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How much does landscaping cost?

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

Dina Cheney | (TNS) Bankrate.comYou’re finally ready to tackle that yard redo but you have a lot of questions: what to plant, where to plant it and — last but not least — how much green you should spend on your green space.The latter in particular is tricky to answer, because, among home renovation projects, landscaping is one of the most varied out there — there’s a lot of ground to cover, estimate-wise. To give you a rough sense, the average cost of landscaping per square foot (as it’s generally calculated) ranges from $4.50 to $12, according to contractor search site Angi.That equates to $1,500-$5,000 for the average front yard ($3,496 is the average spend) and $15,000 to $50,000 for the average backyard (a full redo). Backyards are harder to average, since landscaping can vary so, from swimming pools to covered patios, from a few new plants to an elaborate, solar-paneled pergola. But for just the basics, figure on $3,000 to $15,000 for sod, walkways, bushes and trees. Fixr.com p...

A Russian strike on a market in eastern Ukraine kills 17 and wounds dozens, officials say

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

By SAMYA KULLAB (Associated Press)KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Russian missile struck an outdoor market in eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, killing 17 people and wounding dozens, officials said. The deadly attack came as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Kyiv and was expected to announce more than $1 billion in new American funding for Ukraine in the 18-month-old war.Associated Press journalists at the site of the attack in the city of Kostiantynivka in the Donetsk region saw covered bodies on the ground and emergency workers extinguishing fires at market stalls, with blackened and mangled cars nearby. Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko said 17 people were killed, and another 32 were wounded. The Defense Ministry said the market was hit by a ballistic missile.Firefighters extinguished blazes that burned about 30 pavilions at the market, he added.Twenty shops, power lines, an administrative building and the floor of an apartment building were damaged, according t...

Mayo Clinic Minute: How young athletes can reduce their risk of injury

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

Alex Osiadacz | Mayo Clinic News Network (TNS)More than half of children in the U.S. ages 6 to 17 participate in sports. With participation also comes the painful reality of injuries that happen during gameplay.Dr. Wes Troyer, a Mayo Clinic physical medicine and rehabilitation physician, explains how to reduce children’s risk of sports injuries.From strikes and strains to footwork and fractures, injuries can happen to any young athlete.Reducing the risk of injury starts with an annual physical to make sure children can participate. When it’s time to play, warm up muscles by stretching, and use protective equipment, when appropriate.“It’s important to try out your equipment before you get into game-time situations to make sure it works properly, so that it’s actually protecting you when you’re going out there to perform the sport,” says Dr. Troyer.Try to avoid overusing certain muscles over others. Repeated motions can happen around growth plates and may require young ath...

Legal fight looms in Massachusetts for ballot question reversing ban on rent control

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

Ballot questions nixing the MCAS as a graduating requirement for students and reversing a statewide ban on rent control cleared a major hurdle Wednesday when they received an initial green light from Attorney General Andrea Campbell.But celebrations among supporters of both questions were met with the realization that there is still a long road ahead before their ideas can end up before voters during the fall 2024 elections. First, they face the immediate need to collect more than 75,000 signatures in roughly three months.The year-away 2024 election is gearing up as one that could give voters the potential to shape a wide range of public policy — from questions on legalizing  psychedelics to the classification of app-based workers — for years to come.Several initiatives, including the rent control question backed by state Rep. Mike Connolly, are sure to garner a fight on the way to the ballot, with multiple organizations already vowing to explore legal action.Standing on...

Virginia lawmakers pass long-overdue budget bill with tax rebates, extra aid for schools

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The politically divided Virginia General Assembly approved long-overdue budget legislation Wednesday, voting in an unusually fast-paced special session to both reduce taxes and boost spending on public education and mental health as part of the package. Lawmakers spent just a few hours in the Capitol considering the compromise plan before overwhelmingly adopting it and sending it to Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. He can sign it as is, or seek amendments. “I’m really pleased with the budget we have before us today. The negotiations have been very intense and very extended. But the outcome is both fair and balanced towards the priorities of both the House and the Senate,” said Democratic Sen. Janet Howell of Fairfax County, who co-chairs the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee. Howell was among a small group of negotiators holding closed-door budget talks since the Legislature’s regular session ended without agreement on adjustments to the two-year ...

