Date Archives November 2005

From the “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em” department

From the Wall Street Journal today (link good for 7 days):The Sierra Club is well-known for trying to stop big real-estate-development projects.  But in a move that could help it gain new allies, the nation’s best-known environmental group is starting to go to bat for some builders….”We are trying to be supportive of developers who are doing the right thing,” said Eric Olson, Washington-based director of the Sierra Club’s Healthy Communities Campaign.  “We’re also recognizing that you can’t just be against things all the time.  You have to be for things.”It seems that the Sierra Club has realized that by consistently advocating against development, they may have lost credibility as market leaders.  By positioning themselves as positive advocates for good growth, they will be able to gain more partners and thereby strengthen their collective voice.  Make no mistake – politics played a factor:The Sierra Club also could gain politically by this move because builders are well-connected in Washington, as well as at the local level in many communities.  There will always be groups that consistently oppose growth; they have their place too….  I would be curious about what position the local Sierra Club takes on this.

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Toy Lift 2005

This year’s Toy Lift is well under way.  (It never really stops; coordinating this type of charity is a never-ending process).My wife and I have volunteered for this for the past couple of years – it truly is a worth-while cause and I encourage any and all to donate.  Even one toy can make a kid’s Christmas morning better.  From AlbemarleKids’ page (they wrote it better than I):Toy Lift is the signature event of the Kids Lift Foundation.  Toy Lift began in 1989 when founder Tom Powell decided to perch himself eighty feet up in a bucket truck until people donated 1,000 toys, which he then distributed to local children.  Toy Lift has grown into a huge annual community event with festival activities, entertainment, and raising over 18,000 toys.  Lowe’s Parking Lot or at Lake Monticello in front of Back 2 Health….  For more info call: 975-TOYS.

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Real estate, blogging, technology

There is so much that I want to read and write about, and not enough time.These are a few interesting and pertinent articles about real estate, blogging,Business blogging – does your company belong in the Blogosphere?Particularly in light of last week’s Blogging for Business conference.Rising inventories of unsold homes.  I am working on local data to complement this story.The 10 Hottest Trends in the U.S. Housing Market.Moving and schools.  How moving affects the kids.RSS users visit sites more often.Support for my desire to implement RSS on my real estate website.  Any web designers out there want to help/partner with me?How to boost your credit score.

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Blog stats

I haven’t posted about the visitors to this site before, because, frankly, they’re boring.  The second reason is that I have conflicting data.  The stats from my host say that the number of visitors has increased by 17.5% on average, month over month.

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