land and farm Archives

Biden’s proposal would let conservationists lease public land much as drillers and ranchers do

15/05/202321/04/2025dansa

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The Biden administration wants to put conserving vast government-owned lands on equal footing with oil drilling, livestock grazing and other interests, according to a top administration official who defended the idea against criticism that it would interfere with industry.

The proposal would allow conservationists and others to lease federally owned land to restore it, much the same way oil companies buy leases to drill and ranchers pay to graze cattle. Companies could also buy conservation leases, such as oil drillers who want to offset damage to public lands by restoring acreage elsewhere.

Tracy Stone-Manning, director of the Bureau of Land Management, said in an interview with The Associated Press that the proposed changes would address rising pressure from climate change and development. While the bureau previously issued leases for conservation in limited cases, it has never had a dedicated program for it, he said.

FILE - Tracy Stone-Manning listens during a confirmation hearing for her to be the director of... — FILE – Tracy Stone-Manning listens during a confirmation hearing for her to be the director of the Bureau of Land Management, during a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 8, 2021. Stone-Manning says a pending Biden administration rule to sell conservation leases on federal lands would not exclude other uses

The company sees room for hotels on vacant land near Routes 41, 42 in Deptford

14/03/2023dansa

DEPTFORD — The thriving hospitality business here may add more hotels off Route 41 near Deptford Center Road, a traffic-heavy strip that already hosts four relatively new hotels.

A Wilmington firm, SSN Hotels LLC, wants to build two hotels on land at the rear of Harmony Lane, according to information before the township’s planning board.

The location is off Route 41, or Hurffville Road, a street that currently holds four hotels.

The last official use of the partially wooded property was a storage lot for trash containers and construction vehicles and equipment, according to reports.

The hotels’ site plan was set for a planning board review on March 8, potentially with a vote on final approval. That meeting was canceled with no new date set for a hearing, according to the township.

more:Million-plus dollars gets school fundraising campaign off to a good start

more:Woodbury Heights cannabis store plan snuffed out over traffic, nearby school

The proposal calls for:

A Townplace Suites hotel of 18,390 square feet, with 112 guest rooms
A Home 2 Suites of 17,280 square feet, with 106 guest rooms

Both four-story hotels would have indoor pools and fitness rooms, as well as bar areas and

Colts Rumors: Proposed Trade Lands Colts QB Bryce Young in NFL Mock Draft

14/02/2023dansa

Getty

A proposed trade indirect general manager Chris Ballard and the Indianapolis Colts a former Heisman Trophy winner.

The Indianapolis Colts are reportedly closing in on who will become their next head coach. It wouldn’t be surprising if the team also found a long-term solution at quarterback this offseason.

NFL writer Michael Renner of Pro Football Focus argued the Colts will get that signal caller by exercising a draft trade. Renner projected Indianapolis to move up to the No. 1 pick to select Alabama signal caller Bryce Young.

“It’ll take a premium to move up for a prospect like Bryce Young (Pick Nos. 4 and 36 and a 2024 second-rounder is what I’d project), but it’s well worth it for the quarterback-starved Colts,” Renner wrote. “What Young did to an NFL defense in Georgia’s 2021 unit makes me worry a lot less about his size going forward.”

In Renner’s proposed trade, the Colts would keep their 2024 first-rounder. However, the Colts wouldn’t make another selection this year after No. 1 until the third round at No. 80 overalls.

Colts Trade Up to No. 1 to Draft Young

The 2023 draft class is much deeper at quarterback than last year. But

BrightStone works to raise a final million of $20 million campus for adults with special needs

10/02/2023dansa

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – The Franklin-based non-profit BrightStone is working to raise the final million dollars of a $20 million goal for its new Land of Dreams, a 144-acre campus where adults with special needs can live full-time, while learning life skills and working together.

For more than 20 years the program for adults with autism, brain injuries, and other intellectual challenges has learned computer and life skills, nutrition and exercise classes, and arts and crafts, which they create and sell to help support BrightStone’s mission.

The first phase of the Land of Dreams project opened November 2022.

Two residential homes are currently under construction.

Future plans for the campus include an equestrian center, gym, and a chapel.

On Thursday, a BrightStone student taught News4 evening anchor Tracy Kornet how to box brownies, as part of a video project to help share BrightStone’s story with the community.

To help support or learn more about BrightStone, go to brightstone.org

For past stories on BrightStone, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRbBVodbfVs

Property Crisis Pressures Vietnam to Act Before It’s Too Late

06/02/2023dansa

(Bloomberg) — Time is running short for Vietnam to prevent a worsening property-sector credit crunch from derailing one of the world’s fastest economic expansions.

With about $4.6 billion of property developer notes tracked by Vietnam’s bond association coming due next year, firms will struggle to meet obligations without government support, according to local real estate executives and analysts. Funding has all but dried up after an anti-graft campaign spooked investors and authorities froze new bond issuances across the industry.

The looming maturity wall risks triggering a wave of defaults that could turn the property woes into a wider crisis for the banking sector and the economy. While the absolute scale of Vietnam’s property debt is tiny compared to that of China, the industry still makes up about 11% of economic activity. Mounting worries of a China-style hit to growth are prompting calls for Vietnam’s government to act before it’s too late.

“The real estate sector is undergoing a major crisis,” said Tran Xuan Ngoc, chief executive at property developer Nam Long Group. “We don’t know when the crisis may pass as it depends on the government’s actions.”

At stake is an economic expansion projected by the International Monetary Fund to