Beginning Friday September 11, D.L. Hughley will perform five shows at downtown Raleigh’s Charlie Goodnights. Tickets are $33.75, and going fast.

From July 30 thru August 2, the hilarious Jon Lovitz will be performing at Charlie Goodnights. The tickets will be $25.50 for everyone but Lovitz’s girlfriend, Morgan Fairchild.

The Raleigh Downtowner posted today that both the Cameron Village and (beyond horrible) Wake Forest Road Blockbuster locations will be closing on July 12. Somewhere that North American Video guy (who incidentally was charging over $100 for video rental memberships at one point) is laughing uncontrollably.

In other news I just cancelled HBO, TWC’s HDSuite, and got a Netflix subscription yesterday.

Space Savers, the 5-store, North Carolina organizing supply outfit, will move it’s Cary store this Fall from Kildaire Road to Cary’s Crossroads Plaza. They will be taking the space formerly occupied by Coconuts, in the center of the complex.

map it

With Falls Lake now 2 inches below “Normal Operating Level” (but 14 feet, 10 inches above the bottom of the conservation pool), the Raleigh Water Nazis want to remind all of us of the current restrictive water use policies that are in place.

Customers using automatic or non-automatic irrigation systems may water their lawn from 12:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. on their allotted days only. Hose end sprinklers may be operated from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. on the same odd and even address schedule as sprinklers systems.

• Odd numbered addresses may water on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday
• Even-numbered addresses may water on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday
• No irrigating is allowed on Monday.

* * *

It is important to remember that overzealous watering of drought-weak lawns by people with sprinkler systems (mainly in North Raleigh) got us into the problems of 2007. At this point in the summer that year, Falls Lake was working with a “full pool”.

Lawns in Raleigh need 1” of water a week delivered in 2 or 3 applications. It is prudent to use both a rain gauge and a shallow sprinkler gauge (like a cut-off paper cup) in order to make necessary adjustments and avoid overwatering.

What is more important to remember than the restriction times, however, is that watering in the afternoon is extremely inefficient and wasteful. Much of the water distributed will evaporate before is sinks down to the grass’ root levels. Watering at night is not advised either because it promotes molds, fungi, and parasitic problems for the lawns.

Another thing to remember is that is not good to fertilize lawns after late February. Fertilization in heat promotes upward growth of the grass which makes the lawn less drought-resistant. Wait until early September when the fertilizer will help to promote downward root growth.

Also, remember to mow as often as it takes to not clip more than one third of the grass’ blade length. Such a large whack to the blade usually causes to grass to be intolerant of drought and likely die, an inviting situation for opportunistic weeds.

Now, was that so hard? Why can’t the City of Raleigh mount even a feeble attempt at disseminating even the easiest of turf management points? Instead they have chosen the lazy approach, a restrictive route with rules that have little to do with actual conservation and drought resistance.

For more fantastic information on lawns, consult NCSU’s TurfFiles page.

TBJ is reporting that the former Hard Times Cafe spot will soon be overhauled and will open as The Diner. It will be the latest concept by Niall Hanley’s Hibernian Company, the group that brought The Hibernian and Solas to that area. The Diner will open in the fall and will be a 24-hour American fare joint.

On Wednesday night, WakeUP Wake County is hosting “A Conversation on Growth and Development in the Triangle”. Please join me and other local young professionals at Sitti in downtown Raleigh for drinks, appetizers, networking and an conversation with:

• Greg Hatem, Empire Properties and WakeUP Board Member
• John Kane, Kane Realty and redeveloper of North Hills
• Mitch Silver, Raleigh City Planning Director
• Melanie Wilson, former Wake County Planner

The event occurs on Wednesday, July 1 (6 pm for drinks; 6:30 for the panel discussion) at Sitti Restaurant, 137 S. Wilmington St., Raleigh.

The event is sponsored by Emerging Tar Heel Leaders, Sitti, Mez Restaurant, and WakeUP Wake County.

SPARKcon’s highly anticipated FashionSPARK event is looking for the Triangle’s most talented fashion designers for its annual showcase. All area fashion designers, accessories designers and body artists are encouraged to apply (.pdf). Submissions are due July 13 at 5 p.m. for consideration in the September 18 show, which should attract more than 1,000 local fashion-lovers to the new Fayetteville Street location.

Congratulations to George Smart’s Triangle Modernist Houses site which was recently honored with the 2009 Paul E. Buchanan Award from the Vernacular Architecture Forum,. Established in 1993, the Forum recognizes contributions to the study and preservation of vernacular architecture and the cultural landscape that do not take the form of books or published work. Hundreds of studies, reports, documentation projects, restoration plans, National Register nominations, exhibits, video/digital media productions and public programs are completed each year without the benefit of distribution or recognition beyond the limited audience for which they were commissioned. Nonetheless, many of these efforts are valuable and can serve to inform and inspire. The award is named for Paul E. Buchanan who served for over thirty years as the Director of Architectural Research at Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Buchanan set the standard for architectural fieldwork in America and inspired many VAF members in the rewards of fieldwork.