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Costly development: VUSD considers impact of ruling on planned ...
VISTA ---- A judge's recent ruling ordering the Vista Unified School District to address traffic and safety concerns near a proposed 66-acre high school campus in eastern Oceanside means that costs for the controversial project could grow by more than $1 million, and possibly much higher.The district had already agreed that key improvements recommended by the California Department of Transportation were needed at the intersection of Highway 76 and Melrose Drive to accommodate the planned campus, but had argued that other agencies should be required to make them. The Sept. 22 ruling by Superior Court Judge Lisa Guy-Schall means that the district is responsible for the work, which could include adding right- and left-turn lanes, as well as center medians or a pricey pedestrian overpass across the busy highway.
Five Arrested for Theft Related to Contractor Fraud in La.
Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., announced that his Special Agents arrested five individuals for theft of funds related to alleged contractor fraud in the New Orleans area following Hurricane Katrina. On Sept. 23, 2006, the Attorney General's Special Agents, with felony theft warrants obtained out of Orleans Parish, arrested Dallas Shane McClanahan with "Watertight Roofing" located at 236 Marina Drive in Slidell. Allegedly, Dallas McClanahan received $14,420.00 in February 2006 to install a roof on a New Orleans residence and never provided any materials or performed any roof repair services. On Sept. 25, 2006, agents with obtained warrants from Orleans Parish to arrest John Franklin Richmond II, owner of "Hardwood Custom Cabinets" located at 10052 Highway 190 Goodbee.
State lawmakers to revisit modular house tax cut
State lawmakers begin a special session today to consider reducing the sales tax on modular houses, but House Democrats doubt buyers will see any savings. "We want a guarantee from Gov. (Haley) Barbour that the homeowner will reap the benefits of this tax decrease," House Speaker Billy McCoy, D-Rienzi, said in a statement. In an effort to spur house construction on the Gulf Coast, Barbour, a Republican, called the second special session of the year to lower the tax from 7 percent to 3 percent. .
Barbour Announces Thursday Special Session On Modular Housing
Gov. Haley Barbour has set a Thursday special session for lawmakers to consider proposals that would reduce the cost of modular home construction on the hurricane-ravaged Mississippi Gulf Coast. The special session will convene at noon, said Barbour spokesman Pete Smith. Specifically, lawmakers will be asked to reduce the state's tax on modular homes by $4,000 to $6,000 per home.It is the same proposal that passed the Senate but died in the House Ways and Means Committee when Chairman Percy Watson, D-Hattiesburg, didn't bring it up for a vote during a special session in August. Modular houses are made in factories then shipped to home sites and erected on slabs. Because modulars are made to meet local building codes, they're often allowed to be put in places where mobile homes are excluded from permanent placement.
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