belly rings were significant in the past, and how they became popular in present times.

Modern history has documented that bell rings have been worn since at least the times of the Aztec civilization, but were popular within quite a few different ancient societies. For example, belly rings were used widely throughout the Egyptian and Incan civilizations. Most of the time belly rings were actually worn as symbols of power, or high social status. This is interesting since today they have basically no symbolism at all. In some societies, navel rings even represented that you were a great warrior, or part of a royal family. In some ancient African civilizations, they were often used in ceremonies celebrating reaching a certain age. They are actually still used in Africa today for the same reason.

Society today has transformed belly rings into basically just a fashion statement. They were fairly unpopular and not worn often at all before punk music became popular. But when the punk culture became somewhat widespread, belly rings started to get some recognition. They started as simply an aspect of a counter culture, but started getting some mainstream attention after a few important events. One of these events that helped belly rings to become popular was when the model Christy Turlington did a show in London, and walked down the runway wearing a belly ring. Navel piercings became even more well known after Alicia Silverstone was shown wearing one in a 1993 Aerosmith music video. If these events did not occur, belly rings would possibly not be a part of popular culture today.

Navel piercings have become a part of today’s youth culture and will most likely be popular for quite some time. Most people would be surprised to know that belly rings also have a fairly significant history throughout many ancient cultures. Anyone who has their belly pierced today would probably be surprised by the popularity of this piercing in the past, and should be proud of the ancient trend that they are continuing.

belly rings information:

gold button rings

and

white gold belly piercings

and

guys and gold belly rings

Article Source:

ArticleRich.com

Talk:Oakland renters displaced by Hope VI program

Theres nothing to clean up, since the accuracy of this story is not in dispute. [[I feel honored to be able to speak freely about the corruption taking place in Oakland’s housing programs that target the poor for dislocation. Sincerely, Lynda Carson — Oakland, CA. 510/763-1085 —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 66.52.186.122 (talk • contribs) 08:23, 28 October 2006 moved from article to talk page by Doldrums

LyndaCarson, Thanks for contributing this well written and well sourced article to Wikinews. Wikinews welcomes contributions original reporting such as these. The article needs a little more work before publishing though, since some of it does not adhere to the Wikinews:Neutral point of view.

Wikinews articles are written to conform to NPOV in order to ensure that our coverage of an event is fair and unbiased. We do this by only reporting facts, leaving out all editorial opinion, and representing all views over an issue, attributing each and giving each view the depth of coverage deserved by its relative notability. a (much better written) introduction to NPOV can be found here, including an explanation of why NPOV is useful.

I and other contributors will be happy to help make the necessary changes to this article, in fact, the “cleanup tag” added to the article is the first step in doing this. It is meant to be constructive criticism helping to improve the article.

Also, i see that u’ve published this article on Indymedia, but without releasing it to the public domain or under a Creative commons (CC) license. This means that the article can only be reproduced by other non-commercial publications. Now, even though Wikinews is a non-commercial website, it releases its articles with a CC license, allowing commercial use. So you will have to either post a “released under Creative Commons Attribution 2.5” notice on the Indymedia article page, or e-mail such a permission to a Wikinews administrator in order for Wikinews to host this article.

welcome and thanks again for writing for wikinews. i look forward to more such articles from you. reg, — Doldrums(talk) 04:32, 28 October 2006 (UTC)

I tried to make this article more NPOV by removing some loaded words (“gentrification project”, etc.) Not sure if this is enough to undispute it.–DCo1 06:06, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

This does appear to be a copyright violation… Someone from Indymedia will need to verify the copyright status of this article. I’ve not tagged it as a copyvio, yet, as it may be that it existed here first. It could be dual licensed, etc. but the Indymedia site doesn’t indicate that the copyright is held by the author (it looks like Indymedia has the rights to the story). –Chiacomo ^(talk) 06:03, 28 October 2006 (UTC)

Sources: Oakland renters displaced by Hope VI program

[EBALDC and Related Companies, LLC., created Creekside Housing Partners, L.P., to take control of Oakland’s public housing property in East Oakland at the Coliseum Gardens site, now known as Lion Creek Crossings. Chambers Construction will develop the homeownership portion at Lion Creek Crossings with EBALDC and The Related Company jointly responsible for the apartments.]

