Tag: construction

Always Use The Right Tool

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I’ve been a bad boy recently when it comes to chores. Today was a day to make up time.

On the list, a trip to Home Depot. We want to replace a few plants. Some aren’t healthy. Others, let’s just say they didn’t make the cut. There were other odds and ends as well. There’s always something you need or want at the Depot.

I headed to the garage and realized Helaine was gone. Her SUV too. That only left my two-seater. There was really no way to put this off.

Vrooom.

HD has a self serve packing department. I pulled ten or twelve feet of heavy brown paper from a roll to wrap the front seat. On the floor, a plastic trash bag from home.

Holy crap, it fit! Tall plants. Short plants. Fifty feet of garden hose. Fifty pounds of paver sand. Even a spray bottle of bug stuff.

Nothing spilled!

The plants are home, healthy and I have proof they can survive 50 mph winds.

We Live In A Boomtown

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I just came back after driving to the store. Look left or right, construction is nearly everywhere. We are living in a boomtown. It’s such an unusual situation, I’m not quite sure how to deal with it!

An elementary school planned for this part of town has been pushed ahead by two years. The Orange County Register reports:

Portola Springs Elementary will be the district’s 22nd elementary school and the second of six school’s the district plans to open by fall 2020.

IMAG0010-w1200-h1200The demand is crazy–as are the prices. Million dollar plus homes on postage stamp lots don’t merit an eye blink! Neither do developers who only entertain cash buyers.

Before we closed on this home our real estate agent was offered money for our place in line!

Construction in our development is nearly complete, but a half mile away 726 additional homes are going up. There are literally thousands more in the planning stages in this very planned city of 230,000.

IMAG0013-w1200-h1200I drove through “Pavillion Park,” a few hours ago to take some photos of the works-in-progress. It looked like Black Friday at the mall! There were people going through model homes as if they were the last homes on Earth.

I understand the appeal. Irvine has excellent schools, plenty of shopping and an exceptionally low crime rate. Oh yeah–no winter either.

I worry. Boom can bring bust. It wasn’t long ago this city was in the doldrums. There were plenty of short sales and repos.

Memories are short. Builders don’t want to slow down while there’s so much money to be made. It will be interesting to watch.