We are including this important information to help our neighborhoods across our city to STOP the Meth Labs.  They can be anywhere, in any home or garage.

NEVER touch anything used in a suspected meth lab. FYI, they use 2-liter bottles to perform the, “shake-&-bake” method. Someone tried to pick up trash discarded from a meth lab and received 3rd degree burns. These chemicals are extremely dangerous, flammable, combustible and strong. Any contact with your skin will burn. Any contact with your eyes can blind you. Some chemicals give off gasses that can cause breathing problems, can poison you  or give you a serious headache, in the least. Call 911 and let the police or fire department take care of anything suspicious you find. They are trained and have special equipment to protect themselves. Minimum contact can cause serious problems. PLEASE take this to heart. If you think you have discovered a meth lab call, Special Investigations Unit,  669-6068. And remember your safety comes first. And if it looks like a duck and smells like a duck… The most common odors associated with meth labs are the solvents that are used. The odor is specific to the solvent. Most lab chemicals are solvents. Most solvents are flammable some are even combustible.

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A while back I discussed Cedar Rock Inn, an excellent example of adaptive reuse of an aged building. The Kennedy Mansion Bed & Breakfast is a second one. The home was built in 1925, by Dr. Samuel Kennedy, one of Tulsa’s first doctors. When he married Agnes Lombard, an Osage Indian, he acquired thousands of acres of land in what is now Osage County.

A few years ago the house was for sale and in danger of being torn down. A couple from France rescued the house and turned it into a warm, thriving bed and breakfast. Darell Christopher was returning home, having been raised in Tulsa. Francoise, his wife and French chef, was making a leap of faith to come all the way to Oklahoma.

The Christophers lovingly restored the house to its original beauty, filling it with period antiques. My favorite features are the numerous, original fireplaces. Two of them are located in the guest bedrooms. An outdoor garden complete with pool, sunken garden and loggia has also been restored and is currently the site of many weddings and other outside celebrations.

The Kennedy Mansion was originally built to house an early Tulsa family and it continues to bring joy to a new family and to its many guests as a prime example of adaptive reuse, restoration and recycling of materials.

What a great place to visit and get away, but not too far, from the city life in Tulsa.

Be sure to check back for another installment of my adventures in Tulsa’s past old vintage homes and buildings.

Written by Peggy Pianalto, Tulsa FAN, retired Postal employee and a Tulsa Master Recycler.

Words are important. This is evident in the number of weeks that city planning commissioners have spent discussing the language in PlaniTulsa.

After a 3 hour meeting on June 24th, the Tulsa Metropolitan Area Planning Commission finally approved PlaniTulsa. Now it will be sent to the city council so they may review this important wording.

All of the commissioners spent a tremendous amount of time and effort listening to citizens and special interest groups’ concerns about the language. The document they have produced will hopefully lay the ground work for building a better Tulsa.

PreserveMidtown views the completion of this document as an enormous victory. This victory is huge because the words that were fought over to be included are small- form, rhythm, scale and proportion.

For 4 years, PreserveMidtown has advocated for the consideration of form, rhythm, scale and proportion when building homes in established neighborhoods. Our mantra is “Build Homes that Fit the Neighborhood”.

A lot of the concerns over words in the plan were generated by Paul Kane, Executive Vice President/CEO of the Homebuilders Association of Greater Tulsa. The words Kane doesn’t like besides our favorite 4 small ones are; small area plans, areas of stability and historic designation. All these words are included in the document because they were spoken time and time again by residents of Tulsa.

At one point in the June 24^th planning commission meeting, the only words I heard Councilor Walsh say were, “Paul, are you down with that one word change?” I am still not certain why Commissioner Walsh was able to ask Paul Kane, Executive Vice President/CEO of the Homebuilders Association, his opinion about a word when the meeting was closed to public comment.

Besides including words like form, rhythm, scale and proportion, PreserveMidtown also likes the word respect. It isn’t in the document but If the builders had any respect for the neighborhoods they were building in, we wouldn’t be talking about these words.

Thanks for speaking up Tulsa and using your words.

Thanks commissioners for listening.

According to an article from the Wall Street Journal, “During the bubble, homeowners sought the biggest, splashiest home improvements to boost resale value. Now they’re doing smaller projects that deliver a similar result for far less money.

Factors that led to this dynamic include the slump in home sales prices, low homeowner equity, less available credit even for the affluent and people choosing to stay in homes as they age.
This is a great time for home renovations on a smaller scale. This trend for smaller renovations is increasing interest in not only remodeling, but also more sustainable and less costly energy use. People are looking for long term changes that will help them be able to stay in their homes.

Link: the-new-rules-of-remodeling: Personal Finance News from Yahoo! Finance