Meaghan Archer
Batman villains and zombie candidates: The Penticton election is getting kooky
PENTICTON - Growing frustrations with Penticton’s political landscape has inspired now two political lampoons, inspired by gold rush heroes and Batman villains. A poster of mayoral candidates depicted as villains from Batman showed up around town Tuesday, and ultimately made its way to Facebook. The poster shows Mayor Garry Litke as the Joker, Coun. Andrew...
Konanz runs to keep her seat
PENTICTON - Helena Konanz says she wants to continue to improve Penticton’s economy and culture by continuing her reign on city council. "My portfolio for the past three years has been towards economic development and job creation, and I would like to continue to advocate for the business and manufacturing sector of our city for...
Mount Baldy expected to reopen for skiing this season
PENTICTON - Mount Baldy may be up-and-running this season despite financial setbacks that kept the ski resort closed last year. The company that has been handling the Mount Baldy foreclosure account, G-Force Real Estate, says the only thing left to do is assemble all the required pieces to re-launch the resort this upcoming season. A...
Cycling: the Penticton tourism industry’s next target
PENTICTON - Cycling is a popular hobby and sport in the South Okanagan but it could soon be a major tourism driver. City representatives introduced the idea of Penticton as a province-wide cycling destination to provincial ministers at the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention in Whistler last week. But Tourism Penticton, an entity of the city, already...
Sentes contemplating running for mayor
PENTICTON - The mayoral race could get a little heated by the end of the week, depending on whether one councillor decides to follow her peers and run for mayor. Coun. Judy Sentes says her name will be on the ballot, but she's not sure yet if she'll run for council or the mayor's seat....
Litke says election rumours are ‘terrible’
PENTICTON - Mayor Garry Litke is keeping his lips sealed about whether he will run for reelection despite the circulating rumours he does not want to be mayor any longer. Litke will still announce his decision on October 7 — three days before nominations close — whether he will seek more time at the head...
Empowered Penticton citizens won’t back down from political mission
PENTICTON - A group of citizens want to educate, encourage and empower the people of Penticton. Back in August, Pentictonites congregated on the Facebook page Time For Change Penticton to engage in conversation about how to improve the city. The Facebook group was deleted this week after the page was “hijacked” by member Jennifer Taylor...
Chamber president Campbell Watt will run for council
PENTICTON - Campbell Watt has announced he’s running for a seat on Penticton city council and says his experience in local organizations and the business sector will give him a leg-up in the competition. Watt has entered the race with hopes of making a positive change to the city, for example by finding an easier...
Penticton police officer at risk of being charged with causing injury
PENTICTON - The fate of a Penticton RCMP officer is in the hands of Crown Counsel after a complaint was filed by a woman who allegedly sustained injuries while in police custody. Chief Civilian Director Richard Rosenthal of the Independent Investigations Office filed the report after a complaint was made by the woman involved in...
Edson Chan represents young population in mayoral race
PENTICTON - A fresh face is joining the race for mayor of Penticton and he hopes his presence will draw the attention of youths into the world of politics. Edson Chan, 26, was born and raised in Penticton. He says he has paid attention to many of the changes Penticton has gone through and wants...
Who is Elvena Slump?
PENTICTON - We know Elvena Slump for her letters to the editor and recent controversy over a lawsuit filed against her by the city for remarks she made about senior staff in those letters. But this isn’t her first controversy. Slump, 76, spent nearly two decades working in print, publishing news, including a paper called The...
Mayor and council discuss job retention and insurance
PENTICTON - Mayor and council have been busy this week at the 2014 Union of B.C. Municipalities convention in Whistler, discussing issues from insurance claims to job recruitment and retention with provincial ministers. A resolution to restore full ICBC claim coverage was passed by the UBCM membership Wednesday. Municipalities want ICBC to reimburse cities in...
This is who’s running for city council so far
PENTICTON - There is a growing list of candidates bidding for a spot on city council and there's still almost two months until ballots are cast. Coun. John Vassilaki and Coun. Andrew Jakubeit are both giving up their council seats for a chance at being mayor, and former councillor Wes Hopkin's seat is also vacant....
Wine sensory lab officially open at Okanagan College
PENTICTON - Wine and viticulture courses at the Okanagan College are about to get a sensory overload with the official opening of the B.C. Wine Information Society Sensory Centre. The Centre is having its grand opening today thanks to a $300,000 donation form the B.C. Wine Information Society that made construction of the facility possible....
Councillors ‘think money grows on trees:’ Vassilaki
PENTICTON - While every member of city council has traveled to Whistler this week for the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention, Coun. John Vassilaki says they are wasting money by sending so many people to the same conference. Vassilaki, who announced his mayoral candidacy at the beginning of the month, says the cost for sending...