Greek ferry captain, 3 seamen charged over death of tardy passenger pushed into sea by crew member

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A Greek prosecutor brought criminal charges Wednesday against an island ferry captain and three of his crew over the death of a tardy passenger whom a crew member pushed into the sea as he tried to board the departing vessel in Greece’s main port of Piraeus.One crew member was charged with homicide with possible intent, and the other two with complicity, while the captain was charged with severe breaches of shipping regulations, state-run ERT television reported.Greece’s minister for merchant marine, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, expressed “shock, horror and sorrow” at the incident, and identified the victim as Andonis Kargiotis, 36.The incident late Tuesday, captured on a video and shared on social media, sparked anger across the maritime country. It showed the passenger running onto the Blue Horizon ferry’s loading ramp, which was still down and in place on the quay, as the ship had cast off its moorings and was about to leave. He tried to push past two crew ...

West Virginia University faculty express symbolic no confidence in President E. Gordon Gee

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia University faculty approved a symbolic motion on Wednesday expressing no confidence in President E. Gordon Gee as the university addresses a $45 million budget shortfall.The university is struggling with the financial toll of dwindling enrollment, revenue lost during the COVID-19 pandemic and an increasing debt load for new building projects. The budget shortfall is projected to grow as high as $75 million in five years.The faculty resolution on Gee said his administration’s poor planning, faulty decision making and financial mismanagement has significantly contributed to the crisis. It called into question Gee’s “ability to responsibly, honestly and effectively lead, facilitate and participate in decision making.”“I must say that if I had done all of those things, I’d probably vote no confidence myself,” Gee told the faculty prior to the vote.He later said that “we will proceed forward with what we are doing right now. And I think that w...

CP NewsAlert: Appeal Court overturns stay granted to Quebec judge in wife’s killing

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

MONTREAL — Quebec’s Court of Appeal has overturned a stay of proceedings granted to a retired Quebec judge whose conviction for fatally shooting his wife in 2012 was reversed by the federal justice minister.The province’s highest court has ordered that the case against Jacques Delisle return to Quebec Superior Court, where he had been facing a second trial.More coming.The Canadian Press

Father of Pakistani sought over death of 10-year-old daughter in UK asks him to surrender, cooperate

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A Pakistani man whose son is being sought by Pakistani and U.K. police in connection with last month’s death of his 10-year-old daughter in the United Kingdom on Wednesday issued an appeal, urging his fugitive son to cooperate with investigators to clarify his position, as going into hiding isn’t a good thing.Muhammad Sharif made his remarks after authorities in Pakistan widened hunt to arrest his son Urfan who fled to Pakistan after the girl, Sara Sharif, was found dead at her home in Woking, on the southwestern outskirts of London, on Aug. 10.In London, police have identified the girl’s father as Urfan, his wife Beinash Batool, who are believed to be hiding in the Islamic nation. U.K. police are also seeking the arrest of Urfan’s brother, Faisal Malik, to question them as part of the investigation. On Wednesday, Sharif told The Associated Press that he didn’t know anything about the whereabouts of his son.He said his son and daughter-in-law...

Air Canada vomit incident sparks anger among Canadians fed up with subpar service

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:53:25 GMT

MONTREAL — Experts say the outrage sparked by news of a passenger incident involving a vomit-smeared airplane seat reflects a broader frustration with flight operations in Canada.On Tuesday, Air Canada said it apologized to two passengers who were escorted off the plane by security after protesting that their seats were soiled — and still wet.The airline said the customers did not receive the proper standard of care ahead of the Aug. 26 flight from Las Vegas to Montreal.In a Facebook post that has since gone viral, Susan Benson of New Brunswick said she was in the row behind the two women, who asked for blankets and wipes to clean the area themselves before a pilot told them they could either leave the plane voluntarily or be escorted off by security and placed on a no-fly list due to rude behaviour — a characterization Benson rejected.John Gradek, who teaches aviation management at McGill University, says the plane never should have been dispatched, given what he dubbed a biohazard...