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John McDonald
John began life as a journalist through the Other Press, the independent student newspaper for Douglas College in New Westminster. The fluid nature of student journalism meant he was soon running the place, learning on the fly how to publish a newspaper.
It wasn’t until he moved to Kelowna he broke into the mainstream media, working for Okanagan Sunday, then the Kelowna Daily Courier and Okanagan Saturday doing news graphics and page layout. He carried on with the Kelowna Capital News, covering health and education while also working on special projects, including the design and launch of a mass market daily newspaper. After 12 years there, John rejoined the Kelowna Daily Courier as editor of the Westside Weekly, directing news coverage as the Westside became West Kelowna.
But digital media beckoned and John joined Kelowna.com as assistant editor and reporter, riding the start-up as it at first soared then went down in flames. Now John is turning dirt as city hall reporter for iNFOnews.ca where he brings his long experience to bear on the civic issues of the day.
If you have a story you think people should know about, email John at jmcdonald@infonews.ca
West Kelowna takes aim at medical marijuana dispensaries
WEST KELOWNA - Enquiries about setting up a medical marijuana dispensary on the Westside have prompted the district to close what they describe as a loophole in their business licensing bylaw. “We are adding a sentence into the bylaw that essentially says a business must be in compliance with both the Criminal Code and the...
Watching the watchers – Interior Health Authority measures journalist’s opinions with media survey
KELOWNA - Is the Interior Health authority a transparent and open government organization, readily accessible to the media, or an impenetrable bureaucracy with a tightly controlled and scripted media message? It depends which side of the divide you’re on. On Tuesday, Darshan Lindsay, manager of public affairs for the Interior Health Authority, took board members...
Transit fare increases fall hardest on those with the thinnest wallets
KELOWNA - Council has agreed to raise transit fares in most categories in a bid to increase the amount of money recovered from riders. Some councillors expressed reservations about the move, saying fare increases tend to reduce ridership but in the end all voted to approve the increase. The yes vote doesn't automatically mean the...
Fintry Queen owner lowers the flag on relocation plan, lists dinner cruise ship for sale
KELOWNA - The owner of the Fintry Queen has given up on the plan to move the iconic dinner cruise ship to Pentiction, and has instead listed the boat for sale. Andy Schwab, president of the Okanagan Lake Boat Company, had been trying to raise money to resurrect the Fintry Queen with plans for a...
Lake Country vows to heavily promote rail corridor purchase, counter opponent’s misinformation ahead of referendum
LAKE COUNTRY - Stung by a defeat they didn’t see coming, Lake Country government will be pushing hard to win the April referendum on the purchase of the CN Rail corridor. Mayor James Baker said the referendum format prescribed by Elections B.C. will allow the municipality to promote the $2.6-million purchase in a way they...
Exemption for micro suites from development charges could mean millions in lost revenue
KELOWNA - Micro suites may be a trend that gains no traction in Kelowna, but if it does the city is looking at ways to replace the revenue lost to their exemption by the province from development cost charges. “If we see 400 suites next year and 400 the year after that, then we might...
Exactly which lands are being swapped with Westbank First Nation? Don’t ask the province
KELOWNA - The province announced a potential land transfer plus a cash payment to Westbank First Nation but refuses to say exactly where the land is. The transfer is intended to satisfy the requirements of the 2009 deal that allowed the completion of the Bennett Bridge and its western approaches. While it has gone public...
Lake Country council will decide tonight on referendum recommendation by district staff
LAKE COUNTRY - Mayor and council will tonight decide whether Lake Country voters will have their say on the CN Rail corridor purchase through a district-wide referendum. Staff are recommending the referendum be held April 25 and will ask the simple question of whether qualified voters agree that the district should borrow $2,615,000 to buy...
Micro suite exemptions from development charges prompts policy review by city staff
KELOWNA - It’s the third micro suite project to come before Kelowna city council in the last month and there’s already concerns about the latest housing trend. Councillor Luke Stack says micro suites are exempt from development cost charges under a provincial policy. It means the city can't collect money from the developers to help...
Money isn’t everything as West Kelowna councillor Rosalind Neis found out during 2014 election
WEST KELOWNA - It seems candidates in elections everywhere are spending ever more to get elected, which makes West Kelowna councillor Rosalind Neis’ 2014 campaign war chest that much more impressive. There was nothing in it. Neis’ campaign contribution disclosure form, released Monday by Elections B.C., is full of zeroes — no corporate or developer...
