A hand-made thank you card from TBA scholarship recipient

It’s back to class for college students across Virginia. One special student, a 2007 graduate of Princess Anne High School, has sent Tidewater Builders Association her annual hand-written “thank you” to the TBA Scholarship Foundation.

For the fourth year in a row Nichole Ehlers has personally penned her gratitude for the scholarship award — and sent it in on a hand-made card.

2007 scholarship recipient Nichole Ehlers with a group of high school students at Young Life camp

Nichole, a senior at James Madison University, plans to complete her Masters Degree and then begin a career as a high school teacher. She is gaining valuable experience in her third year as a Young Life leader at a nearby high school.

In her most recent correspondence, Nichole writes, “I am so incredibly grateful to TBA and am honestly still bewildered at this blessing of a scholarship, which has taken a big chunk out of my tuition…”

The TBA scholarship foundation is currently funding 38 scholarship awards. Since it was founded in 1965, scholarships have gone to 411 students for a total contribution of $1,592,500.

Students are selected based on academic achievement, community service and financial need. For more information, contact Mary Hearring at mhearring@tbaonline.org

The Smithfield House at Spring Homearama is sold.

If you thought you might want to buy the Smithfield House, built by Newhall Custom Homes for Spring Homearama at Founders Pointe, well you’re too late. The home was sold last weekend, making it the sixth of the eight homes on display to find an owner.   

Founders Pointe senior vice president Mark Edwards reports traffic has been steady at the site since May’s big event.   In addition to the Homearama homes, five others have sold in the community since Homearama, with a contingency contract on still another. 

At Tidewater Builders Association’s Fall Homearama site in Norfolk’s East Beach community, five of the nine homes are already sold. So, if you’re interested in owning one, you had better get out and look at them, or contact East Beach Realty to make an appointment.

Homearama is set for Oct. 16-31.  More information is at www.homearama.tv

All 12 homes from 2009 Fall Homearama at Culpepper Landing have sold.

NAHB's Dr. David Crowe speaks on the housing outlook

About 100 Tidewater Builders Association members got up early this morning to get a housing forecast from National Association of Home Builders Chief Economist David Crowe, Ph.D. It was the first TBA’s quarterly breakfast forums open to both builder and associate members and the crowd was about evenly divided.

Dr. Crowe explained that unlike other recessions that depended on housing to pull up the general economy, this one needs the general economy to pull up the housing market.

Although he expects the recovery to continue its slow pace, he does expect it to continue, and even expects the second half of the year to be better than the first.

He downplayed fears of a “double-dip: recession, and presented a “Top 10 list” to support his case:

1. 45 top economists in the Blue Chip forecast say so

2. Consumers are repairing their balance sheets

3. Consumers have increased spending since 2009

4. Pent-up demand will continue to reveal itself

5. Corporate taxes are up since the beginning of 2010

6. Economic indicators are better at this point in the recession than they were in the prior two recessions

7. Productivity has increased for 8 quarters and cannot keep going without additional hiring

8. Private employment has increased in every month in 2010

9. Stimulus spending is coming to the market later rather than earlier

10. Because I said so.

He cited a historically low level of new home inventory and a burgeoning “echo-boomer” population that will be entering the housing market pointing to future demand.

He urged the group to hang in there for better days ahead – even if a full recovery is a few years away. Finally, he reminded us every market is different and Virginia is not California, Nevada, Michigan or Florida.

To see his presentation, click here.

About 100 members listen to the forecast

Jennifer Cauldwell from Norfolk Public Utilities is flanked by Norfolk House builders Bill Brice and Les Ore, with a pitcher to serve Norfolk Pure water.

The city of Norfolk is preparing to take advantage of Tidewater Builders Association’s upcoming Homearama showcase of homes as a venue to educate guests about a number of city initiatives under way.

City staff visited the site this week to review their plans.

