John McDonald
John began life as a journalist through the Other Press, the independent student newspaper for Douglas College in New Westminster. The fluid nature of student journalism meant he was soon running the place, learning on the fly how to publish a newspaper.
It wasn’t until he moved to Kelowna he broke into the mainstream media, working for Okanagan Sunday, then the Kelowna Daily Courier and Okanagan Saturday doing news graphics and page layout. He carried on with the Kelowna Capital News, covering health and education while also working on special projects, including the design and launch of a mass market daily newspaper. After 12 years there, John rejoined the Kelowna Daily Courier as editor of the Westside Weekly, directing news coverage as the Westside became West Kelowna.
But digital media beckoned and John joined Kelowna.com as assistant editor and reporter, riding the start-up as it at first soared then went down in flames. Now John is turning dirt as city hall reporter for iNFOnews.ca where he brings his long experience to bear on the civic issues of the day.
If you have a story you think people should know about, email John at jmcdonald@infonews.ca
School trustees promise higher graduation rates in Central Okanagan
KELOWNA - Getting them to school is easy. Getting them to graduate is a bit tougher. That’s the conclusion of the student graduation and readiness report Central Okanagan school trustees will soon receive from staff. “It’s one of the big ways we measure student success,” superintendent Hugh Gloster says. The report by director of instruction...
New RCMP officers will fill service hole identified in 2012
KELOWNA - Six new RCMP officers will join the ranks of the Kelowna RCMP this year, likely just in time for the summer tourist crush. “Four of the new officers will be front-line general duty policing officers,“ said Supt. Nick Romanchuk, while one officer will be assigned to child abuse investigations and another to civilian...
Kelowna councillor in hospital with lung infection
KELOWNA - Kelowna city councillor Charlie Hodge has been admitted to Kelowna General Hospital suffering from pneumonia. The two-term councillor’s confirmed his condition on his Facebook page, saying the infection was confined to his lower left lung and that a CT scan had shown there were no blood clots. Hodge is also known to suffer...
Dog licensing rates soar in the Central Okanagan
KELOWNA - Just one year after introducing tougher dog control measures and a stiff fine for unlicensed dogs, the regional district is reporting big success in persuading people to legalize their pets. Bruce Smith, communications officer for the Central Okanagan Regional District, said the number of licensed dogs is now just shy of 20,000, up...
Dragons’ Den brings auditions tour of hit show back to Kelowna
KELOWNA — The Dragons are coming to Kelowna and it will be their only Southern Interior stop. Producers of the hit CBC series have announced the latest round of online auditions for the show, which pits would-be entrepreneurs and inventors against a panel of seasoned and successful business people and possible investors from across Canada...
Medical marijuana testing laboratories could soon set up shop in Kelowna
KELOWNA - Medical marijuana analytical testing will soon be a possible business after Kelowna city council agreed with staff that the current medical marijuana production bylaw needed clarification. “We have been approached by several operators seeking clarification,” urban planning manager Ryan Smith told council. “The principal purpose here is to create a definition of analytical...
City to react quickly should court decision allow resumption of home grown medicinal marijuana production
KELOWNA - The City of Kelowna will likely react quickly if Health Canada loses a Supreme Court challenge in late February and home-growing medical marijuana producers are allowed to resume production. “We have to wait and see but if it means we have to jump in with extra regulations and inspections, we would do that,”...
West Kelowna mayor presses other jurisdictions to support power line back-up bid
KELOWNA - While he insists progress is being made on a solution to the vulnerability of its single-line power supply, West Kelowna Mayor Doug Findlater says the district is calling for expressions of support from other affected jurisdictions in advance of a soon-to-be-released B.C. Hydro study into the issue. “We’re being cautious,” Findletter said, of...
Marijuana testing to be allowed under new city zoning bylaw
KELOWNA - Sounds like a dream job for some — working at a marijuana testing facility — but the reality is the analytical testing of dried pot is a mundane affair, done wearing lab coats not tie-dyed T-shirts. It’s also going to be an allowable use if Kelowna city council accepts staff’s recommendation that allows...
School board gets an earful from parents over Lake Country catchment boundry changes
FRENCH IMMERSION EXPANSION INTO GLENROSA MIDDLE SCHOOL ALSO A CONCERN KELOWNA - School board chair Moyra Baxter said an emotional meeting yesterday where a large contingent of anxious parents blasted the board over proposed catchment changes in Lake Country have revealed deep divisions in the community. “There’s a real animosity between areas out there. It’s...
No real opposition to rail corridor purchase: Lake Country mayor
KELOWNA — Lake Country Mayor James Baker says he’s not aware of any organized resistance in his community to the proposal that the district borrow money to buy into the CN Rail corridor acquisition. “There’s a few people who have been writing letters against it,” Baker said, just prior to the first open house the...
Big storm clean up continues as response cost becomes clear
KELOWNA - The first thing to know about Kelowna’s clean-up response to the near record snowfall that pummelled the city two weeks ago? It’s not over. “It’s carrying on right now,” confirmed City of Kelowna roadways supervisor Stephen Bryans, who said city crews continue to deal with the aftermath. “And it certainly dented our snow...
Dwindling student body means grade changes coming for Rutland Senior Secondary
KELOWNA - The end of the echo boom is hitting Rutland Senior Secondary, forcing the Central Okanagan school district to change grade configurations or risk losing some of the school’s unique programming. “We had a wave of high school students pass through in the last few years,” the school district’s secretary-treasurer, Larry Paul says. “This...
Parking the tipping point for micro-suite apartment approval
KELOWNA - For such small suites, Kelowna city council has some big problems with a high-density apartment building proposed for Dickson Avenue near the Landmark complex. Designs submitted by the developer Dickson Avenue Holdings call for 90 suites, about half of which would be 29 square metres with one parking space included for each unit....
Firefighters to get new ride after council approves truck replacement
KELOWNA - Looking to buy a fire engine? Get ready for some sticker shock and a lengthy wait because it turns out buying one of the specialized emergency response vehicles is nothing like buying a new car. “You can’t just walk into a dealership and buy a fire truck,” says Larry Hollier, deputy chief of...