welcome to talking news we are delighted to have you with us listening to our presentation by members of the beat street center marion martha and jonathan we will be reading local more residents celebrated the first day of chinese new year with a gala which features a lineup of performances by belmont residents of all ages including traditional dancing folk songs calm food comedy and rituals at the chandlery middle school on january twenty eighth the gallo was organized by the belmont chinese american association founded in twenty sixteen chinese new year also called spring festival is celebrated for fifteen day beginning january twenty eighth time for family reunions visiting relatives and friends and exchanging greetings for the coming new year it is also a time to ring out the o and ring in the new she said this was the second chinese new year golla celebration in belmont the first was held at the beach street center last year with more than three hundred people this year more than five hundred  fifty people are attending after last year's gala who said many belmont chinese american families had an even stronger sense of community and wanted to raise their to set up a belmont chinese american association b c a the goal of this association is to organize a variety of cultural activities encourage more chinese american residents to be involved in community service and set the model for the younger generation said to since it was founded it has grown quickly and hel many successful events such as the group camping trip to nickerson state park in cape cod in july twenty sixth seen the formation of belmont super the largest local community team to participate in the new england kids triathlon in june twenty sixth raising one thousand dollars for the foundation for belmont education a three day blue mountain outing in september twenty sixth seen one hundred participants in the annual dan scharf man run accounting for more than one sixteenth recent years but through our new year gallup preparation we feel it is a can surprisingly rising number it should continue to grow steadily said goo belmont's convenient location good public transportation system and excellent public schools are what attract many chinese families who have to work in biotech and high tech fields in cambridge for study and work in schools and institutions such as mit and harvard to settle down here said goo a lot of new investment in directly from china in recent years also for belmont as their home town she added jonathan state of the real estate market in belmont by joanna civil us for the eighth straight year real estate prices in belmont have increased for the last six years prices continue to set new records for all time highs residential real estate sales and in twenty sixteen compared to twenty fifteen with the average single family sale at one million one hundred  twenty six thousand dollars however the inventory for single and multifamily homes went down in two thousand and sixteen compared to the previous year condominium inventory went up slightly from eighty three to ninety seven fred p z co owner of century twenty one adams lawndale realty in belmont who has forty years of real estate experience so there is a limited supply of inventory and much demand buyers need to be ready to make an offer in a timely manner and make it as sleek as possible dropping as many are all contingencies as they can peasy became well known as a realtor and belmont and formally own lawndale real y in belmont center before merging with broker james sophos a century twenty one adams in crushing square what's driving belmont's real estate market sava said there are a lot of highly educated well paid people coming to the area who work for pharmaceutical financial or scientific research companies such as biotech many people are relocated from out of state or out of the country p z said belmont's proximity to cambridge and boston easy access by rail or rail i had car and small town flavor and town services and many of us take for granted such as trash removal having its own light department and make it a very appealing location sava said the real estate market in one nine hundred ninety nine was the most comparable to the days real estate market in belmont interest rates went from twenty percent down to seven or eight percent which led to more sales reason inventory is so low believes is because people move in and stay longer last year's inventory and belmont was very similar to the inventory and two thousand and eight the lowest was two thousand and one after nine eleven one hundred eight single family homes p z said nine hundred eighty nine thousand nine hundred ninety one was the worst market in america in belmont most recent history also one nine eleven happened in two thousand and one the real estate market came to a screeching halt people were really nervous up until january two thousand and two many buyers backed out of the deals after c saba said when the boston marathon bombing happened it did not affect the real estate market because he believes people were hardened after nine eleven b z says it's very challenging to get listings because there are so many agents the competing for them for he doesn't see a lot for sale a by owners anymore it's hard for someone selling on their own to market walkability is what buyers want these days easy they don't want to be a chauffeur they don't want to be near the school they want to be near the schools amenities places to eat and public transportation people from cambridge are used to not having to get into their car to go somewhere he said belmont has condominiums that sell in the four hundred thousand range and a decent blend and variety of homes at b c unlike other markets such as lexington starting to come into the market and can't afford to come to belmont unless it's a starter home or condo predictions for twenty seventeen sophos predicts there will be a lot of buyers and continue lack of inventory but when rates go up all good things come to an end this may be the last crazy year because rates in two years will be five point five to six percent we'll put a break on buying he predicts prices will flatten out in twenty eighteen once i was in p c started out as real estate agents interest rates were over twenty percent and you really had to learn how to sell and be creative in the late eighty's and early ninety's nothing was selling as a busy there was a serious recession