—Lion Creek Crossing (Coliseum Garden) Now Renting—

The Oakland Housing Authority received a HOPE VI grant to replace its 178 notorious Coliseum Garden apartments with a mixed income development of over 350 apartments and approximately 28 homes for sale. EBALDC assembled a development team, which includes The Related Company of California and Chambers Construction to work with the housing authority. Chambers Construction will develop the homeownership portion with EBALDC and The Related Company jointly responsible for the apartments. The development will surround a revitalized 5 acre City Park and Lion creek, which will also be restored by the city. The first phase of this development includes 115 apartments and 7,500 square feet of space for community services.

This phase is under construction with a second phase of 146 apartments and another 7,500 square feet scheduled to start late in 2005. Community services anticipated include a Head Start Child Care Center, youth and after school programs, health programs, career counseling and business development opportunities. A third phase is being planned with over a hundred family apartments and townhouses that will overlook the restored Lion creek and city park.

These brand new Lion Creek Crossing apartments are ready for occupants. Contact EBALDC today at (510) 287-5353 for details….

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ [CHAMBERS CONSTRUCTION] http://www.chambersconstruction.com/ Carolyn Silva. Chambers, owner of Chambers Construction CHAIRMAN & C.E.O. CHAMBERS COMMUNICATIONS Home-86220 DERY Rd or 86054 DERY Rd. PLEASANT HILL, OREGON 97455 (541) 746-1510 — (541) 988-5732 (Born September of 1931) Political Donations (2004) to George W. Bush $2,000 — $500 contributed to the RNC

Carolyn Silva. Chambers’ business empire includes real estate, a construction company, a vineyard, and the crown jewel, Chambers Communications Corp.

Local — Chambers Construction Co (510) 569-3081 7506 Macarthur Blvd Oakland, CA.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Search Results for Lion Creek Crossing from Related website:

Lion Creek Crossing Location: 800 69th Street Oakland, CA 94612 Property Type: Affordable Rental Multifamily Rentals Neighborhood Revitalization Organizations: Related California

—EBALDC Partnership With Related Companies—

EBALDC — East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation

(Lynette Jung Lee is the Director of EBALDC)

[1]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ [Related Companies]

Related Corporate Structure

Stephen M. Ross is head/CEO of Related Companies…

STEPHEN M ROSS (Born in May of 1940) (Home) 956 5TH AVE NEW YORK, NY 10021 (212) 772-1196 or (212) 772-7659

—Stephen M. Ross resides at 956 Fifth Avenue, in New York— Home of Stephen M. Ross at 956 Fifth Avenue. This finely detailed building has an unusual and … by in 1920 the Real Estate Board of New York, the City Club and the Fifth … _______________ Related of California

RELATED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS Stephen M. Ross

Jeff T. Blau Michael J. Brenner David J. Wine

About Stephen M. Ross / CharterMac

Board of Trustees Stephen M. Ross Chairman

Stephen M. Ross is non-executive Chairman of the Board of Trustees of CharterMac. Mr. Ross is the founder, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Managing General Partner of The Related Companies, L.P. (“TRCLP”). Mr. Ross began his career working for the accounting firm of Coopers & Lybrand in Detroit as a tax attorney. Later, he moved to New York, where he worked for two large Wall Street investment banking firms in their real estate and corporate finance departments before founding TRCLP in 1972. Mr. Ross graduated from The University of Michigan School of Business with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and from Wayne State School of Law with a Juris Doctor degree. He then received a Master of Law degree in Taxation from the New York University School of Law. Mr. Ross endowed the “Stephen M. Ross School of Business” at The University of Michigan. Mr. Ross is a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of the Real Estate Board of New York and is a trustee of the National Building Museum. Mr. Ross also serves on the Board of Directors of Kerzner International Ltd. (NYSE: KZL), Equinox Holdings, Inc. (an affiliate of TRCLP), the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Jackie Robinson Foundation and the Guggenheim Museum.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Lion Creek Crossings Open House of Phase 1 and Groundbreaking of Phase 2 Lion Creek Crossings will create a new community in the blighted and neglected Central East Oakland district and will be the catalyst for revitalizing the entire Coliseum BART station into a Transit Village. This HOPE VI development will provide up to 437 units over four phases of permanent affordable rental housing and 28 for-sale units for first time homebuyers. This is a joint venture between EBALDC, Related Companies of California and the Oakland Housing Authority.

