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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
Westside board of trade computers hacked, warns clients not to open emails
WEST KELOWNA - The Greater Westside Board of Trade says its computers have been hacked and its email contact list compromised. The board sent out an emergency email today urging people not to open attachments or zip files from any emails people may have received from the business promotion organization. The email apologized for the...
Don’t throw it away, bring it to the Repair Cafe
KELOWNA - Have you ever had a toaster oven or an old clock radio stop working for no apparent reason? Maybe you threw it in the landfill because everyone told you it’s cheaper to buy a new one and you've felt guilty ever since. There's a new way to avoid this guilt, and save a...
No end in sight for sewage sludge sit-in at premier’s constituency office
WEST KELOWNA - The chiefs of the five native bands occupying Christy Clark’s office in West Kelowna say only an agreement with the province will end their protest. “We’re prepared to stay as long as it takes to come to some kind of the agreement with the province,” Chief Aaron Sam of the Upper Nicola...
School bus users could bear the brunt as Central Okanagan school trustees balance budget
KELOWNA - Central Okanagan school board trustees got their first look at recommendations on how to cut $1.3-million from next year’s $117-million budget last night. Chief amongst the recommendations from district staff is the doubling of the $100 annual fee for kids who use the school board’s bus system, an increase that will raise $400,000,...
No injuries as fire destroys garage in downtown Kelowna
KELOWNA - The Kelowna Fire Department responded in force this morning to a garage fire on Laurier Avenue in downtown Kelowna. When they arrived, firefighters found thick black smoke and visible flames shooting from the garage’s interior. They were able to extinguish the blaze before it spread to the house, but the garage and contents...
Kelowna to review prayer policy after Supreme Court ruling bans them at public meetings
KELOWNA - A ruling by the Supreme Court of Canada about conducting prayers at public meetings has prompted the City of Kelowna to review its own council procedures bylaw. While there are no prayers given at regular council meetings, deputy city clerk Karen Needham says a prayer is offered at the public hearings held every...
Story of former Cap News publisher battling newspaper barons hits bookshelves
KELOWNA - A lot of people have heard the story of the rise and fall of Conrad Black and David Radler but not many will know that one of the first threads in the unravelling of their media empire Hollinger Inc. was pulled here in Kelowna. That sordid tale is laid out in A Costly...
Remembering Const. Neil Bruce 50 years after his murder
WEST KELOWNA - The death of Const. Neil Bruce, 50 years ago today, was similar to what Kamloops experienced in 1962 or Mayerthorpe in 2005; the murder of local RCMP officers and the shocking realization for local residents that the men and women who serve and protect our communities can also end up as victims...
Robbery starts in bank, ends in bathroom
WEST KELOWNA - RCMP have arrested two men in connection with the robbery of the CIBC branch on Louie Drive in West Kelowna yesterday afternoon. RCMP spokesman Cpl. Joe Duncan said in a press release that a man walked into the bank at 2000 Louie Dr. on Monday, April 13, threatened a teller and demanded...
Tourism continues to thrive in Central Okanagan
KELOWNA - It was a banner year for tourism in Kelowna, with both occupancy and revenue up at local hotels, a key indicator of a successful season. Tourism Kelowna president Nancy Cameron told Kelowna council Monday afternoon the number of room nights in local hotels and motels was up four per cent while revenue from...
Airport names former Kelowna mayor and councillor to advisory committee
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The group that advises Canada’s largest municipally-run airport will soon be joined by a couple of new faces familiar to people in the Central Okanagan. Kelowna’s former mayor Walter Gray and former city councillor Andre Blanleil, along with industry representative Meryle Corbett were all appointed to four-year terms on the Kelowna Internnational Airport...
Construction and new demand in downtown Kelowna creating parking crunch
KELOWNA - Development in downtown Kelowna is surging, putting a premium on parking spaces, and forcing the city to come up with a plan to deal with perceived shortages over the next three years. Kelowna city council will hear from parking manager Dave Duncan today who prepared the interim parking strategy based on a report...
