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Kelowna

Agricultural Land Commission gets under the skin of some Kelowna councillors

KELOWNA - A workshop on agriculture Monday morning, Jan. 11, turned into an opportunity for some Kelowna city councillors to vent their frustration with the Agricultural Land Commission. “If you ask me, it’s ass-backward,” Coun. Maxine DeHart said. DeHart and Coun. Tracy Gray both panned the process where applications by property owners to have land...

Mild week ahead for the Okanagan

OKANAGAN - We can expect temperatures to hover around the freezing mark this week, with temperatures expected to be at or near seasonal normal temperatures throughout the Okanagan. Environment Canada is calling for daytime high temperatures to range from -1 Celsius to 2 C this week, with overnight lows expected to reach between 0 C...

Agri-biz in Kelowna under pressure from near and far

KELOWNA - Agri-business is under pressure in Kelowna, facing changes and challenges locally and globally, requiring a new and improved agricultural plan. Forty per cent of the city is within the Agricultural Land Reserve, restricting its use to agriculture and related activities, Kelowna city councillors will hear from staff. “Agricultural land is woven throughout the...

Young fraudster puts up a fight in Kelowna mall

KELOWNA - A young man who is alleged to have used to stolen debit cards to try and tap up a tab at Orchard Park mall, didn’t go down easy when confronted by a police officer. Kelowna RCMP spokesman Const. Jesse O’Donaghey says in a media release the 16-year-old boy was arrested Thursday evening, Jan....

Early season numbers show decent snowpack in the Thompson-Okanagan

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Several snow systems pommelled the region at the end of 2015, leaving the snowpack levels at a good level to start 2016. At 143 per cent, Similkameen is most above normal for this time of year, but with the lowest in the region sitting at 92 per cent of normal snowpack levels, low...

So what happens when your autistic child grows up?

KELOWNA - It’s called "the cliff" and its something the mother of an autistic child says can keep her awake at night. From birth to age six, a child diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder is eligible for $22,000 a year to help parents with treatment and intensive intervention. After that, provincial government support drops to...

UPDATE: Bag of drugs, assault rifle lead to charges after man runs from cops

KELOWNA - A Midway man is facing trafficking and weapons charges after fleeing a traffic stop with a bagful of guns, drugs and money. Kelowna RCMP spokesman Const. Jesse O’Donaghey reported in a media release on Thursday that 29-year-old Anthony Graham bolted from his black Mercedes SUV after police stopped him Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 6,...

Did you buy a winning 6/49 ticket in the Shuswap or Surrey?

SHUSWAP - The latest Lotto 6/49 draw is over and while the grand prize wasn't won, a trio of tickets are splitting a $172,000 pot for matching most of the numbers and another won $1 million in the guaranteed prize draw. Someone who bought their ticket in the Shuswap is $86,000 richer while another bought...

Taxpayers heap abuse on snow removal staff

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Few things, it seems, can bring out the ugly in a person more than a snow covered street. A story posted yesterday with a photo from the perspective of a West Kelowna snowplow driver showed cars parked willy-nilly on a local road, making it virtually impossible to plow. The story touched a nerve and...

New homelessness coordinator will face big challenge in Kelowna

KELOWNA - When Kelowna’s new homeless coordinator is hired sometime this spring, they will find themselves working with a system that local service providers say is bursting at the seams. NOW Canada’s executive director Liz Talbot says the non-profit society’s 20-bed womens shelter has been running well over capacity for months now, even before the...

Suspects sought in Kelowna arson

KELOWNA - The search is on for two suspects after a Mercedes was set ablaze early Tuesday night in Kelowna. Just before 7 p.m., Jan. 5, a man looked outside his home in the 400 block of Sutton Crescent after hearing a loud crashing noise. He found his silver Mercedes CLK3 on fire. RCMP and...

Worker taken to hospital following dryer fire at Kelowna retirement home

KELOWNA - Nearly 40 people were evacuated and one taken to hospital following an early morning fire at a retirement home on Casorso Road. Fire crews responded to alarms at White Heather Manor around 1:50 a.m., Jan. 6, to find employees evacuating 39 residents, according to Platoon Capt. Tim Light. Firefighters were told the fire...

If your street looks like this, your complaint isn’t with snow plowing

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - As snow removal complaints begin to pile up and residents begin pointing fingers, one municipality is pointing the finger right back. The City of West Kelowna sent this picture to local media and posted it to its Facebook page to show residents what snow plow drivers face on a daily basis while trying...

Search for missing Kelowna man ends tragically

WEST KELOWNA - The search for a local man who was missing for over a month ended with a tragic result today, Jan. 5 after RCMP confirmed he was located deceased in a shed. Police positively identified the remains as Peter Schouten, a Kelowna man who was reported missing Dec. 8. The body was found...

Kelowna truck fire sparks suspicion

KELOWNA - A pair of vehicle fires in the Rutland area, one of them suspicious, has sparked the interest of Kelowna RCMP. Police are considering a fire in a white Chevorlet pickup found in the 500 block of Hollydell Road around 10:30 p.m. yesterday, Jan. 4, suspicious, RCMP spokesman Const. Jesse O’Donaghey says. A passing...

Kelowna sees nearly 10 per cent jump in property values

KELOWNA - Homeowners in the Central Okanagan can expect some of the biggest increases in property assessments in the Okanagan region when official notices hit mailboxes this week. B.C. Assessment says the average single-family home in Kelowna went up 9.63 per cent to $567,600, with Lake Country close behind at 9.16 per cent and an...

Police check possible link between Kelowna restaurant robberies

KELOWNA - Police are investigating the possible connection between the robbery of a pizza restaurant on Sunday to a similar incident at a frozen yogurt store last week. Kelowna RCMP spokesman Const. Jesse O’Donghey says in a media release investigators are looking at the  similarities of the two incidents and will be reviewing security footage...

City of Kelowna clearing main routes during latest snowfall

KELOWNA - City crews are asking for patience and cooperation as they deal with the latest snow fall in Kelowna. City and contract snow removal crews are working non-stop concentrating on priority one and two roads — high traffic main roads and secondary collector roads, according to a media release issued this afternoon, Jan. 4....

Thieves break into Westbank First Nation office

WEST KELOWNA - Someone has broken into the Westbank First Nation main office and stolen a computer. Kelowna RCMP spokesman Const. Jesse O’Donaghey says police received a call at 11:21 a.m., Jan. 1, from a passerby who noticed a broken window on the ground floor of the band’s office at 515 Highway 97 South. Investigators...

MAP: Kelowna dominates list of most valuable properties in the Thompson-Okanagan

CENTRAL OKANAGAN - When it comes to property values, Kelowna is the clear leader among communities in the Thompson-Okanagan region, dominating the top 100 most valuable properties list. B.C. Assessment’s annual property valuations show a waterfront home 4358 Hobson Rd. in Kelowna was assessed at $9.51 million, the clear leader in the top 100 residential...

Weather warming up, snow on the way in the Okanagan

OKANAGAN - Temperatures are set to warm up this first week of 2016, and along with those warmer temperatures will be several days of snow. Temperatures stayed at or below seasonal normal lows the past few days but after today are expected to be a bit warmer than the -6 Celsius that is typical at...

B.C. Assessment out with Kelowna home values next week

KELOWNA - Thousands of local homeowners will find out tomorrow, Jan. 4, just how much the B.C. Assessment Authority thinks their house is worth. That’s when the authority’s 2016 assessment rolls are made public and official assessments begin landing in some two million mailboxes across the province, spokesman Tim Morrison says. Assessments are used by...