Location: 915 69th Avenue, Oakland Ca, 94621 Time: 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM Sponsored by: Sponsored by East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC) For more information: Joyceland 510.287.5353 / jfarrow@ebaldc.com

—Stephen M. Ross Gives Away $100,000 Million Dollars— University of Michigan — (Stephen M. Ross gives away $100,000 million) New York City real estate developer Stephen M. Ross gives $100 million to University … chairman and chief executive officer of The Related Companies, LP, …

[Oakland Budget Summary for 2006 – Oakland Redevelopment Agency] Personnel Services and Related Overhead Costs – FY 2006-07 . … Lions Creek Crossings (Coliseum Gardens) Phase I. $1,500,000. Lions Creek Crossings (Coliseum …

Page 1) Executive Off Oakland Housing Authority MEMORANDUM

To: Board of Commissioners From: Jon Gresley, Executive Director

Subject: Resolution Approving Use of Additional Local Funds for Park Construction at the Lion Creek Crossings HOPE VI Primary Site and Amending the Predevelopment Services Agreement to Effect the Change

Date: September 19, 2006

This correspondence transmits for your consideration and approval a resolution authorizing the use of $287,593 in Authority Local Funds for construction of the preliminary phase replacement park at Lion Creek Crossings. This proposed additional allocation of funds to the park is part of the $7 million previously approved by the Board for use in the Lion Creek Crossings redevelopment.

Background: The Authority was awarded a HOPE VI grant in the amount of $34.5 million in 2000 to revitalize the 178-unit Coliseum Gardens public housing development. The Board approved the selection of East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC), The Related Companies of California (Related) and Chambers Construction Company (Chambers) as co-developer partners for redevelopment of the original public housing site and several adjacent or nearby properties (the “Primary Site”), now renamed Lion Creek Crossings. EBALDC and Related are co-developing the rental portion of the Primary Site, which will include 157 units of public housing. The total number of rental units, including public housing, now planned is approximately 440. Twenty-eight (28) units of for-sale housing are planned to be developed by Chambers. The construction of new streets and utilities and the reconfiguration of a public park are planned as part of the rental housing development.

The remaining 21 units of public housing are included in a recently constructed 65-unit development on Foothill Boulevard in Oakland.

In addition to the rental housing, the project includes the reconfiguration of Coliseum Gardens Park and the restoration of a portion of Lion Creek. The City of Oakland is managing the restoration of a portion of the creek that runs through the park. A grant from the California Pollution Control Finance Authority and the City of Oakland is providing funds for park planning. Pacific Gas and Electric Company has awarded $175,000 for park construction. The California Housing and Community Development Department has awarded the City of Oakland approximately $500,000 which is planned to be used for park construction. Our developer partners and staff are searching for additional sources of funding for park construction.

Page 2- In a Land Exchange Agreement that was executed between the Authority and the City, the Authority agreed to construct a temporary replacement park during the period when the existing park is taken out of service. The Developer has received an estimate of $388,735 from its general contractor for the cost of constructing a temporary replacement park. The Developer plans to start construction on Phase III of the rental housing on the site of the existing City park in October, and the temporary park is required to be in place prior to the start of construction on this phase. The grant funds described previously are not yet available, but will be in the future.

All park facilities related to the development are to be constructed by the Developer under the terms of an Amended and Restated Predevelopment Services Agreement (PSA). The current PSA includes a provision for the use of $101,142 in Authority Local Funds for park construction. The proposed resolution would authorize the use of an additional $287,593 in Authority Local Funds for the immediate construction of the preliminary phase replacement park, for a total of $388,735.

It is expected that the Authority will be reimbursed for the use of this additional allocation of its Local Funds as the above-described grant funds become available. If that occurs, the Local Funds will be available for reallocation within the project.