in eighty nine ninety ninety one says the other recessions do not affect belmont higher taxes are motivating a lot of older residents to move to towns and cities such as waltham more taxes are less and there is much more affordable inventory like wellington crossing a bishop's forest said p c also many older buyers prefer a new construction which is affordable and easier to maintain what you can get in other communities like w advised buyers to get your home ready for the spring market which mark starts in march and sometimes as early as february depending on the weather march april and may of the key months declawed or paint landscape you don't get a second chance to make a first impression said busy prizing the house pricing the house right is another key to success for sellers price the house right don't over price the biggest mistake sellers yes and the most costly fish efficient way to heat our home can you dispel some of the common energy saving myths answer if you're like most homeowners in new england you're looking to save the most amount of energy possible even with your best efforts with energy saving techniques this winter your efforts may fall flat if you if you fall for the following five minutes first a fireplace is a good option to heat your home fireplaces are great for it's and can even feel like they're putting off a lot of heat the unfortunate truth however is that fireplaces act as a great vacuum for all your heated indoor air warm air from the room some get sucked right out of the room with the rest of the smoke from the fire our advice if you do have a fire it's best to keep the room and close so that that warm air from the rest of the house doesn't escape through the chimney second storm windows will help save energy replacement windows are famous for saving homeowners energy and keeping their energy bills low many homeowners wonder if they should just invest in storm windows though the truth is if you have an inefficient single pane windows storm windows won't make a huge impact storm windows may add an extra layer but they'll never be as energy efficient as today's industry leading windows which are offer which offer double and triple pane options with argon or krypton gas between the panes negatives to storm windows are less energy efficient and attractive usually need to be changed out every two to three years difficult to clean or maintain without unscrewing tracks need to be  can trap moisture lead in less sunlight according to energy dot gov if you have old windows in your home the best way to improve your home's energy efficiency is to replace them with new energy efficient windows well it may cost up front replacing your old windows with new technology energy efficient windows is the clear choice to long term value especially when backed up with a lifetime warranty third closing vents will reduce your heating bills while closing your vents might seem to be a bright idea for energy saving this truthfully isn't the case the energy consumed by your h v ac system is at the unit itself and if a vent has closed air will just be re directed your system is not working any less fourth myth cranking your thermostat up will heat your home faster it's likely human nature that causes people to walk into a cold home and immediately cranked the temperature up way beyond what's reasonable as if setting the thermostat at eighty five degrees will somehow heat the home faster this is not the case your home will not magically heat faster nor will your system be able to work harder in all likelihood your home will just reach an uncomfortable temperature before you remember to turn the temperature back down and you will end up wasting energy fifth keeping your thermostat at a constant temperature will save money another common myth is that it's cheaper to keep your home at a constant temperature rather than it is to let the temperature fluctuate based on your schedule bottom line your system will use less energy if it's running less so if you turn the temperature down at night and while you're out during the day you're saving money  martha i joanna developes need a based toll brothers apartment living began demonisation for the cushing village project on january thirty starting with the old s building at the corner of belmont and common streets bill love it director of acquisition and development for toll brothers apartment living expects all three vacant buildings on the site to be demolished by march first the first building to be constructed will be the winslow building where starbucks will relocate the love it expects foundation for and for the building to begin in april the building will be ready for occupancy by the summer of twenty eighteen the rest of the project will be completed by early twenty nineteen starbucks has not decided if they will remain open during construction or if they will close but love it expects a decision from them soon after in excavation of the site will begin in preparation for the construction of an underground passage which will serve residents of three buildings with fifty additional spaces for visitors and shoppers clean up plan in place for on site pollution the first public meeting for cushing village was held on january twenty fourth at the peach street center to discuss a seven hundred page draft release abatement measure are a hymn planned prepared by sage environmental the draft will be submitted to the massachusetts department of environmental protection after the twenty day public comment period which has been extended to march associated with a former dry cleaner and gasoline station that once existed have the property selectmen approved the hiring of john thompson president environmental l o l c on january twenty third as a peer review consultant for their ram thompson will review the technical information presented in the plan and provide technical comments to sate for inclusion in a written response to comments lovett said toll brothers will cover the cost of his services ranging in size from one to three bedroom residences eighty unisa pope parking spaces newly created open space and thirty seven five hundred square feet of street level retail including a starbucks smith legacy partners so that six slots located at one o two two one o four to pella road five zero five five zero seven common street and five twenty seven common street and the municipal parking lot to toll brothers on october nineteenth for fourteen