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Vernon news
Eco-friendly Earthship trend lands in Vernon
VERNON - Vernon could soon be home to a bourgeoning building trend: an off-grid, self-sustaining structure called an Earthship. The buildings — which feature recycled building materials like old tires and bottles, solar electricity, passive thermal heating and cooling, water collection systems, and indoor food production — are popping up all over the world from...
Marijuana grow operation unplugged near Falkland
VERNON – A month long investigation ended with an RCMP emergency response team raiding a suspected grow operation in the Falkland area. The heavily armed officers executed a search warrant Thursday, Feb. 26 once it was determined there wasn’t a medicinal marijuana license associated with the property, North Okanagan RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says in...
Flying fees edging upwards at Kelowna Airport
OKANAGAN - Flying in and out of Kelowna just got a bit more expensive with council approving an across-the-board increase in operating fees at the city-owned airport. The success of Kelowna Airport and its record passenger volumes means increased costs for maintenance, labour, utilities and technology, Noreen Redman, the airport’s corporate services manager, told council....
Mayor says no time for referendum on CN Rail corridor deal
KELOWNA - Lake Country Mayor James Baker says there isn’t enough time to hold a referendum on the CN Rail corridor purchase before the April 1 deadline, unless the rail company and Transport Canada can somehow be persuaded to change the rules and extend it. With Lake Country out, the entire deal could collapse, leaving...
Movie shoot in progress in Vernon and Lumby
VERNON - Another film shoot is already two days along in the Okanagan, bringing stars and crew to locations in Vernon and Lumby for the next 16 days. “We are very pleased to have the second film of the year being shot in the second month of the year," Okanagan Film Commission spokesperson Jon Summerland...
Vernon’s top cop stepping into retirement
VERNON - Vernon’s top cop is retiring. Supt. Reg Burgess made the announcement in front of Vernon City Council Tuesday afternoon. “I think he did really well. In recent years, we were doing better than the national average in terms of addressing crime,” Coun. Juliette Cunningham says. “It was great working with him.” Burgess...
Shuswap woman petitions Province for improved seniors care
VERNON - Judy Galley uses words like horrific, neglectful and nightmarish to describe the state of seniors homes in B.C., and she wants to change that. The Shuswap woman launched a petition calling on the provincial government to improve staff-to-patient ratios at care homes after experiencing the system firsthand. Her parents resided in Kelowna care...
Hockey dad could face criminal charges
WHEN YELLING AT REFEREES GOES TOO FAR THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – A Kamloops hockey dad who allegedly took his anger out on referees in the parking lot after a Junior-A hockey game in Penticton last week could face charges. Penticton RCMP Sgt. Rick Dellebuur says the 52-year-old father of a Merritt Cenntennials player allegedly threatened two referees...
Man arrested for hit and run accident that left woman with serious injuries
VERNON - Vernon RCMP have arrested a suspect they believe left the scene of a crash that left a woman with serious spinal injuries Dec. 3, 2014. The accident between a blue Jeep and a Hyundai car happened at roughly 5:30 p.m. at 39 Avenue and Alexis Park Drive. The driver of the Jeep was...
RCMP search for a driver in bizarre crash investigation
VERNON – RCMP have a mystery on their hands after officers showed up at a car crash on Silver Star Road on the weekend to find the vehicle upside down and running, but no sign of the driver. The driver of a Toyota Corolla hit a power pole around 3:40 a.m., Saturday, Feb. 21. The...
Big money spent on big snowfalls in January
VERNON - The bean counters at city hall totalled up the taxpayer dollars spent to deal with the huge snowfalls in Vernon in January and it wasn’t cheap. According to a report to city council, it cost $631,000 to plow the roads and sidewalks, and then haul the piles of snow away. The bill also...
New signs point to parking in Vernon
VERNON - Big, bold colours will signal tourists and residents alike about where parking, the library, the art gallery or Polson Park can be found. Vernon city council approved a plan to spend $48,000 on new signage downtown at their meeting this afternoon, Monday, Feb. 23. “I think we need to refreshen downtown,” mayor Akbal...
It’s not all always about the money in municipal election campaigns
VERNON – Akbal Mund spent less than half the money his closest competitors did in his successful bid to win the November 2014 civic election. According to campaign contributions released by Elections B.C. today, Feb. 23, Mund spent just over $8,500 on his campaign in November 2014 and grabbed 3,714 votes. Compare that to the...
Why a jury found a Vernon man guilty of raping his daughter, but not of incest
VERNON - A Vernon man continues to show no remorse for years of sexual abuse on his daughter and her friend and that got him some extra time in prison. The man, who cannot be named by court order to protect the identity of his daughter, was originally charged with three counts of sexual assault—two...
UPDATE: Three injured, one seriously, in Vernon head-on crash
VERNON – A three vehicle crash on Highway 97 just north of Vernon sent three people to hospital and closed the route in both directions for about three hours Friday afternoon. The crash happened around 1 p.m., Friday, Feb. 20 at the intersection of Highway 97 and Old Kamloops Road. Two cars and a semi...