Government
Province to fund new complex care facility for youth in Vernon
VERNON - The province has picked Vernon as one of the early implementation sites for a new residential service for youth with complex care needs. The Ministry of Children recently signed off on a five-bed complex care facility for youth aged seven to 18 in Vernon. The province isn’t saying much about the facility because...
Fewer traffic check stops, drunk driving investigations in North Okanagan a symptom of heavy caseload
VERNON - A heavy case load impacted the Vernon RCMP’s ability to keep up with proactive police work, like traffic checkstops, over the summer. RCMP Superintendent Jim McNamara pointed out a 12.5 per cent rise in criminal code cases, much of it related to property crimes, which jumped 10.9 per cent, during an update on...
Vernon residents still fighting resort’s attempts to build a marina
VERNON - A controversial marina proposal on Okanagan Lake has resurfaced. The Outback Resort has once again applied for permission from the provincial government to build a 72-slip marina in South Bay near Ellison Provincial Park and that’s put a local community group on the defensive. The Friends of South Bay has been boycotting the marina...
Stickle Road plan in Vernon evolves again
VERNON - Vernon’s MLA believes the latest Stickle Road plan will be a winner. It’s the third concept being looked at to improve safety at the intersection of Highway 97 and Stickle Road just north of the city. Vernon-Monashee MLA Eric Foster says the new plan involves connecting a frontage road along the highway with...
Vernon residents upset about noisy shrimp harvesting on Okanagan Lake
VERNON - Noise concerns are being generated by shrimping operations on Okanagan Lake, but it's unclear which level of government complaints should be directed at. Vernon city councillor Juliette Cunningham raised the issue at a public meeting Monday, saying the noise from a shrimp boat working around Paddlewheel Park is leaving some residents complaining to...
ELECTION 2015: Getting to know Jacqui Gingras, North Okanagan-Shuswap NDP candidate
VERNON - For North Okanagan-Shuswap NDP candidate Jacqui Gingras, running in the 2015 federal election has been four years in the making. The longtime Okanagan resident committed herself to the task shortly after NDP leader Jack Layton died in 2011. Inspired by his call for all Canadians to consider serving their communities, Gingras stepped up....
Removing land from Kal Park in Vernon continues to worry local officials
VERNON - Additional concerns are arising around a controversial plan to remove land from Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park in Vernon. The Regional District of the North Okanagan board of directors finally heard from B.C. Parks this week about a Ministry of Transportation proposal to remove a 20 metre right-of-way, down from an originally requested 30...
Here’s what a Vernon man said to Christy Clark about invasive mussels
“IS B.C. NOT WORTH IT TO YOU?” THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - A frustrated Vernon man has sent an open letter to Premier Christy Clark about invasive mussels, and he didn’t hold back. Brynne Morrice, a filmmaker who recently debuted a short documentary about the imminent threat of zebra and quagga mussels, is calling on the province to...
HELSTON: Improving Stickle Road needs to be a two-way street
Anyone who’s waited five minutes to make a risky, left-hand break for it off Stickle Road onto Highway 97 towards Vernon knows something needs to change before someone gets killed. Agreeing there’s a problem is the easy part. Finding a solution is where the road rage sets in. Right now, we’ve got the Ministry of...
Vernon council not happy with provincial government over Stickle Road plan
VERNON - Elected representatives refuse to keep quiet about their concerns around a Ministry of Transportation initiative to modify the Stickle Road intersection at Highway 97 in Vernon. Not only does local government disagree with the plan, which would see the intersection changed to right in, right out only (municipalities want a traffic light instead)...
Retired conservation officer speaks out about the realities of a service stretched too thin
“YOU CAME TO WORK EVERY DAY KNOWING YOU COULD NOT FULFILL EVERY PHONE CALL AND REPORTED COMPLAINT” KELOWNA - Retired B.C. conservation officer Greg Hoyer went into the field to protect fisheries and wildlife; by the time he left in 2009 that was only a fraction of his job. “Over the years, the government just...
Province questions Kinder Morgan
KAMLOOPS — Kinder Morgan has not been providing sufficient information about how it plans to mitigate concerns in Kamloops and elsewhere and the B.C. Environmental Assessment Office is not pleased. The province submitted more than 70 information requests, specific to spill response, prevention and recovery systems as part of the National Energy Board’s review of...
Splatsin First Nation takes lead role acquiring rail corridor
ENDERBY - The Splatsin First Nation is taking a lead role shaping the future of the abandoned Canadian Pacific Rail line between Armstrong and Sicamous. The band is hoping to bring all stakeholders together in the coming weeks to develop a plan to preserve the line in its entirety, and come up with a use...
NEWSMAKERS 2014: Okanagan rail corridor makes history
THIS WEEK, INFONEWS.CA IS COUNTING DOWN THE TOP FIVE STORIES OF THE YEAR. TODAY: NUMBER TWO VERNON - This year, Okanagan municipalities made history by signing a deal with the Canadian National Railway to buy a nearly 50-kilometer long corridor between Vernon and Kelowna. The scenic stretch of land came available after the Kelowna Pacific...
NEWSMAKERS 2014: Okanagan rail corridor makes history
THIS WEEK, INFONEWS.CA IS COUNTING DOWN THE TOP FIVE STORIES OF 2014. TODAY: NUMBER FIVE KELOWNA - Okanagan municipalities making history by signing a deal with the Canadian National Railway to buy a nearly 50-kilometer long corridor between Vernon and Kelowna. The scenic stretch of land came available after the Kelowna Pacific Railway announced bankruptcy...