Proposed Action:

It is recommended that the Board of Commissioners adopt the attached resolution approving the use of an additional $288,593 in Authority Local Funds for construction of the preliminary phase replacement park at Lion Creek Crossings, and authorizing the Executive Director to amend the Predevelopment Services Agreement to incorporate this change, and to take all actions necessary to implement the resolution. Attachment: Resolution

(7/24/06)

THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS OF THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA

On Motion of Commissioner Seconded by Commissioner and approved by the following vote:

AYES: Commissioners NAYS: ABSTAIN: ABSENT:

THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTION WAS ADOPTED: NUMBER RESOLUTION APPROVING A CONDITIONAL COMMITMENT FOR AN INCREASE IN THE HOPE VI FUNDS CONSTRUCTION AND PERMANENT LOAN FOR THE COLISEUM GARDENS HOPE VI DEVELOPMENT PROJECT KNOWN AS LION CREEK CROSSINGS, PHASE III BETWEEN OAKLAND HOUSING AUTHORITY AS LENDER AND CREEKSIDE HOUSING PARTNERS, L.P. AS BORROWER

WHEREAS, the Oakland Housing Authority (Authority) previously executed a grant agreement with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) pursuant to its grant of HOPE VI funds for a revitalization plan that proposed the demolition and redevelopment of Coliseum Gardens and nearby properties, (collectively the “Primary Site”); and

WHEREAS, the Board of Commissioners approved the selection of East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC), The Related Companies of California (Related), and Chambers General Construction (Chambers) as co-developers of the Primary Site at its meeting on October 21, 2002; and

WHEREAS, the Authority owns the land on which the Coliseum Gardens revitalization development known as Lion Creek Crossings will be constructed, and the Authority leases the land to the partnership formed with EBALDC and Related for each phase of the development, which is known as Lion Creek Crossings;

WHEREAS, EBALDC and Related (the “Developer”) have joint responsibility for the development of the family rental housing at the Coliseum Gardens site and formed a limited partnership known as Creekside Housing Partners, L.P. (CHP) for the development of Lion Creek Crossings, Phase III, which consists of one hundred six units of public and affordable family housing; and

Page 2) WHEREAS, the Board of Commissioners passed Resolution 3685 authorizing the execution of the Phase III Disposition and Development Agreement which included a HOPE VI loan to CHP in the amount of $5,194,638; and

WHEREAS, the Board of Commission subsequently passed Resolution 3766 approving closing evidentiaries including HOPE VI loan documents with a lesser loan to CHP in the amount of $3,350,000; and

WHEREAS; CHP’s financing structure for Phase III included a loan from CalHFA based on increased rental income from Project-Based Section 8 funds available through the Authority; and

WHEREAS, the City of Oakland approved a loan amount of $4,600,000 for Phase III of which $600,000 was intended to offset a HUD rule change decreasing the value of rents available under the Project-Based Section 8 program; and

WHEREAS, as an MTW participant, the Authority has approved the use of market rents in its Project-Based Section 8 program, which reduced CHP’s documented need for $600,000 in City funds; and

WHEREAS, the City may then reduce its loan commitment to CHP by $600,000 as a result of the Authority’s approval of market rents for Phase III; and

WHEREAS, bids for construction of Phase III are anticipated to be higher than originally budgeted, creating a funding gap of $600,000.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS OF THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA:

THAT, the Authority will provide an increased construction and permanent loan of HOPE VI funds in the amount of up to $600,000 increasing its previous commitment of $3,350,000 to $3,950,000 contingent on the City of Oakland reducing its loan commitment for Phase III by $600,000, and if the construction bids are such that the funds are needed by CHP as determined by the Authority; and

THAT, the Executive Director is authorized to take all actions and execute such other documents as may be necessary and appropriate to implement the foregoing resolution.

Page 3) I certify that the foregoing resolution is a full, true and correct copy of a resolution passed by the Commissioners of the Housing Authority of the City of Oakland, California on July __, 2006. _____________________________________ Secretary / Executive Director ADOPTED: RESOLUTION NO.

09/13/06

THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS OF THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA

On Motion of Commissioner Seconded by Commissioner And approved by the following vote: AYES: NAYS ABSTAIN: EXCUSED: ABSENT:

THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTION WAS ADOPTED: NUMBER:

AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TO EXECUTE A PERFORMANCE-BASED SUB-GRANT AGREEMENT, NOT TO EXCEED $ 218,750 (TWO HUNDRED EIGHTEEN THOUSAND, SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY DOLLARS) FOR ONE YEAR, WITH THE EAST BAY ASIAN LOCAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (EBALDC) TO PROVIDE HOPE VI COMMUNITY AND SUPPORTIVE SERVICES FOR FAMILIES RESIDING AT LION CREEK CROSSINGS AND FOOTHILL PLAZA.

