The Spring Rush

So, last week a small bulldozer came and scraped half of the empty field across from us.

A couple days later some strange fencing went up. Actually, it was less like fencing and more like random fence gates separated by invisible fencing. I think it marks off the area in which the builders will be working but does not inhibit access in any way.

Yesterday, a cement mixer drove by and several construction guys showed up. At first I thought they were going to lay down the foundation slab even though the ground, despite being scraped, had not been leveled. When I came home, however, I discovered they had put in a short (one foot or so) retaining wall outlining the intended floor plan. Presumably, a slab will come later.

Today there's a crew out there with cinder blocks.

Our county assesses impact fees to cover the cost of new infrastructure caused by increased development. When the recession hit, they slashed the impact fees down to near-nothing to try easing the burden on a crashing building industry. Last month, now the economy's back on track, the county commissioners voted to restore about half the fees. There are fewer than 60 days left before the new fees go into effect so there is a scramble to get permits issued before then.

It would seem our builder across the way got his approvals.