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Steve Arstad
I have been looking for news in the South Okanagan - SImilkameen for 20 years, having turned a part time lifelong interest into a full time profession. After five years publishing a local newsletter, several years working as a correspondent / stringer for several local newspapers and seven years as editor of a Similkameen weekly newspaper, I joined iNFOnews.ca in 2014. My goal in the news industry has always been to deliver accurate and interesting articles about local people and places. My interest in the profession is life long - from my earliest memories of grade school, I have enjoyed writing.
As an airborne geophysical surveyor I travelled extensively around the globe, conducting helicopter borne mineral surveys.
I also spent several years at an Okanagan Falls based lumber mill, producing glued-wood laminated products.
As a member of the Kaleden community, I have been involved in the Kaleden Volunteer Fire Department for 22 years, and also serve as a trustee on the Kaleden Irrigation District board.
I am currently married to my wife Judy, of 26 years. We are empty-nesters who enjoy living in Kaleden with our Welsh Terrier, Angus, and cat, Tibbs.
Our two daughters, Meagan and Hayley, reside in Richmond and Victoria, respectively.
Steve Arstad's Stories
Sticker shock for City of Penticton’s CAO sendoff
PENTICTON - A going away party for Pencticton’s former city manager is raising a few eyebrows — including the mayor’s — after the bill for the event was tallied up. The farewell bash for Annette Antoniak at the Vault Restaurant on Feb. 12 cost taxpayers $1,400 for food and beverages. Penticton Mayor Andrew Jakubeit admitted...
Fallen climber rescued by Penticton SAR
PENTICTON - A rock climber who fell about six metres at Skaha Bluffs Friday evening was quickly rescued with the help of Penticton Search and Rescue members. The initial call came in just after 8 p.m on Friday, March 27. B.C. Ambulance was first on scene at Skaha Bluffs just southwest of Penticton and soon...
New honours for Penticton Indian Band
PENTICTON - The Penticton Indian Band Development Corporation is earning a reputation for its business savvy. The Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business and Sodexo Canada has announced the corporation has won the Aboriginal Economic Development Corporation award. “It was a nice surprise. I’m honoured," Penticton Indian Band chief Jonathan Kruger says. He says it made...
KOOPMANS TRIAL: Crown challenges Koopmans’ story
"YOU KNOW DAMN WELL THERE IS NO .357 THERE — YOU SENT THEM ON A WILD GOOSE CHASE." PENTICTON - Crown Prosecutor Frank Dubenski hammered accused murderer John Ike Koopmans during cross examination today with questions about a missing handgun Koopmans said he disposed of long before a similar weapon was used once kill two...
Penticton mayor disappointed Boonstock not returning
PENTICTON - Penticton mayor Andrew Jakubeit is disappointed by the announcement Boonstock will not be returning to Penticton in 2015. “It is disappointing news. We had seven thousand people from outside our region getting exposed to our beautiful area that won’t be coming back again,” Jakubeit says in an email on Friday, March 27. The...
Okanagan-Skaha school board can’t keep budget cuts from impacting students
PENTICTON - The Okanagan-Skaha school district is no different than any other in the province when it comes to budgeting — there isn't enough money coming from the province to keep spending cuts out of the classroom. The province announced how much funding the school districts would be getting just before spring break and it...
KOOPMANS TRIAL: Accused is a ‘teddy bear’ trying to help shooting victim: Witness
PENTICTON – The man accused of shooting three people and killing two of them in…
Hospital foundation fund continues to grow
PENTICTON - The South Okanagan Similkameen Medical Foundation’s fund raising campaign for the Penticton Regional Hospital Patient Care Tower continues to gain momentum as $400,000 more is pledged to the fund. The Penticton Hospital Auxiliary and the gift shop at PRH have combined to make the pledge over a five year period. The auxiliary will provide...
Take a time lapse view of Penticton
PENTICTON - If you've ever wondered what Penticton looked like from the sky 10, 20 or even 30 years ago you can take take a visual history tour of the area using Google Earth Engine. You will see development spread into the surrounding hills as the population increased to about 33,000 from 23,000 and in...
KOOPMANS TRIAL: Police waited nearly three hours to inspect crime scene amid chaos
PENTICTON - Police arriving on scene following a report of a double homicide in Princeton found themselves overwhelmed by a chaotic scene, court was told Wednesday. A police officer who acted as primary investigator for the homicides said he found the suspected murder weapon and produced for the jury today, March 25, photographic evidence that...