WHEREAS, the Authority received HOPE IV revitalization grants for Coliseum Gardens, now renamed Lion Creek Crossings; and

WHEREAS, the Authority issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) which was mailed directly to over 65 agencies and organizations and advertised in the Oakland Tribune; and

WHEREAS, EBALDC was selected as a program that best meets the needs of the residents and the requirements of the Authority for the provision of personal budgeting, consumer finance education, individual development accounts with matching, peer support groups and seminars, home buyer training and small business/micro-enterprise development; and

WHEREAS, the original RFP and Board resolution authorized the Executive Director to alter HOPE VI CSS sub-grant agreement scopes and selection of providers to address changes in resident services needs; and,

(Page 2) WHEREAS, EBALDC, as development partner for the Lion Creek Crossings HOPE VI development, has a daily presence on-site at Lion Creek Crossings, has experience providing comprehensive resident services at other EBALDC residential sites, and has the capability of providing all the resident services needs identified during the 2006 Lion Creek Crossing resident needs assessment.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS OF THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA:

THAT, the Executive Director, on behalf of the Authority, is hereby authorized to execute a one year performance-based sub-grant agreement not to exceed $218,750 with EBALDC to provide on-site services for school age youth and workforce development/ self-sufficiency services; and

THAT, the Executive Director, on behalf of the Authority, is hereby authorized to take all actions necessary to implement the foregoing resolution.

I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution is a full, true and correct copy of a resolution passed by the Commissioners of the Housing Authority of the City of Oakland, California on _________________. ________________________________ Secretary / Executive Director ADOPTED: RESOLUTION NO.

08/09/06

Executive Office

Oakland Housing Authority MEMORANDUM

To: Board of Commissioners From: Jon Gresley, Executive Director

Subject: Lion Creek Crossings Security Contract Date: August 3, 2006

As you are aware, the first phase of Lion Creek Crossings is now housing residents. Related, the Authority partner and property manager, has contacted the Authority and has requested increased patrol due to several incidents of criminal activity since the property has opened. Related employs a private security firm at Lion Creek Crossings, but many of the problems exceed their capacity for response. OHAPD has been providing sporadic increased patrol; however, due to the fact that the Authority does not own the buildings nor manage the property and the Authority passes operating subsidies to the property for the purpose of subsidizing operating expenses, we have indicated to Related that the policing of the property is the responsibility of the Oakland Police Department.

After several meetings between Related and the Oakland Police Department (OPD), as well as the continuance of increased criminal activity, Related contacted Phillip Neville, Deputy Executive Director of Real Estate Development, and Carel Duplessis, Chief of OHAPD, to explore the feasibility of Lion Creek Crossings contracting with the Authority to supplement OPD’s policing of Lion Creek Crossings with officers from OHAPD. Through discussions, an agreement has been reached for Related to pay the cost of two full-time Police Officers for a two year contract.

A written agreement between Related and the Authority is currently being drafted for OHA’s Board approval at the August 28 Commission meeting. Preparatory to that meeting staff will brief the Commission at the workshop session of August 9. Chief Carel Duplessis will provide the briefing and address any questions.

[Creekside Housing Partners, L.P. take control of the Coliseum Gardens/Lion Creek Crossings]

(Lion Creek Crossings used to be known as Coliseum Gardens public housing (178 units) of Oakland)

(EBALDC and Related Companies, LLC., created Creekside Housing Partners, L.P., to take control of Oakland’s public housing property in Oakland. )

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Melissa Flores Phone: 916.324.4647 Fax: 916.322.2345 mflores@calhfa.ca.gov www.calhfa.ca.gov

Financing for Affordable Family Housing in Oakland

SACRAMENTO, June 6, 2006 – A new affordable housing project will soon be built in the City of Oakland’s master planned community, Lion Creek Crossings (formerly known as Coliseum Gardens), to create rental housing for an additional 106 families. The California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) Board of Directors approved nearly $23 million in construction financing and $4.8 million in permanent financing for Lion Creek Crossings, a family apartment community, to be owned by Creekside Housing Partners, L.P., which is a joint venture between East Bay Asian Local Development and the Related Companies, LLC. The property management services will be provided by Related Management Company. Cahill Contractors will begin construction in August 2006 with completion expected in February 2008.