The public utilities department will be promoting the quality and safety of its tap water – providing “Norfolk Pure” municipal drinking water as an alternative to expensive and wasteful bottled water.  Did you know that for $1, you can fill a 20-ounce sports bottle with Norfolk Pure tap water more than 1,300 times?

The city is also planning to promote its cultural amenities, its history, its “Celebrate trees” initiative and its school pride campaign. The Norfolk Botanical Gardens will create a maze to entertain guests and volunteers from “Keep Norfolk Beautiful” will have a presence during the event.

The Norfolk House is next to a vacant lot that will host a maze.

The Norfolk House will play host to much of the celebration of Norfolk. It’s being constructed by Bill Brice and Les Ore from Bill Ore, L.L.C.  The city will also have a prominent presence in the Exhibit Center.

The Norfolk House is one of nine custom homes that will be on display during the event. Homearama is set for Oct. 16-30 in Norfolk’s East Beach bayfront community.

Brice constructed The Norfolk House at the 2004 Homearama, when East Beach was just getting off the ground.

East Beach Co. puts finishing touches on sidewalks

It’s 10 weeks and counting till the charity preview party that officially opens Tidewater Builders Association’s Fall Homearama in Norfolk’s East Beach neighborhood.

The homes are taking shape and details are emerging – especially the exterior details that set this neighborhood apart. As expected from Homearama, each of the nine homes will show a distinct character.

From a pink cottage to a concrete-clad Meritteranean-style Dutch colonial, the event promises to live up to its theme, “Inspiring. Enchanting. Life Changing.”

The Charity House by Crumley Group takes shape

The event kicks off Friday evening, Oct. 15, with a Charity Preview Party to benefit St. Mary’s Home for Disabled Children. It’s open to the public Oct. 16-31.

The last time East Beach hosted Homearama was in 2004, when the streetscape was surrounded by dusty fields. This time, it will be nestled into a vibrant community.

Beadboards installed on porch ceilings

Last time, it attracted over 100,000 visitors.

There’s still time for companies who need visibility to exhibit in the Idea Center or display an ad in the full-color glossy Plan Book distributed at the event.

More details are at www.homearama.tv.

]]> http://tbaonline.org/blog/?feed=rss2&p=676 0 http://tbaonline.org/blog/?p=667 http://tbaonline.org/blog/?p=667#comments Fri, 30 Jul 2010 20:43:30 +0000 mprier http://tbaonline.org/blog/?p=667

Developer Robert Zirpoli speaks to prospective Homearama builders

It was “old home” day of sorts at the informational meeting at the Eagle’s Nest community in Virginia Beach.

Representatives from 15 building companies gathered to hear about plans for Tidewater Builders Association’s Spring Homearama in 2011.

Many were regular Homearama builders during the 80s who haven’t showcased their talent in the event for a decade or more.

Developer Robert Zirpoli, West Neck Properties, led the discussion, telling builders a requirement for brick or stone exteriors is one of the few stipulations they would have.

Real Estate Broker John Savino, whose job is to market the community, reported that three lots have sold in the past two weeks, and he’s confident homes priced in the $500,000s in this community will be marketable in the spring.

The developer has offered discount lot prices of $125,000 to Homearama builders. A lot drawing for those interested in participating will be held August 19.

Builders interested in participating should contact Sandra Amidon at 305-9045 or samidon@tbaonline.org

John Taylor, Lawson Realty Corp., was honored with the 2010 Multifamily Lifetime Achievement Award on July 22 at the Associates’ Showcase, Awards Banquet and RAM Graduation, which is hosted by Tidewater Builders Association's Multifamily Housing Council. With Taylor are TMHC Chairman Mike Devine and TBA President William Halprin.

It’s Tidewater Builders Association largest annual banquet. More than 600 people gathered in the Virginia Beach Convention Center Thursday evening for the Tidewater Multifamily Housing Council’s awards banquet, where they honored the best of the best individuals and communities.

