Local real estate
management firm earns professional accreditation
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Carmen
Villarma
The Management Group, Inc. (TMG), Portland Vancouver’s leading
manager of residential real estate, has earned the Accredited
Management Organization credential (AMO). Only 15% of management
firms across the nation achieve the standards and ethics to earn
this accreditation from the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM).
Founded in 1933, the IREM educates real estate managers and
certifies and enhances the competence and professionalism of
individuals and organizations engaged in real estate management.
Carmen Villarma, president of
The Management Group, noting that TMG is one of only 530 companies
in the U.S. to receive this certification, stated: “This third party
accreditation provides our customers with independent confirmation
of TMG’s commitment to outstanding service and knowledge of the
industry. This recognition is truly a tribute to our exceptional
teams.”
Accredited firms must have a track record of high performance,
experience, stability and financial accountability and have a
Certified Property Manager (CPM) directing and supervising the real
estate management team.
TMG currently employs 88 associates managing over 11,000 residential
and commercial properties in the Washington and Oregon. The TMG
portfolio consists of apartment communities, homeowner associations,
single-family residential and commercial properties in Washington
and Oregon.
Community invited to learn
about updated plans for Vancouver light rail at February open houses
The City of Vancouver, C-TRAN and the Columbia River Crossing
project will host two open houses in February to provide local
residents, property owners and businesses with updated information
about the proposed light-rail route in Vancouver, its benefits to
the community and impact to properties along the route.
CRC, the City of Vancouver and C-TRAN are working to ensure that the
light-rail system helps support the City of Vancouver’s vision for
downtown development. Representatives from the three organizations
will be available at the open houses to provide information and
answer questions.
Open houses will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23, in the
Clark Public Utilities Building, 1200 Fort Vancouver Way, and from 6
to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 24, Vancouver Housing Authority, 2500 Main
Street.
As
part of the CRC project, Portland’s 52-mile regional MAX system will
be extended 2.9 miles to Clark College in Vancouver. Trains are
expected to travel north on Broadway and south on Washington.
Project planners are studying two options for east-west travel on
one street, either McLoughlin Boulevard or 17th Street.
on, with a branch location in Portland, Oregon. Visit
www.TMGnorthwest.com
for more information.
Kiwanis collects $16k at
concert for kids’ causes
Featuring the Misty River Band,
Salmon Creek Kiwanis’ sixth consecutive winter concert, on Feb. 14,
netted the club $16,000, which it will donate to charities focused
on children and families. Attendance at the Valentine’s Day
afternoon event at Skyview High School was approximately 800.
Tickets were $15 in advance, the same price the club has charged for
every one of its Misty River concerts since the first one in 2005.
Price at the door was $18. In addition to ticket revenue, the
concert was supported by several businesses, including Columbia
Credit Union, which made a generous donation and sold tickets at all
of its branches. The other chief sponsor was Gaynor’s Automotive.
After expenses, including the four-woman band, a professional sound
system and crew, auditorium rental, advertising, printing and
refreshments, the concert netted $14,789 for the club’s “service”
fund. Another $1,253 was earned via a raffle at the concert, for
which several businesses and individuals donated prizes. All raffle
proceeds this year went to Bridge the Gap, an organization that
supports local foster children. That brought total net proceeds to
$16,041.
Salmon Creek Kiwanis holds breakfast meetings at 7 a.m. every
Wednesday at the Salmon Creek Holiday Inn Express. For information
about the club, call Gregg
Herrington, 574-3747,
Ron Deibert, 699-1234
or Darrell Brandenburg,
693-7981. For information
about the band, including upcoming appearances and CDs, see
www.mistyriverband.com.
78th Street/WSU property
community garden lottery deadline
Individuals or families wanting to plant and tend a garden at Clark
County’s 78th Street/WSU property can submit their names to a
lottery that will determine gardeners for dozens of available plots.
To
enter the lottery, submit contact information to
Sunrise O’Mahoney at
397-2370 or
sunrise.omahoney@clark.wa.gov
between Feb. 20 and March 5 at 5 p.m. The drawing will be held March
8. Winners will be notified by March 11.
People whose names are drawn will be given a 20-foot by 20-foot
plot. Cost is $40, although some scholarships are available. The
garden plots will be available from April to October.
For more information, go to
www.clark.wa.gov/78wsu
and click on “Projects and Workshops” on the left.
Clark County ranks among
healthiest counties in Washington
A
new report released yesterday by the University of Wisconsin
Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
ranks Clark County eighth among Washington’s 39 counties in the
category of health outcomes, which measures overall health status.
The County Health Rankings compare counties within each state by
using a standard formula to measure how healthy people are and how
long they live. The report is intended to mobilize community leaders
to learn what makes residents unhealthy and invest in programs and
policies that improve health.
The report also ranks counties according to health factors, such as
individual behavior, quality of health care, education and jobs,
access to healthy foods, air quality, and so forth. Clark County
ranked 18th in the health factors category. This ranking, together
with information from other reports, may suggest priority health
issues.
“The County Health Rankings is one of six recent studies that offer
us information about health in Clark County,” says
John Wiesman, director of
Clark County Public Health. “These will be very useful as we develop
our next four-year strategic plan and look for opportunities to
strengthen public health partnerships.”
For report information, visit these following websites:
www.countyhealthrankings.org,
www.clarkcommunitychoices.org,
www.communityhealth.hhs.gov,
www.americashealthrankings.org, or
www.doh.wa.gov/PHIP/khi/lphi/overview.htm.
News Briefs
Dream Big is having a fundraising
event from 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 24, at Big Al’s, 16615 SE
18th Street. Mention Dream Big and 10% of your bill will be donated
to Dream Big Community Center. Win a special prize if you defeat
Dream Big's executive director,
Nathan Webster, in a game of bowling. To learn more about
Dream Big, visit
www.dreambigcc.org.
<> An
educational forum to discuss and better understand the mental health
and primary care issues facing the elderly in Clark County will be
held from 1 to 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26, at the Southwest Washington
Education Building, 400 NE Mother Joseph Place, Vancouver.
Eric Yakovich, executive
director, Cowlitz County Guidance Association, will serve as keynote
speaker. Other speakers include Cory
Bolkan, Ph.D., assistant professor, human development,
Washington State University, Vancouver, and
Derick Scovel, Ph.D.,
Geromedical Psychological Service. The event is free and open to the
public, but seating is limited. RSVPs are required. Those interested
may register by contacting SW WA Agency on Aging & Disabilities at
694-8144 or
(888) 637-6060 or by email at
IAClark@dshs.wa.gov.
Calendar
WSU Vancouver's 2010 Public Affairs Lecture Series will be held at
7:30 p.m. tonight, Feb.18, at Fort Vancouver High School auditorium,
5700 East 18th Street.
Thursday
on the air
Clark County Planning Commission (live)--6:30 p.m. CVTV
Columbia River Crossing Project Sponsors Council (1-22)--11:30 p.m.
CVTV
Community
Calendar Links
Thursday,
February 18, 2010 Headlines
Links to news of
local & national significance
Commissioners forsake mileage reimbursement--Columbian, Michael
Andersen
Fed raises interest rate that it charges banks--New York Times,
Sewell Chan
Austin plane crash: Office building hit in northwestern Austin,
Texas--Huffington Post, AP
Scientists still sparring over future of Pacific Northwest
snowpack--Oregonian, Scott Learn
Akio Toyota agrees to testify before Congress--Washington Post,
Frank Ahrens