Plan your route around local road closures this weekend
KELOWNA - Locals drivers should take note of some short-term road closings that could affect travel plans. Sexsmith Road will closed at 5 p.m. today to make way for crews installing sewer upgrades for a new commercial development. The closing affects the segment of Sexsmith between Cambro and Campion Roads. A detour is available via...
And the survey says… life is good in Kelowna
KELOWNA - If you consider yourself pretty much an average Kelownian, then you’re also pretty much satisfied with your life in the city. That’s the conclusion of the most recent citizens survey, released Friday, April 10. “We are generally encourage by the survey results,” city communications supervisor Jodie Foster Sexsmith says. She believes the key...
Faulty landing gear light causes anxious moments at Kelowna Airport
KELOWNA - A faulty landing gear indicator light on a light plane landing at Kelowna Airport this morning had emergency crews on standby. “We had a Piper Cherokee, which is a small aircraft, coming in. It only had one person onboard,” Kelowna International Airport spokesperson Jenelle Hynes. “They had contacted the tower because there was...
Wildfire fuel reduction critical as risk on the rise in West Kelowna
WEST KELOWNA - If you see smoke coming from up Bear Creek in the next few weeks, it’s likely not a raging wildfire. What you’re seeing is actually a fuel mitigation program designed to stop a raging wildfire from starting in the first place. “What you see behind me is what keeps firefighters awake at...
Lake Country referendum could prove pivotal in closing CN Rail corridor deal
KELOWNA - The provincial government recently pledged more than $7 million for the CN Rail corridor purchase but it does nothing to solve Lake Country’s shortfall of $2.6 million. It may also have created a new problem — voter apathy in Lake Country where a yes vote for the purchase is still critical to the deal...
Local electronics retailer expands as big box stores close shop
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If Andre Blanleil gets any satisfaction from the demise of his retail competitor, electronics giant Future Shop, he doesn’t show it. “They were good competitors. They did a good job for the market they were going after,” the president of Andres Group of companies says. The regional chain operates 21 locations under the...
Neighbours fight crime with Block Watch program
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - In a world where social media provides almost instantaneous connections, an anti-crime program that relies on email and the telephone for neighbours to stay connected seems almost anachronistic. But that’s the model the Block Watch program still uses in British Columbia and local crime prevention coordinator Duane MacTavish says it is doing...
Province pledges $7.2M for CN Rail corridor purchase
KELOWNA - There are some strings attached, but the provincial government is pledging $7.2 million to help make the purchase of the CN Rail corridor a reality. The money is conditional on a successful referendum in Lake Country later this month, according to a press release from the province Tuesday, April 7. “We believe in the...
Criminals should worry about Facebook in West Kelowna’s Shannon Lake
WEST KELOWNA - You almost have to pity the drug dealer, con man or break-in artist who tries to do business in Shannon Lake. The walls have eyes and they are all connected to each other. A suspicious thin, white male, late teens, maybe early 20s, driving an old silver or grey Buick, made that...
Double days off at Easter? You either got it or you don’t
KELOWNA - Other than politics and religion, is there anything that divides us more than who gets two days off at Easter and who doesn’t? Is there anything more confusing? Who gets time off around Easter pretty much comes down to the haves and the have-nots. If you’re just a regular working stiff, working 9...
Early spring means Knox Mountain Park now fully open
KELOWNA - Continued good weather means the road to the top of Knox Mountain Park, Kelowna's signature greenspace, is opening a couple of weeks ahead of schedule. The City of Kelowna says it was opening Knox Mountain Drive because night time temperatures have consistently been above zero. Vehicle access is restricted in winter months as...
Police seek information on suspected arson in Rutland
KELOWNA - An early-morning fire that significantly damaged a townhouse on Kneller Road on the weekend may have been arson. The occupants of the townhouse were home when the fire started just after midnight, March 29, but managed to escape unharmed. A Kelowna Fire Department crew extinguished the fire shortly after arriving, but not before...