The case of one Sunnyvale, Calif., neighbor’s redwood trees versus another neighbor’s solar panels and hot tub ended up in court and is still not settled, according to a story in the New York Times. The story is long and convoluted, with eight redwood trees in question. When were they planted? How tall were they…
Sixteen years ago, Congress told the Environmental Protection Agency to do something about the lead-tainted dust that seeps into the air during renovations of houses built before 1978. Perhaps spurred on by recent recalls of lead-taineted toys from China, this week the EPA finally issued new rules requiring contractors to take additional precautions when it…
A tragedy occurred last week in Walnut Creek and the thought of it continues to haunt me. Here’s what was reported yesterday in the San Jose Mercury News: Murder and other felony charges were filed Tuesday against a Martinez contractor who prosecutors say killed a Walnut Creek man during a confrontation over a home remodeling…
If you live in a condo, you know the truth about this: You often have to jump through hoops to do a remodel. There’s the board to consider, and the neighbors. And the rules. Frank Nelson wrote an interesting article on remodeling a condo, in today’s Real Estate section. As he writes: "Any homeowner who…
Why is it not news that licenses were revoked from 35 California contractors in one month? That’s because a similar number of revocations by the California Contractors State License Board happens month after month, year after year. The real news might be the 295,000 contractors in the state who didn’t lose their licenses. Who needs…