Charlotte Helston

ENDERBY - Representatives of a rural North Okanagan community are outlawing the production of medical marijuana within city bounds. Enderby council voted Monday to ban the cultivation of medical marijuana in rural, commercial and industrial zones. The decision is in response to Health Canada’s changes to the system, shifting production from small residential producers to...

VERNON - A cube van was gutted by fire Sunday. Just before noon, a cube van used as a pressure washing business caught fire in the 500 block of Commonage Road. There was a diesel generator and water pump in the back of the van. The Vernon Fire Department continues to investigate the cause. A...

VERNON - A large plume of smoke and the sound of explosions in the Coldstream area Sunday afternoon originated from a burning garage. The Coldstream Fire Department was alerted just after 2 p.m. by a pair of women who noticed the smoke from Aberdeen Road, followed the smoke to a house on Northcott Drive, rapped...

VERNON - A whiff of liquor, no license and drug paraphernalia resulted in the arrest of a 68-year-old Vernon man last Thursday. Around  6:35 p.m., a policeman from the North Okanagan Traffic Services noticed a blue 1988 GMC 2500 pickup headed eastbound on 25 Avenue near 41 Street in Vernon. The driver was the only person...

VERNON - A Vernon couple took it upon themselves to chase down a purse thief last Wednesday. Around 5:20 p.m. a woman was dropping off her kids at the Boys and Girls Club by the Vernon recreation Centre when she discovered a man in the passenger side door of her car. There was no sign...

VERNON - A homeless Vernon man could have died Friday night if coincidence hadn’t brought police to his side. Around 11:20 p.m. an officer was patrolling Polson park on an unrelated call when he discovered a 35-year-old man on the ground. “The man had on inadequate winter clothing for the -16 C weather at the...

VERNON - A senior charged with murdering his roommate at a care facility in Vernon last summer has passed away, according to media reports. Global Okanagan is reporting John ‘Jack’ Furman, 95, died earlier this week in a Kamloops palliative care facility. The senior was thrust under the spotlight last August after he fatally attacked...

VERNON - It’s shaping up to be an exciting couple of months for Vernon curlers. Dave Merklinger, manager of the Vernon Curling Club, is predicting great things on a variety of stages in the next couple months. And he’ll be making the ice at one of them. First off, Vernon curlers Ina Forrest and Sonja...

VERNON - The province won’t be reviewing a North Okanagan council accused of letting personal bias corrupt its actions, says Vernon’s MLA. The Greater Vernon Governance Society wants the province to examine Coldstream council’s actions prior to voting no to a study on the topic of amalgamating Greater Vernon’s four communities: The City of Vernon,...

VERNON - The community policing office is reporting a lower number of walk-in visitors since moving last summer from its former location on Main Street. The new building is on 32 Avenue across from General Paint, and while drive-by visibility is good, there aren’t as many pedestrians in the area. Coordinator Rachel Zubick says walk-in...

VERNON - It’s the cheapest house on the market. All Saints Anglican Church is selling a 122-year-old home once used as a rectory for its ministers. The asking price? One dollar. “We’ve had a bunch of inquiries from as far away as Osoyoos and Alberta,” Rev. Canon Chris Harwood-Jones says. “People kid me about the...

VERNON - The District of Coldstream is being questioned over its opposition to a study of Greater Vernon’s governance structure. The Greater Vernon Governance Society is asking the province to review Coldstream council’s actions leading up to its decision not to support the study, which would investigate the pros and cons of amalgamating the City...

VERNON - The City of Vernon refuses to put the question of amalgamating Greater Vernon to rest just yet.   The councillors voted not only to support the Greater Vernon Governance Society’s request for a study on the matter, but also to put the question on the 2014 municipal election ballot. They are also encouraging...

VERNON - City of Vernon council will wait until the fall municipal election to fill Coun. Patrick Nicol’s vacant seat. Nicol passed away January 15 after a long battle with cancer. He served on Vernon council for 22 years—among the longest of any councillor in the province—and also chaired the Regional District of North Okanagan board....

VERNON - Aside from the snow, production crews aren’t having too much trouble transforming a rural North Okanagan resort into a northern California oasis. Sparkling Hills Resort—normally reserved for peace and quietude—was a flurry of activity Monday as a 60-person crew began day one of filming Mother's Day Off,  Hallmark Channel’s Movie of the Week...

VERNON - An incident involving a runaway garbage truck that crashed between two Vernon homes was caused by human error, not a mechanical failure, say police. Around 11:30 a.m. last Tuesday, a Progressive Waste Solutions garbage truck went sailing down a steep section of 40th Avenue without its driver. It landed smack dab between two...

VERNON - If you’re looking for something to brighten the cloudy weekend Vernon has in store, there’s everything from art shows to bonfires to choose from. Environment Canada is calling for cloud and fog over the weekend with highs hovering around 1 C. Gallery Vertigo is showcasing art by Vernon school district students. The exhibit runs...

VERNON - Camera crews are returning to the North Okanagan.  Sparkling Hills Resort in Vernon will pose as a northern California retreat for two moms on a getaway from their normal lives in the television movie Mothers Day Off, Okanagan film commissioner Jon Summerland says. Just several months ago, George Clooney was in Enderby for...

YEAR-ROUND CALENDAR PROPOSED AT VERNON SCHOOL VERNON - An elementary school in Vernon could be the first in the B.C. Interior to switch to a year-round school calendar. Mission Hill Elementary will hold a vote in early February, asking parents, teachers and support staff to say yay or nay to a balanced calendar. It would...

VERNON - An equipment failure at Vernon Jubilee Hospital earlier this week meant some patients were whisked off to Salmon Arm and Kelowna while others with less urgent ailments were told to come back another day. Vernon Jubilee’s only Computed Tomography (CT) scanner stopped working Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. and stayed that way for a...