Kelowna

Temporary public art program ruffles some feathers on Kelowna council

KELOWNA - A proposal for a trial temporary art installation program divided city councillors despite the relatively modest price tag of $15,000. For that sum, the temporary art in public places pilot program would deliver one piece of art, installed at a yet-to-be-decided location, which will be gone in six months, then returned to the...

UBC Okanagan seeks change to firearms bylaw to set up ballistics testing lab

KELOWNA - UBC Okanagan and one of its research partners Helios Global Technologies, is looking to set up a ballistics lab in the commercial zone across from Kelowna International Airport. To that end, they are seeking a revision to the city’s firearms bylaw which would exempt ballistics testing within city limits. UBCO spokesman Bud Mortensen...

Treat dad like a king with these Father’s Day events in the Southern Interior

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Father’s Day is one day every year where families can tell dad how much he means and do the things he enjoys. So with forecasts calling for sun and temperatures in the mid-20s any of these outdoor events happening around the Thompson-Okanagan should keep him smiling for the next 12 months. If you’re in...

Prospect of liquor stores inside grocery stores prompts Kelowna bylaw review

KELOWNA - No one has even asked yet about putting a liquor store inside a Kelowna grocery store but planning staff will be asking city council if it wants to shore up its zoning bylaw to regulate them. “Right now we have five locations where there is already a retail liquor store on the same...

Beading a path through the Okanagan

PENTICTON - An Okanagan artist and entrepreneur turned a daydream into a unique business opportunity which continues to grow with each new tourist season. Karen Griggs was looking for a way to make a living while following her passion when she came up with the idea of the Bead Trail. According to her blog, a...

Robot invasion: Engineers testing out their gadgets

KELOWNA – Graduate students from across Canada were in the Okanagan this week, testing out and demonstrating the latest in robotic technology. Teams from schools across Canada spent the week in Kelowna programming and testing their machines at an annual event meant to bring together engineers and operators normally scattered across the country. The annual...

Shiny new Interior Heart and Surgical Centre almost ready to save lives

KELOWNA - The Interior Heart and Surgical Centre at Kelowna General Hospital is a technical marvel that you hope never to have to visit but are sure glad is there when you need it. “This facility is the icing on the cake that is KGH,” says Kelowna-Lake Country MLA Norm Letnick, who was on hand...

Okanagan-bound boat caught and decontaminated for possible invasive mussel threat

KELOWNA – Conservation officers in Kelowna decontaminated a boat today which came to the Okanagan from an Ontario lake known to be infested with invasive mussels. The boat was purchased by someone in the Okanagan city and transported from Lake Eerie in Windsor, Ont. It was shipped along with another boat bound for Fort McMurray....

Hospital laundry workers continue anti-privatization protest as decision looms

KELOWNA - The Hospital Employees Union continued its public pressure campaign against privatization of laundry services this week with a pair of rallies in the largest communities within the Interior Health Authority. Laundry workers sought to bring provincial politicians into the mix by protesting in front of the contituency offices of MLA Terry Lake in...

Why CN Rail doesn’t want to talk about soil contamination along the Okanagan rail corridor

OKANAGAN - CN Rail is refusing to release the contents of an environmental study into possible soil contamination along the 48-kilometre Okanagan rail corridor. Even though the report has been reviewed in turn by an environmental consultant hired by the inter-jurisdictional acquisition team, the leader of the team says it will not release the details...

Cisco Road wildfire grows under controlled burns

LYTTON - A wildfire that was discovered a week ago near Lytton and grew rapidly over 24 hours has grown again, but this time because of controlled burns. B.C. Wildfire crews are working the Cisco Road Wildfire which was first discovered on June 11. It was first estimated at 150 hectares and by the end...

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...

Big air and local talent featured in extreme mountain bike movie

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Ever wondered what it’s like to do a 70-foot front flip on a tricked out mountain bike? Now you can get an idea without risking reconstructive surgery or a lengthy hospital stay. An extreme mountain biking movie, unReal, is premiering in Kamloops and Kelowna next week. UnReal is a movie that does for...

Pianos in the Park take social media by storm

KELOWNA – Less than a week after they were set up, Kelowna’s Pianos in the Park are filling the downtown streets with beautiful music. Videos of people playing the pianos have flooded social media, including one by local musician James Elser, who covered Elton John’s Your Song in front of Rotary Centre for the Arts....

Filmmaker captures awe of Okanagan Valley

OKANAGAN - The essence of what makes the Okanagan Valley breathtaking has been captured by a filmmaker from Summerland in a short video entitled Born To Wonder. Steve Cogbill, 19, says he just finished several months of work on the video and he hopes it will motivate both locals and would-be tourists to take a...

City moves to revamp public sign bylaw

KELOWNA - In the face of changing tastes and technology the City of Kelowna could soon deal with signs in a different way. City council is directing staff to revamp its sign bylaw, but they expect plenty of consultation with business owners and other stakeholders. “Signage is important to everyone really. The city gets a...

Kelowna women rescues dog being pulled behind moving vehicle

"WE ALMOST THREW UP WE WERE SO SCARED." OKANAGAN – Four friends from Kelowna were driving on Road 22 in Oliver last Friday night when they saw something they couldn’t believe: A puppy, less than two months old, being pulled behind a moving vehicle. “It was one of those really small lane roads,” says one...

Kelowna bell-ringing ceremony to honour missing and murdered aboriginal women

KELOWNA - The bells will be ringing in Kelowna this weekend, 1,122 times to be exact. A request by The Cathedral Church of St. Michael and All Angels on Sutherland Avenue to ring its bell multiple times this Sunday has been approved by city council. The symbolic ringing of the bell on June 21, National Aboriginal...

Who cares about distracted driving on B.C. roads and highways?

BRITISH COLUMBIA - If you have an opinion on the distracted driving laws — and we’re sure you do — you will now have a chance to share them with the B.C. government. The province is considering raising penalties for distracted driving but will first hold a four-week public consultation through a new website and social media...

Witnesses to Kelowna crash sought

KELOWNA - A two-vehicle crash at Highway 97 and Spall Road last week has RCMP asking for witnesses to come forward. On June 11, around 9 a.m., RCMP responded to a crash between a white Ford van (Norelco Cabinets) and a grey Honda pickup (Western Gasco Cylinders Ltd.) Both drivers were uninjured but RCMP are...

Police confirm homicide on Bernard Ave; victim identified

KELOWNA - A suspicious death Sunday night has been deemed a homicide but RCMP are not yet saying what caused the death. Warren Welters, 51, was found deceased around 8:30 p.m., June 14, at 941 Bernard Avenue. Cpl. Joe Duncan says police remain on scene and ‘are investigating any and all leads.’ He also notes...

Kelowna firefighters sign seven-year labour agreement

KELOWNA - Firefighters and adminstrative staff with the Kelowna Fire Department will enjoy a series of raises after signing a new collective agreement with the City of Kelowna. Firefighters have been without a contract since the end of 2012 but on Monday, June 15 the local firefighters union and the City of Kelowna ratified an...

SNELSON TRIAL: Lawyers present final arguments in manslaughter trial

KAMLOOPS - Motive, opportunity and his own lies all point to Neil George Snelson as the person who strangled and beat 19-year-old Jennifer Cusworth to death over 20 years ago in Kelowna, court heard from the Crown during final arguments today, June 15. Cusworth, an Okanagan Community College student was found in a ditch on...