The 106-unit complex is designed to provide affordable rental housing to those with household incomes at or below 60 percent of the area median income. This project is the third phase in the master planned community of Lion Creek Crossings. This unique urban infill project is replacing public housing units developed in the 1940s. CalHFA has provided financing for all three phases of the master development, creating 367 new affordable housing residences.

– more – Page 2 The 2.49 acre project site will feature seven buildings with units ranging in size from one to four bedrooms and styled as flats or town homes. The residents will also enjoy the use of the master community’s shared common recreational facilities and community rooms currently available to Phase I residents.

CalHFA will provide nearly $23 million in construction financing with a variable interest rate for 22 months. Upon completion, a permanent loan of $3.815 million will be provided by CalHFA, as well as, CalHFA subordinate financing for slightly more than $1 million. Other funding sources include the California Department of Housing and Community Development’s Multifamily Housing Program, the Housing Authority of the City of Oakland (OHA), HOPE VI loan from HUD to OHA, the City of Oakland, and the Federal Home Loan Bank’s Affordable Housing Program.

The California Housing Finance Agency was created in 1975 with the goal of helping more Californian’s live in a home they can afford. CalHFA’s Multifamily Division has invested more than $2 billion for the construction and preservation of 36,000 affordable rental housing units assisting nearly 85,000 very low and low income Californians. More information on Multifamily Loan Finance programs and the full complement of CalHFA programs, visit www.calhfa.ca.gov or call toll free 877.9.CalHFA (877.922.5432).

The Related Companies

Related develops, manages and finances the world’s finest real estate developments. Our skills and experience are enhanced by a passion for quality and a unique entrepreneurial spirit. Related properties are more than structures – they are a union of energy, creativity, forward thinking and collaboration. Founded in New York in 1972, we are proud to call this great city our home. For more information on Related, visit our About section.

“THE SWEET LIFE” IS RISING IN MANHATTAN AT THE VENETO, A NEW EAST SIDE LUXURY CONDOMINIUM RESIDENCE FROM RELATED

^^^^^^^^^ Related of California

Related of California was formed in 1989 to focus on the development of multifamily housing in California. It is an affiliate of Related, L.P., a fully integrated real estate firm based in New York City with divisions specializing in development, property management, and financial services.

Since its inception, Related has developed over 6,000 units of housing in California, with properties in San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Bernardino County, San Diego, and San Diego County.

Its projects run the gamut from award-winning apartments for low- and moderate-income seniors and families to a 487-unit high-rise apartment development in downtown San Francisco that is the tallest residential building in the city.

Related’s team of professionals brings hands-on experience and expertise in project management, finance, construction, and property management, along with the financial backing of one of the country’s premier real estate companies.

To forward your questions or comments, simply click below, fill out forms and we’ll send your request to the appropriate person.

Related California Properties in California

Lockwood Gardens, Coliseum Gardens and Lower Fruitvale HOPE VI Site Profile

City: Oakland Official PHA Name: Oakland PHA Name of Site: Lockwood Gardens, Coliseum Gardens and Lower Fruitvale HOPE VI Coordinator: Philip J. Neville Phone: 510-874-1520 Fax: 510-874-1674 E-mail: pneville@oakha.org Address: 1619 Harrison St. Oakland, CA 94612 Site Profile:

FY 1994 Implementation Grant: $25,510,020 FY 1996 Assistance Award/Amendment Funds: $1,000,000

OHA’s HOPE VI program in East Oakland involves the extensive renovation of 372 out of 550 housing units in two complexes and four scattered sites (consisting of 60 units) located in Lower Fruitvale. Fourteen scattered-site units are scheduled to be demolished and rebuilt. A site-based management strategy is currently being tested at Lockwood Gardens, which has 372 housing units.

The HOPE VI program enabled OHA to expand its collaboration with the Mayor’s office, which began with the City’s 1991 campaign to reduce violence and drug trafficking within and around the Coliseum and Lockwood communities. The Mayor’s Office was very supportive in preparing the original HOPE VI application and has been heavily involved in the effort ever since.