Here’s what the City of Kelowna is doing about climate change
KELOWNA - The city is turning climate change into revenue, some $235,000, according to a report Kelowna councillors will receive on Monday. Sustainability coordinator Tracy Guidi will update councillors on the city’s efforts to meet the goals of the Climate Action Revenue Incentive program. It helps fund local initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in...
UBCO gets knuckles rapped over back road campus access
KELOWNA - It may be a case of a few rule breakers wrecking it for everyone else. UBC Okanagan has announced an agreement with Curtis Rd. residents to reopen the private road in North Glenmore to limited use by a limited number of staff and students. The road has been closed to UBCO since Feb....
Money talks, experience walks: Here’s what Sharon Shepherd thinks cost her the election
KELOWNA - It was supposed to be the political comeback for two-term mayor Sharon Shepherd. Edged out by Walter Gray in 2011, Shepherd was pushed by many to take another crack at it when Gray announced he would not run again in 2014. In the minds of her supporters it was supposed to be an...
Race on to save CN Rail corridor deal despite no vote
KELOWNA - Whether it takes a referendum in Lake Country or Kelowna buying the whole thing outright, both politicians and staff in the two municipalities say they’re determined to find a way to make the CN Rail corridor purchase a reality. “We see this as too good an opportunity to pass up,” said City of...
Flying fees edging upwards at Kelowna Airport
OKANAGAN - Flying in and out of Kelowna just got a bit more expensive with council approving an across-the-board increase in operating fees at the city-owned airport. The success of Kelowna Airport and its record passenger volumes means increased costs for maintenance, labour, utilities and technology, Noreen Redman, the airport’s corporate services manager, told council....
No such thing as free parking; budget for parkade expansion takes off
KELOWNA - City councillors have found out what the rest of us have known for years — that parking doesn’t come cheap in Kelowna. City staff have asked council to transfer $762,000 from the future Ellis St. parkade budget to the current Library parkade expansion, allowing the project to be complete for summer, 2016. The...
Mayor says no time for referendum on CN Rail corridor deal
KELOWNA - Lake Country Mayor James Baker says there isn’t enough time to hold a referendum on the CN Rail corridor purchase before the April 1 deadline, unless the rail company and Transport Canada can somehow be persuaded to change the rules and extend it. With Lake Country out, the entire deal could collapse, leaving...
What Colin Basran had during the election that rival Sharon Shepherd didn’t
KELOWNA — The 2014 mayoral race in Kelowna, which quickly came down to current councillor Colin Basran versus former mayor Sharon Shepherd, was billed as youth versus experience. It might have been better pegged as 'have' and 'have-not.' Winner, and now Mayor, Basran outspent Shepherd well over three to one, raising through contributions almost $76,000...
How the city is going to try to make it easier for tourists in downtown Kelowna this summer
KELOWNA - Summer in downtown in Kelowna is going to be all about construction, traffic congestion and scarce parking as the city deals with an unusual number of big, building projects. “The biggest concern is construction during the summer when the volumes are highest and parking stalls are used the most,” Purvez Irani says. He's...
UPDATE: Police report tragic end to case of missing man
GOLDEN – RCMP have recovered the body of a former Kelowna man from the Columbia River near Golden.
Why is this man standing by a pile of dirt in downtown Kelowna? Hint: it involves the RCMP
KELOWNA - Andrew Gibbs manages projects for the City of Kelowna. To hear him talk, shepherding the $48-million police services building through its design and construction is no big deal, in some ways similar to all the other projects he’s managed for the city. Except it’s the biggest he’s ever handled. And it’s one of...
Lake Country counters CN rail objections with mass mail out
KELOWNA - Lake Country civic officials are countering what they are calling misinformation by residents opposed to the purchase of the CN Rail corridor and the alternative approval process being used to seek its approval. Corporate services manager Reyna Seabrook said the district decided to do another mass mail out to all Lake Country households...
Course operators look forward to February golf
KELOWNA — Forget the groundhog, hardcore golfers are the new harbinger of spring. At least at Kelowna Springs Golf Club and some other Central Okanagan golf courses where agreeable weather is allowing for the earliest opening some courses have ever seen. “This is unheard of in 20 years,” Ian Robertson, general manager of Kelowna Springs,...
Shoebox suites are the trend and Kelowna residents better get used to it
KELOWNA - A pair of micro-suite projects set to go ahead in Kelowna are part of a trend across Canada to smaller and smaller living spaces, says Kelowna city councillor Gail Given, one that the older generation had better get used to. “This generation is exploring different options, and these two projects have opened the...