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Pot oil extraction cause of explosion in Vernon apartment building

VERNON - An apartment fire that sent two men to hospital with serious burns was caused when a marijuana extraction operation exploded, police say. The occupants, a 21 and a 22-year-old, were badly burned in the fire and remain in hospital. Vernon police are now confirming the Aug. 14 fire was started by a marijuana...

Police investigating apartment fire that left two Vernon men with severe burns

VERNON - A pair of Vernon men were airlifted to Vancouver last week after suffering serious burns in an apartment fire. The two men, ages 20 and 21, were inside an apartment building in the 3400 block of Okanagan Avenue when a fire started in the bathroom. Deputy Vernon Fire Chief Jack Blair says they...

More evictions expected, more affordable housing likely lost in Vernon

NOWHERE TO GO VERNON - Not long after eviction notices were served to tenants of the Green Valley Motel, residents of another low-cost apartment building in Vernon are counting what they believe could be their final days. The Belair Apartments on 32 Street, just down the road from Boston Pizza, recently sold, and that’s left...

Fewer rentals available in Thompson-Okanagan as prices rise

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – It's getting harder to find an apartment to rent in most Thompson-Okangan cities, and those that are available cost significantly more than they did one year ago. Kelowna and Kamloops saw minor adjustments in rental availability rates this year compared with the B.C. average. Between April 2014 and April 2015, the provincial average...

Vernon offers new grant program with hope of expanding limited rental housing options

VERNON - Building a new rental unit in Vernon? There’s a grant for that. To combat a shortage of rental housing in the city, Vernon council has introduced a new grant program to encourage development. Up to $4,000 per unit is now available for the construction of rental complexes. The city hasn't seen the construction...

RCMP investigating suspicious Kelowna apartment fire

KELOWNA – A man was taken to hospital and the other residents of Sutherland Manor were evacuated from their homes Tuesday morning when fire broke out. Platoon captain Eric Simpson says the first fire crew to arrive at the apartment building at 560 Sutherland Ave. saw smoke coming from the top of the door at...

RCMP report nine break-ins and thefts in five days

PENTICTON - There's been a recent rash of break-ins and thefts over the past week and Mounties believe some may be linked. Police responded to eight break-ins between Friday, Oct. 17 and Monday, Oct. 20. Six of the break-ins happened in apartment building laundry rooms. The unknown suspects broke into and damaged coin-operated laundry machines...

Adventures in Renting: Game of Thrones, crackheads and bearded dragons

WHAT YOU CAN FIND ON THE KAMLOOPS RENTAL MARKET KAMLOOPS - After a recent report suggested more rental apartments are available in Kamloops, we simply wanted to see what an average apartment looks like. But trolling through some online ads showed that money means nothing when it comes to choosing a room mate. By simple math, the...

City says low apartment availability no cause for alarm

“IT’S JUST THE MARKET DOING WHAT THE MARKET DOES.” KELOWNA – A recent survey on Canadian rental markets lists Kelowna as being among the worst for finding an apartment, but Kelowna’s long range planning department is not worried. Planning manager Gary Stephen says although there hasn’t been a lot of rentals built in the last...

Kelowna’s vacancy rate among lowest in Canada

KELOWNA – Kelowna is one of the hardest cities in the country to find apartments to rent, according to a national rental market survey. The 2014 study compares vacancy rates and average rent in cities across the country. It lists Kelowna as one of the bottom three in terms of availability. While the average vacancy rate of rental...