The joint successes from both the Mayor’s program and OHA’s HOPE VI development process have positively impacted the Coliseum and Lockwood sites. There is marked improvement in the environments at both sites. Resident-planted gardens are not vandalized and children and adults can remain outside after dark, which was considered unsafe just a few months earlier. Policing services are provided by the Oakland Police Department to all authority sites. Officers from the Oakland Housing Authority’s Security Services Department supplement the City’s services. To supplement security at Coliseum and Lockwood, iron fences are used to surround the complexes.

OHA was the recipient of several HUD grants in 1995, including a HOPE VI planning grant for the West Oakland area. Additionally, there are two major modernization programs currently in progress in West Oakland.

^^^^^^^^^^^ Coliseum Gardens HOPE VI Site Profile

City: Oakland Official PHA Name: Oakland PHA Name of Site: Coliseum Gardens HOPE VI Coordinator: Philip J. Neville Phone: 510-874-1510 Fax: 510-874-1674 E-mail: pneville@oakha.org Address: 1619 Harrison St. Oakland, CA 94612 Site Profile:

FY 2000 grantee in the amount of $34,486,116.

The Housing Authority of the City of Oakland will receive a HOPE VI Revitalization Grant in the amount of $34,486,116 that will enable the Housing Authority to revitalize the Coliseum Gardens public housing development. A total of 178 severely distressed units will be replaced on-site with 30 public housing units, 20 tax credit rental units, and 85 affordable homeownership units. In addition, 148 public housing units and 46 tax credit rental units will be developed on underutilized land and scattered sites nearby. A significant number of the off-site public housing units will be within new housing developments in non-impacted areas. A new park and community center will be the focus of the new, on-site community. The revitalization of Coliseum Gardens, located in the Central East Oakland Target Area within the Coliseum Redevelopment Area, will benefit from a $134 million investment in the Coliseum BART Station and the new rail connection between the Station and the Oakland International Airport. Oakland’s HOPE VI Grant will leverage a total of $56.2 million other public and private funds.

For details, read HUD’s Fact Sheet:

Lion Creek Crossing (Funding for the streets at Lion Creek Crossing from Oakland Redevlopment Agency)

Comments:US F-18 fighter jet crashes in San Diego residential area

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This is terrible —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.15.52.4 (talk • contribs)

I spy with my little eyes: More than 30 million down the drain. -Sidorvich (talk) —Preceding comment was added at 07:07, 9 December 2008 (UTC)

Imagine the owners of the home it crashed into…out of all of the millions of homes around the world… MINE has a military jet land in the bathtub. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.59.245.137 (talk) 13:28, 9 December 2008 (UTC)

Sad:( —Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.28.88.247 (talk) 02:58, 12 December 2008 (UTC)

Exercise For Back Pain: Pilates

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Exercise For Back Pain: Pilates

jason@makeadream.info

Joseph Pilates was born in Germany 1883. His mother was a naturopath and his father a gymnast. Joseph, himself, suffered from many childhood ailments, including rickets, asthma and rheumatic fever. With such parentage and his own weaknesses, it was the perfect combination for him to see this as an opportunity to learn how to improve his physical well being. As he explored his own potential he developed his own beliefs around breathing and posture, ultimately developing his own exercises including exercise for back pain and other physical painful symptoms, as well as a way to keep the body strong and healthy.