Long wait for police report in Roxanne Louie murder
PENTICTON – Family and friends of Roxanne Louie aren't the only ones complaining about how…
Spring hockey tournament coming to Memorial Arena
PENTICTON - Spring is in the air, but some kids aren't putting away the skates just yet. The Penticton Memorial Arena will play host to the Okanagan Nighthawks Ice Breaker Tournament from March 27 - 29. The spring tournament, won last year by the Okanagan Nighthawks, is geared to players born in 2007. Seven teams...
Council tightens purse strings around electrical disconnect-reconnect fees
PENTICTON - Penticton city council said “humbug” to fee reductions after looking at electrical disconnect and reconnect fees at the March 16 council meeting. Council looked at a report from staff outlining options to the present fee structure for disconnect and reconnects at the March 2 council meeting. Following that review, council asked staff to...
KOOPMANS TRIAL: Accused was ‘grumpy’ before Wharton, Fox were killed: Ex-girlfriend
PENTICTON - John Ike Koopmans was intoxicated and in a foul mood the night Keith Wharton and Rose Fox were killed and Bradley Martin shot, according to his former girlfriend. Elaine Hoiland told the jury in the double-murder trial in Penticton Law Courts today, March 24, Koopmans walked out of her house at 340 Tulameen...
Small fire could be a big problem
PENTICTON - A small fire that caused minimal damage still has the concern of Penticton firefighters and police. Penticton firefighters were called to quench a small fire that broke out in the washroom building at Lackawanna Park on Lakeshore Drive at 4 p.m. yesterday afternoon. Penticton Fire Department Fire Inspector Mike Richards said the fire...
KOOPMANS TRIAL: Bloodstains on clothing matched victim’s, court hears
PENTICTON - Bloodstains on the jeans of John Ike Koopmans were identified as his and murder victim Keith Wharton’s, jurors in the Koopmans double murder trial heard today. Christine Crossman, Biology Reporting Scientist for the RCMP Forensic Lab, took the stand March 23 to explain the specifics of DNA evidence to the jury. She told...
Oliver continues to remember a beloved educator
PENTICTON - It’s been two months to the day since Oliver lost one of the town’s - and School District 53’s - most respected educators, but residents aren’t about to forget the man anytime soon. The community and school district were shocked to hear of the sudden death of David Barton Tumlinson on January 23, 2015....
Summerland man enters guilty plea
PENTICTON - A Summerland man has pleaded guilty to a criminal charge stemming from an inappropriate relationship with a minor. Joshua J. Roberts entered the plea to sexual exploitation from a relationship with a 17-year-old girl that lasted for almost a year. Roberts originally faced five counts from what was described as a consensual relationship...
No solutions on the horizon to urban deer management issues
PENTICTON - Municipalities looking for a solution to excessive deer in their neighbourhoods shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for workable legislation from the B.C. government. The Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen met with the province and a handful of other municipalities for a two day workshop to discuss urban deer issues. Regional district Chief Administrative...
Brit Floyd brings Pink Floyd experience to Penticton
PENTICTON - The act billed as the world’s greatest Pink Floyd show is making its way to Penticton. Brit Floyd has launched its Space & Time world tour with over 100 concerts planned through the U.S. and Canada between March and August of 2015. The tour will stop at the South Okanagan Events Centre on...
Regional water conservation projects receive water board funding
PENTICTON - The Regional District Okanagan Similkameen has received some welcome grant funding from the Okanagan Basin Water Board. The RDOS recently received grant funding for two water conservation projects, in the form of $28,840 from the OBWB to support Phase two of the Regional Water Use Regulation and Conservation Bylaw and Phase one of...
City electrical consumption up in spite of warmer winter
PENTICTON - A warmer winter doesn’t seem to have reduced the need for electricity in the city. One might expect electrical consumption to drop in the wake of a milder winter with a presumed reduced need for electrical power for heating purposes, but that doesn’t seem to be the case, according to city and Ministry...
Regional district directors say more policing needed for Oliver area
PENTICTON - The South Okanagan’s new correctional facility is barely under construction, but already causing policing issues in the Regional District Okanagan Similkameen. The regional district board is concerned about an increased need for police officers in the South Okanagan as construction on the corrections facility in Oliver ramps up. Chief Administrative Officer Bill Newell...
What a former U.S. deputy district attorney does for RCMP
PENTICTON - The man responsible for civilian oversight into critical police incidents discussed his mandate with members of the Regional District Okanagan Similkameen board on March 19. Chief Civilian Director of the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. Richard Rosenthal was on a tour of regional police facilities and local governments to talk about the IIO’s...