Latest news with #Losey
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Home building seems to be booming in Tri-Cities. But is it just a mirage?
Tri-City schools recess for the summer next week, kicking off the busy season for home buying. For those with house hunting on their to-do list, there is good news and trouble is brewing as builders cut back amid concerns about the Tri-Cities and U.S. economy. The good news: There were 944 homes listed for sale in May, the largest selection since November 2014, when there were about 1,000, according to Tri-City Association of Realtors archives. he average home price remains high, averaging $472,000, about $3,000 more than a year ago. But the double-digit price increases of the pandemic years have eased. The number of sales is holding steady, 321 in May compared to 330 a year ago and 284 the year before that. 'I think we're going to be petty stable for a little while,' said Andrew Magallanez, chief association executive for the local Realtors association. The note of caution, however, is Tri-Citians readily see excavators turning vacant land into future subdivisions around the community. But looks are deceiving. Home builders are starting fewer homes, said Jeff Losey, president of the Home Builders Association of Tri-Cities. 'When you drive around and you look, it's blowing up,' he said. However, fears about interest rates, tariff-fueled increases in lumber prices and concerns about federal funding for the Hanford cleanup are prompting home builders not to expose themselves to a potential downturn. Losey reports local home builders pulled 22% fewer permits for single-family homes in April compared to a year ago. It's not just local. Nationally, new home construction fell 12%, according to the National Association of Home Builders, which echoed concerns about new tariffs on building materials such as Canadian lumber. The national association anticipates tariffs will increase the average cost to build a home by more than $9,200, depending on which tariffs and retaliatory tariffs are enacted. Losey said the downturn is spread across the Tri-Cities, with permit numbers tumbling in Kennewick, Pasco, West Richland, Benton and Franklin counties. Richland was the exception, its numbers buoyed by home building at Badger Mountain South. Builders received permits for 109 homes in the first months of the year compared to 78 over the same period in 2024. 'That's a pretty big jump,' Losey said. Development is slowing, but not stopped. Even now, veteran builders are committing to long-planned projects. The Urban Trails along Bob Olson Parkway, near Desert Hills Middle School in Kennewick, is the most recent to break ground. Excavators began carving the 152-acre site into a future neighborhood this spring after securing grading permits from the city. At full development, Urban Trails will add about 1,200 new residences, split between homes, townhomes and up to 750 apartments. It is the brainchild of Mitchell Creer LLC, led buy Britt Creer, president of the Urban Range Group/Ranchland Homes, a busy Tri-Cities land developer and home builder. It has been in the works since at least 2023, when it was conceived as a 1,900-door project. Creer said door-count was curbed, but it still will include a mix of residence types catering to people at every phase of their lives — apartments for young adults, detached homes for growing families, townhomes for downsizing retirees. 'The idea is you never have to leave,' he said. Magallanez, of the Realtors association, said Urban Trails is a welcome twist on the standard subdivision packed with single-family homes. 'As we grow, we either grow up or we'll start to see more mixed use,' he said. 'We need housing at different generational levels.' Rotschy Inc. is the contractor for the grading work at Urban Trails, which involves moving about 700,000 cubic yards of material to create the future neighborhood. Creer said the infrastructure design will be finalized when the grading is done. He intends to apply for permits for the civil infrastructure — roads, utilities, stormwater systems and so forth — later this month. The first 40 lots will be available later this year and apartment designs will be finalized in 2026. Jared Retter of Retter & Co. | Sotheby's International Realty confirmed it expects to represent The Urban Trails to buyers after working with Creer and his partners on other projects, including two West Richland developments — Eagle Pointe Townhomes on Belmont and Western Ridge, a single-family neighborhood that's nearby. There are nearly 11,000 future residential lots in various phases of planning, according to projects tracked by the Tri-City Herald. There's no guarantee any individual proposal will become reality. But collectively, the dozens of planned subdivisions and development sites offer a potent view of future construction in Benton and Franklin counties. The former Lewis and Clark Ranch in West Richland is easily the most ambitious undertaking. The 7,000-acre Frank Tiegs LLC property is already inside the city. The first 800-acre phase would add 3,000 to 4,000 new homes and apartments, according to city planners, who have been working on the proposed development for years.
