HBA Newswatch
February 6, 2008
SENATE DEMS HOPE HOMEBUILDERS WILL WIN GOP STIMULUS SUPPORT
By J. Taylor Rushing
Senate Democrats hoping to win approval of the Finance Committee’s controversial economic stimulus bill are emphasizing the support the package is receiving from parts of the homebuilding industry.
The support of the homebuilding industry, which gives much more in political contributions to Republicans than Democrats, could be key given the tight votes on the package expected this week.
To illustrate that support, Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and three of the committee’s other Democrats held a press conference Tuesday with the chief executive officers of three of the country’s top homebuilders.
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OFFICIALS ASSEMBLE TO BUILD SUPPORT FOR BASEBALL PARK
IT WOULD OCCUPY WYETH PHARMACEUTICAL SITE IN WEST CHESTER
By ANNE PICKERING, Staff Writer
WEST CHESTER — State and local officials hoped to drum up enthusiasm for a baseball stadium in Chester County recently at an informal meeting assembled by Mayor Dick Yoder.
The Jan. 22 meeting was attended by Chester County Commissioner Carol Aichele and state Sen. Andrew Dinniman, D-19th, of West Whiteland. It was held in the office of Gary Smith, executive director of the Chester County Economic Development Council. Also attending were Barbaro’s owner Roy Jackson, West Chester planning official Ray Ott, Bruce Mowday, Malcolm Johnstone of the West Chester Business Improvement District and former Borough Council President H. Paul Fitzpatrick.
On Monday, Fitzpatrick said the meeting’s purpose was to rouse interest in building a baseball stadium and bringing a minor league team to the county.
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GROUPS LOBBY ON ECONOMIC AID PLAN
By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Senior citizens are knocking on senators' doors. Lobbyists for the homebuilding and energy industries are burning up their telephone lines.
Interest groups ranging from vulnerable people who tug at lawmakers' heartstrings to powerful contributors to their political campaigns have joined the push for $40 billion in add-ons to a House-passed economic stimulus bill.
The groups are leaning on wavering Republicans to support a $200 billion-plus economic aid package in the Senate, setting the stage for a politically vexing vote Thursday on the Democratic-written plan.
The economic stimulus bill that shot through the House in a burst of bipartisan agreement last week remained stalled in the Senate on Tuesday. Behind the scenes, the diverse coalition of lobbyists and grass-roots organizers seemed in perpetual motion.
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TREND OF GREEN BUILDING GROWING IN PHOENIXVILLE
By Laurie Perini, Special to The Mercury
PHOENIXVILLE — Along with the barrage of new housing and businesses going up in the Phoenixville area comes a new building trend: Green building.
Green building is building that keeps environmentally conscious practices in line. Many of the area’s new buildings are considering aspects of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design practices. Buildings can go for LEED certification from the United States Green Building Council, which considers design, construction and operations.
Dan Orzech, president of Earth Rising Ventures, said demand for green buildings has “skyrocketed” in the last year or two. The company is working on a plan for a green condominium in Kimberton Village that would have zero net heating and cooling costs through practices such as geothermal heating and cooling and solar panels on the roof.
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