It was when he migrated to the USA in 1925 that he started to teach his methods to develop the core muscles with particular attention to breathing and posture. The popularity of these methods then spilled into mainstream medical care with many therapists and clinics offering Pilates for physical rehab. It is well known that back pain can be caused by weak core muscles, especially back muscles, that have lost a lot of their flexibility over the years. People need to exercise those muscles to strengthen them, but unable to do so, because of the pain. They find themselves in a catch 22 situation and consequently, do not attempt any exercise for back pain, and suffer, much also, to the chagrin of family and carers. Pilates does offer a very low impact alternative. If someone has broken bones, however, then that is a different matter altogether. And, as always, I recommend that if someone has back pain, or wishes to start an exercise programme, where there is a history of back problems, that they first speak with their doctor. That said, Pilates routines have helped many who have suffered trauma to the back, from various kinds of stresses physical challenges. These routines balance and strengthen the lower back support muscles as well as hips and pelvic area of the torso. They help develop core strength and so prevent further muscle injury or muscle degradation due to lack of exercise. A simple series of back stretches for back pain are key to building up core strength, much the same way that gymnasts began their training, with many many stretching excercises, as part of their daily routine. Over time, they develop the flexibility that those with back pain can only dream about. It is from his early routes and gymnastic background, that Pilates has been developed and adapted to be the popular and effective option for back therapy today. Pilates exercise for back pain has been shown to be very effective when used by those with acute and chronic back pain, osteoporosis, sports, car and work placement related injuries (bad posture at work, for example), head injuries and even scoliosis. It has helped physical therapists be able to work with each sufferer to discover what movement limitation that person has and how best to help that person develop a better core strength, thus relieving their back pain. Incidentally, even those who are in a wheelchair can significantly improve their well being, by strengthening their core through Pilates exercises.

If you would like to see 5 tips for back pain relief, then please take a look at Pilates back stretches for back pain,

part of the Exercise For Back Pain series of routines you can use to get rid of back pain; just click on the link.

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ArticleRich.com

Images show new dimension to Saturn’s rings

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

NASA’s Cassini orbiter has sent back remarkable images from Saturn, revealing that the planet’s famous rings are far more bumpy than expected.

Astronomers previously thought that the rings were almost completely flat, with changes in height of only a few metres. However analysis of the new images show ridges up to 4 kilometres tall, similar in height to the Rocky Mountains or the Alps.

The images were taken around the planet’s equinox on August 11, when the Sun was directly over Saturn’s equator and caught the rings edge on. A similar equinox occurs today (September 22) on Earth. But whilst equinoxes occur twice a year on Earth, Saturn takes around 29.7 Earth years to orbit the Sun so the events are much rarer.

With the light from the Sun reaching Saturn’s rings at such a low angle, scientists were able to measure the shadows cast by bumps on the rings and discover their surprising height. As Cassini project scientist Bob Pappalardo put it: “It’s like putting on 3-D glasses and seeing the third dimension for the first time. This is among the most important events Cassini has shown us.”

Some of the ring features are known to be caused by Saturn’s moons, but others are harder to explain. “To understand what we are seeing will take more time, but the images and data will help develop a more complete understanding of how old the rings might be and how they are evolving,” said Linda Spilker, Cassini deputy project scientist.

Cassini was launched in 1997, and entered orbit around Saturn in 2004. It is part of the Cassini-Huygens joint mission between NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency.

Reform Party of the United States nominates fitness model Andre Barnett for president

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Fitness model Andre Barnett of Poughkeepsie, New York won the presidential nomination of the Reform Party of the United States at its national convention in Philadelphia last weekend. Consultant Kenneth Cross was selected as his running mate.

Barnett, who founded the company WiseDome, became a fitness model after suffering an injury in a 2000 helicopter incident while serving in the U.S. Army. He participated in last January’s Wikinews Reform Party USA presidential candidates forum, along with then-candidates former Savannah State football coach Robby Wells and Earth Intelligence Network CEO Robert David Steele.

Both Wells and Steele withdrew long before the convention as did others who later announced their candidacies, notably former Louisiana governor Buddy Roemer and former Council of Economic Advisers Senior Economist Laurence Kotlikoff. As Wikinews reported in June, historian Darcy Richardson also sought the nomination, but he tells Wikinews that he did not attend the convention and withdrew from the race in July, “once it became clear the party wasn’t going to qualify for the ballot in Arkansas, New Jersey and a few of the other relatively easy states.”

Two other candidates — Cross, who later won the vice presidential nomination, and Dow Chemical worker Edward Chlapowski — attended the convention, where they debated Barnett before the delegate vote.

In his acceptance speech, Barnett referred to the Reform Party as “the microcosm of America”, and proclaimed that as the party’s nominee, he would not focus on social issues that “[belong] outside of politics”, but instead would center his campaign on the economy, defense, and education.

The Reform Party currently has ballot access in four states: Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Kansas; but in June, the disaffiliated Kansas Reform Party chose to nominate 2008 Constitution Party presidential nominee Chuck Baldwin.