Irish Independent
05-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Independent
‘We saw there was a big gap for something like this' – Donegal beach schools turning coastline into classrooms
The educational initiative, developed by charity Liquid Therapy, plans to transform Donegal's coastline into a dynamic classroom where primary school children develop academic skills through experiential learning combined with surf therapy. Tom Losey, CEO of Liquid Therapy, which has its base in the popular Donegal surf town of Bundoran, said the beach school programme is ready to roll out and just hours into launching, it is already oversubscribed. The idea is that children aged between eight and 12 will come to their local beach for the day's learning. In the morning, Stem subjects including maths and science will be on the agenda – only this time facilitators will be using the natural environment of the beach to teach them. With one teacher and four facilitators to deliver each programme, it will include things such as building shelters for sea creatures to cover topics like engineering. Beach clean-ups and counting, weighing and sorting waste become clever ways to bring maths to life, according to Mr Losey. After lunch, children will have ocean activities including surfing and swimming. All the equipment, from the surfboards to robes to keep children warm, is provided, so all they need to bring is a towel and togs for the day, Mr Losey said. He describes the 'layered' educational approach as a novel way to bring learning to life and allow children to engage with blue spaces in a unique way. We saw there was a big gap for something like this With the longest coastline of any county in Ireland, Donegal is a perfect place to launch the project, which Mr Losey said could be replicated anywhere. 'We're thrilled to introduce the north-west's first beach school, which perfectly aligns with our mission of making the benefits of the ocean accessible to all,' he said. 'This programme uniquely combines curriculum objectives, the learning potential of Ireland's natural coastal environment, with the powerful therapeutic elements of surf and ocean experiences that are at the core of our work.' He explained that what sets Liquid Therapy's beach school apart is the use of experiential and inquiry-based learning, its integration with the national curriculum and surf therapy. Each session begins with engaging warm-up games followed by curriculum-linked activities that reinforce learning, as well as surf experiences that build confidence and well-being. Sessions conclude with mindfulness practices specifically developed for the coastal environment. 'We saw there was a big gap for something like this. There are lots of places that do marine days and workshops but when something is immersive you see the real benefits,' Mr Losey said. 'What we are doing hasn't been done before. Since Covid-19 we've changed our mindset to the weather. There's learning in that too. We have such a rich coastline across the country that is ripe for unlocking the learning benefits.' It is hoped the programme, which is funded by the Ireland Funds, will be a model for other surf schools around the country. 'This programme is scalable and easy to replicate, and it should have national scale and reach,' Mr Losey said.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Yahoo
Unsolved Ohio: Where is Carla Losey? Columbus woman vanished 23 years ago
View NBC4's previous coverage of the Brian Shaffer March for the Missing featuring Mandy Conner above. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – More than two decades after a young woman vanished from a Columbus bar on New Year's Eve, her family continues to fight for closure in a case they feel has been forgotten. The family of Carla Losey has not seen or heard from her since 2002, when she disappeared at 20 years old. Her brother Justin Conner described her as a 'firecracker,' and her mother Pam Conner said she loved children and always dreamed of becoming a mom. 'We all have kids now that she should be able to meet,' Justin Conner said. On Dec. 31, 2002, around 5 p.m., Losey left her mother's house to go to the now-closed El Grotto bar where she worked as a dancer, according to a Columbus police report. That evening, the establishment, located at 2324 W. Broad St., closed early around midnight after a fight broke out, previous news reports claim. Losey then left the bar, and she was not alone — an unidentified man accompanied her. The pair was last seen by Losey's coworkers headed across the street toward Junebug, another bar that has since shuttered. Junebug was directly across the street from El Grotto and was no more than a one-minute walk. Losey had plans to go to her mother's house on New Year's Day but did not show up, Losey's older sister Mandy Conner said. About five days later, one of Losey's close friends and coworkers called Pam Conner, telling her she had not seen Losey since New Year's Eve. 'There might be a couple days that nobody would hear from her, so it wasn't unusual, but five days was definitely unusual,' Mandy Conner said. On Jan. 12, 2003, Pam Conner reported her daughter missing, according to a police report. Twenty-three years have passed since, and the case remains cold. However, Losey's family has reason to believe she may be deceased. Shortly after Losey's disappearance, a friend of Jessica Conner, Losey's younger sister, told her he heard his coworker say someone Losey was romantically involved with shot her in the head and disposed of her remains in a landfill. Columbus police have not confirmed this story or publicly named the individual as a suspect. '[My friend's coworker] didn't even know at the time he was sharing that information that [my friend] knew who my family was,' Jessica Conner said. 'He was just saying my roommate said he shot his girlfriend and put her in a landfill.' Additionally, Losey had gotten into an argument with the man she was dating at Forty Motel on West Broad Street — where she frequently stayed — as she got ready for work the day she went missing, according to one of her coworkers. Her family claims the man had previously physically harmed her. Losey's family said based off physical appearances, they believe her partner at the time and the man she was last seen with are two separate individuals. They feel it is more likely her disappearance is connected to her relationship, rather than the man she was last seen with. A Columbus police report states foul play is suspected. 'It's no closure because you just don't know,' Jessica Conner said. 'It's the worst feeling, I wouldn't wish it on anyone.' Over the years, Losey's family has passed out flyers, appeared in multiple news interviews and started a Facebook page dedicated to finding her. Pam Conner said she feels like no one cares about her daughter's case, and the family believes her lifestyle may be related to why her disappearance has gone unsolved for so long. Along with her job as an exotic dancer, Losey was known to be involved in prostitution. 'Just because she lived a different life, doesn't mean that it's still okay for her to go missing,' Mandy Conner said. 'People shouldn't judge the lifestyle she was living in order to not look for her, because she's still human. So with her being human, we should all be looking for her, not just sweep it under the rug.' 'She's still somebody's daughter, somebody's sister, somebody's cousin, somebody's niece,' Pam Conner added through tears. A spokesperson for the Columbus Division of Police said the department does not have any updates about the case to share. At the time Losey went missing, she was 5 feet 6, 135 pounds, and had brown hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing all black clothing including a leather jacket. She had a mole above the right side of her lip and below her right eyes, as well as a scar across her forehead, according to the Ohio Attorney General's Office. Today, she would be 42 years old. Anyone with information on her disappearance may contact the Columbus Division of Police at 614-645-4545 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers' anonymous tip line at 614-461-8477. If you're a family member of an individual with an unsolved missing persons or homicide case in Ohio, reach out to aboldizar@ Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