million two hundred sixty thousand smith legacy partners is reaching an option on the thirty seven five hundred square feet of retail space and fully expects and plans to buy back the retail when it's completed according to press star the foreman developer kelly had said she the apartments will track empty nesters or young working stablished professional professionals or couples the size of each unit will range from seven hundred to fourteen hundred square feet and include in kitchens large windows granite countertops stainless steel appliances jonathan mindfulness revolution the eastern way this winter emerson's wellness center for mind and body offers more than one hundred classes on topics from age reversal to weight loss and lots in between there are classes for infants through seniors and something for everyone dr ming will is a third generation herbalist who studied traditional chinese medicine cheong and thai chief for more than forty years he teaches chief gung tight she and tong rank classes at emerson the wellness center for mind and body he had served some common questions about the benefits of these traditional chinese practices seventy percent of healing is the patient's job the doctor can help but the patient must heal himself through a change in lifestyle and prevention the patient learns self care doctor and patient become partners in the patient's health care and the patient stays healthier as a traditional chinese medicine practitioner i helps patients find the root cause of their illness not the symptoms the practices of ti and and she kong and tongue ring can facilitate the healing process tight she is an ancient chinese martial art form of stylized meditative exercise characterized by slow circular and stretching movements and balance positions ci gong is an ancient chinese martial art that integrates postures breathing techniques and intention the word she gone is made up of two chinese words she pronounced that way she although it's spelled q i translates to life force or vital energy that flows through all things in the universe soft tissue muscle and tendon strength pain relief reduced deafness and improved improved arthritis normalisation of blood pressure and relief from gastrointestinal discomfort gentle but flaws consistent movements provide a healthy cardiovascular workout tight she and she gone can enhance mental clarity by opening energy channels in the bottle body the brain sends signals to the body facilitating blood flow to the brain increase oxygenation of cells through the body resulting in more energy and vitality slow movements of tide she and she gong bring awareness to every part of body helping one one remain present in the moment feeling group energy you incorporate new awareness to all areas of your life the mind body spirit connect connection every part of your body and your body in in relationship to the earth becomes one tone ring combines traditional chinese medicine and western science the practitioner uses a magnetic hammer and an anatomical model of the human body to open energy blocks in the body this method also works at a distance and is based on the stair the theory of quantum entanglement which states that in one particle is charged it will instantly effect change in another regardless of distance founded by master tom tom from boston one thousand nine hundred ninety five don rang promotes health happiness and true longevity intel is a we have a concept wuwei or effortless power you cultivate effortless power by practicing tai chee and she gong living in the moment self care before we take care of others this is a balance in life my gong master in china organized a conference featuring over one hundred healthy centenarians who share that tight she she go into healthy lifestyle help them stay active and strong through old age through daily practice people want to be in your presence and makes them feel calm and grounded mar makers by roberto cruz if the american automobile industry had its own mt rushmore on the side of a cliff somewhere outside detroit the sculptor creating the monument would have plenty of faces from which to choose here and for pioneers who fit the bill whose visions and innovative mists in the automotive sector helped make the car what it is today henry ford born on his father's michigan firman july eighteenth sixty three henry ford made automobiles affordable for middle class americans with his revolutionary model t cruiser in one thousand nine hundred thirteen he built the first moving assembly line at his company's highland park michigan plant which reduced the time it took to build one of his cars from twelve hours to less than three ransome olds the son of a blacksmith ohio born inventor ransome olds was the first was the force behind two major american automobile companies oldsmobile and reo before ford's moving assembly line old used used the first stationary assembly line to build the curved dash oldsmobile a process that essentially introduced mass production into the automobile industry william c duran boston born businessman  from selling cigars and horse drawn carriages in flint michigan to founding general motors the automobile industries first multi brand holding company in one thousand eight well he had arguably as many failures as successes many of the brands he wants led including buick cadillac and chevrolet still exist today charles speaking a mentor to ford an old charles brady king was the first person to build and drive a gasoline powered car on the streets of detroit a feat accomplished way back in one thousand nine hundred six he may not be a household name but with over forty odd immobile patents to his credit including steering gears and transmissions his impact on the industry cannot be denied martha jonathan this month in automotive history nascar's humble start by robert cruz on february twenty first one nine hundred forty eight mechanic mechanic william frantz sr founded the national association for stock a racing or nascar as a governing body to sanction pro motor sports in dayton daytona beach florida its first professional stock car race was a two hundred lap contest over a year later on june hundred forty nine at charlotte speedway in charlotte north carolina one mile lud legendary driver bob flock today nascar century sanctions over one thousand two hundred events at tracks throughout the united states canada and mexico martha topping news please join us next week