The event pays tribute to the area’s multifamily housing professionals who make it their job to make their tenants feel at home. It’s also a chance for those who work in the apartment communities – from management to leasing to maintenance — to come together to celebrate another year of achievement.

The event also served as a graduation ceremony for 42 individuals who completed a Registered in Apartment Management (RAM) course earlier this year.

A complete list of winners is available on the Tidewater Builders Association web site. You can view them by clicking here.

STOP CEO Edith Jones speaks to Building Trades Academy graduates last fall.

Edith Jones started her career – and her calling — 40 years ago as a nurse with the Head Start program. Since 1991, she led the STOP Organization in fulfilling its mission of removing impediments to self-sufficiency and thus, the root causes of poverty. Her unexpected passing earlier this year was a shock to those who remember her as a woman who got things done.

Her legacy lives on today at the Tidewater Builders Association’s Building Trades Academy. Thanks to her work and the Federal stimulus dollars she garnered for weatherization and workforce training, BTA students were hard at work this summer weatherizing homes for low-income families. It was part of their hands-on education in the construction trades.

When they graduate, they leave with HVAC certification and paying jobs in the construction trades.

Their success will be a testament to a woman who dedicated her life to elevating the lives of low-income children and families.

Since the 2004 showcase, which featured 17 homes, East Beach has grown into an active traditional neighborhood development with more than 230 homes, retails shops, a Montessori School and parks and open spaces for the residents to enjoy. A sprawling 7,000-square-foot Bay Front Club has been built, as well as several amenities for residents to enjoy, including a pool, tennis courts, rose garden and more. Construction is being completed on condominiums with first-floor retail and soon more cottages also will call East Beach home.

Participating in the Fall Homearama will be the following builders:  John W. “Chip” Iuliano, ABT Custom Homes; Bill Brice and Les Ore, Bill Ore LLC; Scott Crumley, Crumley Group Inc.; Larry Hill, L.R. Hill Custom Builders Inc., Chris Kanter, North Shore Construction; Jimmy Richardson, Richardson Homes Inc.; Mary-Dolph Simpson, Page Simpson and Howard Simpson, Simpson Builders Inc.; and Stephen, Alex and Steve Quick, Stephen Alexander Homes.

Crumley, a first-time Homearama builder, is building the Charity House. The beneficiary of the profits from the sale of the home will benefit St. Mary’s Home for Disabled Children in Norfolk, a long-term pediatric residential care facility dedicated to children with severe physical and intellectual disabilities. Anyone interested in donating materials or labor for the Charity House should contact Jill Woolard at Crumley Group, 428-5252 or jbarnes-woolard@crumley.com.

Here is a look at the Homearama builders’ progress. Visit homearama.tv for more information about the event.

Lead paint certification at TBA

Remodelers can breathe easier over the EPA’s new lead paint rule that was to have gone into effect in April.

At the urging of the National Association of Home Builders, the Environmental Protection Agency decided to delay enforcement of the new “Lead: Renovation, Repair and Painting” rule to provide time for more remodelers and contractors to get trained and certified. That’s because remodelers have been unable to obtain the required training to comply with the rule because it has been difficult to find classes.

The lead paint certification classes fill up quickly. Already this year, Tidewater Builders Association has provided the training for over 150 people and has added two more classes for both Aug. 3 and 4, from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Since classes  are limited to 25 students, they fill up quickly. The course costs $300 per student and is non-refundable. To register, contact Maggie Rickard at 305-9053 or mrickard@tbaonline.org.

Even while the EPA delays enforcement of the certification rule, remodelers, electricians, heating and air conditioning technicians and other contractors still must adhere to lead-safe work practices, including special equipment filters and a ban on open flames even. The EPA has delayed enforcement action against firms that have been unable to obtain certification until Oct. 1 of this year. The new time frame stipulates that individual contractors must apply to enroll in a training class by Sept. 30 and complete the training by Dec. 31, 2010.