The 234 Apartment

WATERLOO — A second fire in nine months extensively damaged an abandoned city- owned greystone apartment building in the 900 block of Commercial Street Sunday morning , renewing concerns about its ongoing safety and structural integrity. Firefighters were called to 925 Commercial St. about 5 a.m. and remained on the scene at least three hours later, working through the structures. The building was still smoldering at 8 a.m. Smoke was emanating from a top-floor window at that time. Fire Battalion Chief Mike Moore said this fire resulted in more extensive damage than the November blaze, including floor damage to the upper levels. A cause has not yet been determined. While the building has been abandoned, Moore said, it has been known to have been used periodically by “squatters” who take shelter there though they have no tenancy or ownership. Moore said firefighters were doing their best to work through the structure Sunday to make sure the fire is completely out. “We’re just trying...

Summit Ridge luxury apartment development on River Road in Allentown" alt="Construction has resumed at the Summit Ridge luxury apartment development on River Road in Allentown" /> Construction has resumed at the Summit Ridge luxury apartment development … (MICHAEL KUBEL, THE MORNING…) April 30, 2013 | By Peter Hall, Of The Morning Call Nearly three years after construction stalled at the Summit Ridge Apartments on Allentown's east side, a New Jersey real estate firm has picked up where the project's bankrupt developer left off. After foreclosing on the property and winning an $8.3 million verdict in Lehigh County Court , Diversified Realty Associates of Summit, N.J., aims to complete the luxury apartment buildings by the end of the year. The project's hiatus, which left some residents living amid an abandoned construction site , was the result of former developer David Connolly 's financial meltdown that led federal prosecutors to charge him l...

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KABC) -- Crews battled a five-alarm fire at an abandoned apartment building in Riverside on Sunday. The fire broke out in a second- story apartment at the Monte Vista Terrace apartments , located in the 2400 block of Market Street around 4:30 p.m., fire officials said. The unoccupied building is listed as a senior living facility . When firefighters first arrived, they say they attempted to fight the flames from the inside, but were quickly forced to evacuate as the fire grew. The fire was upgraded from a four-alarm fire to a five alarm fire in the 9 p.m. hour. By 11 p.m., crews had the flames under control. They were expected to remain on scene through the night. No injuries were immediately reported. A cause of the fire was not immediately known. CNS contributed to this report. (Copyright ©2017 KABC-TV. All Rights Reserved.)

ARTICLE OPTIONS Throughout his early 60s, Brad Buchner and his wife, Elizabeth, lived in the kind of house that many near-retirees dream of: a peaceful, manageable ranch- style property tucked in a quiet Poconos town surrounded by trees, lakes, and plentiful open space . Costing anywhere from $30,000 to $150,000, tiny homes designed by Escape Homes enable anyone to travel around the country in a single-family home. As it turns out, however, that’s exactly what Buchner and his wife don’t want as they think about the next years of their lives. Three years ago, the Buchners packed their things and headed to Philadelphia, settling down in a Center City rental . As if ditching their longtime rural digs weren ’t enough, the pair also abandoned spaciousness, swapping their three-bedroom, two-bathroom home for precisely 345 total square feet . The transition has meant parting ways with a fully finished basement and a home office, and adjusting to an ovenless kitchenette and two miniature...