Lars, is the house okay? All in the path of Hilary can check in?
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
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- 3 years ago
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Formal House, Country Setting - which walkway hardscaping materia
Comments (41)Thanks for checking in Karin. Hoyess front door is better proportioned. But you make a good point about perhaps having a front patio instead of just a landing. As you can see from following photo, the landing is closed off on the side. I did a half-hearted try to see if I could get matching brick, and was told it came from Canada and is not stocked locally. If I was going to do something like that I would most likely have to get more brick. Might still be possible to get some if I looked harder, or inquired in Canada which is not that far. Still just mulling over ideas . . . RaeHelen's front walkway is GREAT! Imaginative approach and so nice and wide and welcoming. Adamante, not quite sure what your point is...? I know it's a long post to read all the way through, but previous owner ran out of money, hence no landscaping. He went bankrupt and we bought this house for cheap from the bank. Traded in a tiny, old tract home in San Jose,CA and got money back when we bought this. Of course I now live in the middle of nowhere, not near any good jobs but I'm sure happy with the trade. DH does not drive a lexus (your point??) but a beat up 98 Dodge truck with dents in it. I'm actually a little embarassed by the place, I bought it for the beautiful property - land, woods, and pond. Here's the landing from the other angle, showing how it's bricked off....See MoreAppropriate and Beautiful - Thank you Lars
Comments (44)Those bowls are gorgeous, Lars. I'll have to show them to DH so he gets inspired. He's learning to turn bowls on his lathe. For his first project he started out with a big chunk of wood...it's now about 3" in diameter, lol....See MoreGarage to guest house - is this okay?
Comments (22)Based on the previous use of the building, be careful of how you word your permit request. If you are converting a structure that was previously used as a dwelling, and it had an existing full bath (undersized as it is), then most cities would have different permit requirements. For example, in most cities you can replace a toilet, sink, shower or other bath fixture without a permit if its a direct replacement of the existing configuration. You still need permits for changing electrical and framing, but its only for those modifications/upgrades. If you have a friendly building office I would talk to them directly. Make it clear that you are just improving an existing structure that is already approved, and want to make sure you are doing everything to code. It sounds like you are renovating an existing structure that served as maid's quarters with bath to make it a guest suite. Bruce...See MoreHurricane Hilary Update
Comments (234)I don’t have a television, so I gather information from other sources, plus YouTube captures of TV reports if the event is important enough. Hilary was forecast to lose strength and arrive in San Diego as a tropical storm — that was clear from the start. The SoCal rain forecasts showed wide variations that reflected the eastward path of Hilary. Los Angeles County coastal areas were forecast as receiving the least amount of rain — being the farthest west from the Hilary’s path. The unknown factor seemed to be the force of the winds, and predictions varied. (This was the first time I had ever seen squalls forecast for my area.) It’s not that unusual to have a small tornado with minimal damage during a storm, and there have been at least two this year. So the forecast of a possible tornado wasn’t particularly alarming. Long Beach was bulldozing large amounts of sand to form berms to protect beach areas. Due to its particular location in the Santa Monica Bay, LB is more exposed; it’s the area that would be hit if there were ever a tsunami, it’s summer temperatures are consistently higher than Santa Monica and Venice. So formation of the berms was not an over reaction. At one point, all beaches in L.A. County were declared closed Sunday and Monday of the storm. I believe this was to keep dare devils away, and avoid possible rescues from storm surf when manpower might be required elsewhere. Locally, loss of power in the last several months has plagued certain neighborhoods in the Westside’s beach areas. I had been lucky until a few weeks ago — and purchased battery-operated laterns as a result. I can imagine that a number of people were fearful of an extended power loss, and rushed to buy batteries and flashlights. The forecasts preceding each atmospheric-river storm were more alarming for the amount of rain predicted, and had the usual warnings for areas vulnerable to debris flows and flooding. Going through that series of storms undoubtedly affected the be-prepared mentality of Angelenos. After Hilary, there were reports of possible crop failures in the Imperial Valley due to flooding of fields already planted, but not yet ready for harvesting. So southern agricultural areas were affected as well. When there may be flooding of interstate routes in desert areas, that is always big news locally, and Hilary’s case was no different. Because of the large population in the greater Los Angeles area, the goal for any storm is to keep as many people at home as possible. Our reputation as idiots who don’t know how to drive in the rain is well earned....See More- 3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago
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Lars