Safety

City council disagrees with upcoming bus stop change at Vernon mall

VERNON - Those who take the bus from the Vernon mall are in for some changes. There have been safety issues and close calls at the stop, which is located outside the food court at the Village Green Centre, transportation engineer Amanda Watson said during a city council meeting today, Jan. 11. The transit operator,...

Vernon city council endorses controversial marina on Okanagan Lake

VERNON - Vernon city council has done a 180-degree-turn when it comes to a controversial marina on Okanagan Lake. Outback Resort’s proposed marina in South Bay, near Ellison Provincial Park, got support from Vernon council today, Dec. 14 — with a few conditions. The support hinges upon the removal of all the resort’s existing buoys...

Vernon resort makes case for contentious marina on Okanagan Lake

VERNON - Those pushing for a new marina on Okanagan Lake say safety is at stake if the project is blocked. The proposal for a 72-slip marina for the Outback Resort has been a controversial one. A neighbourhood group called the Friends of South Bay are fiercely opposed, citing environmental impacts, water quality concerns and...

RCMP upping presence on downtown Vernon streets

VERNON - Vernon residents will notice more police officers patrolling the downtown core. Police will be stepping up their presence downtown with daily and nightly foot patrols, RCMP Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy says. The response comes on the heels of an attack on a Vernon food truck vendor, and concerns about street safety in the downtown...

Workshop to address street safety concerns downtown Vernon

VERNON - Local agencies are responding to concerns about street safety in the downtown core by teaching businesses how to interact with street people in the area. A workshop is being offered next week to help teach businesses and property owners how to manage interactions with Vernon’s street population to prevent things from escalating. The...

Vernon council disagrees about panhandling issue

VERNON - A Vernon city councillor insists panhandling is getting out of control, but that view isn’t shared by the rest of council. Coun. Scott Anderson raised the issue after a Vernon food truck vendor spoke out about being harassed and physically assaulted downtown. “We have a duty to help anyone that needs help and...

Employers in Kelowna, Sorrento fined for exposing workers to asbestos

OKANAGAN - WorkSafe B.C. has slapped two local employers with heavy fines for exposing workers to asbestos. The first, Kelowna’s Kone Inc., was handed a $15,000 penalty for potentially exposing its workers to harmful levels of asbestos. According to WorkSafe B.C., the company, which installs, maintains and repairs elevators and escalators, was first told to...

Keeping safe on Halloween night

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The first thing that comes to mind on Halloween is safety, at least for parents. Kids are only thinking about the candy and costumes, but there are ways to help keep them safe on Halloween night, even if it’s the last thing on their minds. Always make sure young children are accompanied by...

HELSTON: What you can learn from a near tragedy on Okanagan Lake

Warnings to stay safe on the water have become to summer what drunk driving campaigns are to Christmas and telephone scam alerts are to grandparents. They’re good and important messages, but ones that tend to lose their kick over time like an old wind-up toy. Organizations work hard to find new ways of connecting these...

Province’s new Stickle Road proposal fails to impress Vernon officials

VERNON - Better, but not good enough is the message Vernon council sent to the Ministry of Transportation during a presentation about a new idea for improving the Stickle Road intersection. Plans for a right-in, right-out only access to and from Stickle Road on Highway 97 just north of the city were scrapped in May...

City puts brakes on community group wanting to build new Vernon bus shelters

WHAT GOES ON CITY PROPERTY MUST MEET CITY POLICY VERNON - The intentions behind a grassroots movement to spruce up Vernon’s run-down bus stops are good ones, but the City of Vernon is still putting brakes on the project, at least for now. Vernon-based organization Noteworthy Neighbourhoods hoped to get started building a new, covered...