Steve Arstad
I have been looking for news in the South Okanagan - SImilkameen for 20 years, having turned a part time lifelong interest into a full time profession. After five years publishing a local newsletter, several years working as a correspondent / stringer for several local newspapers and seven years as editor of a Similkameen weekly newspaper, I joined iNFOnews.ca in 2014. My goal in the news industry has always been to deliver accurate and interesting articles about local people and places. My interest in the profession is life long - from my earliest memories of grade school, I have enjoyed writing.
As an airborne geophysical surveyor I travelled extensively around the globe, conducting helicopter borne mineral surveys.
I also spent several years at an Okanagan Falls based lumber mill, producing glued-wood laminated products.
As a member of the Kaleden community, I have been involved in the Kaleden Volunteer Fire Department for 22 years, and also serve as a trustee on the Kaleden Irrigation District board.
I am currently married to my wife Judy, of 26 years. We are empty-nesters who enjoy living in Kaleden with our Welsh Terrier, Angus, and cat, Tibbs.
Our two daughters, Meagan and Hayley, reside in Richmond and Victoria, respectively.
Steve Arstad's Stories
South Okanagan gets on board with transit plan
PENTICTON - A plan to see transit improved in the Penticton area is moving forward after getting the green light from city council this week. The Okanagan Similkameen Transit Future Plan received thumbs up from Penticton City Council, clearing the way forward for initial steps in the implementation of a plan that attempts to project...
Mental health issues at root of Osoyoos convenience store robberies
PENTICTON - A Penticton provincial court judge sympathized with a young man suffering from mental issues after two bungled robbery attempts in Osoyoos. Twenty-four year old Aaron Paul Hillstad will only spend one day in jail after receiving credit for time served, but will face two years’ probation under a number of strict terms following...
Ribfest ready to return to Penticton next year
PENTICTON - A first-time event that took place in Penticton this weekend looks like it has staying power. The Penticton Rotary’s first ever Ribfest completed a three-day run in the city’s Lakeside Park this past weekend. A tired but content Ribfest chairperson, Barb Hoolaeff, calls it an 'awesome weekend.' “The Ribbers estimated 20,000 people attended...
Seasonal workers add to Penticton soup kitchen clientele
PENTICTON - It may be summer, but there is no sign of diminishing need at the Penticton Soupateria. Past President Keray Lavant says the volunteers fed 185 people on Friday, July 3. That’s up from a normal summer day of 160. “We’re normally cleaned up and out of here by 12:30 p.m., but it’s 1...
Regional district celebrates pedestrians, transit
PENTICTON - The regional district kicked off July by celebrating a new community walkway and showing its appreciation for ridership on the South Okanagan Transit system. The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen held an official ribbon cutting ceremony on Canada Day with local political dignitaries and a handful of Kaleden residents. In a regional district release,...
Eats, arts, and all things Scottish in Penticton this weekend
PENTICTON - Penticton is the place to be this weekend if you like food, art or just about anything Scottish. The Rotary Club’s Ribfest is already underway in Okanagan Park, and promises to be a very busy place this weekend. “It’s our first and hopefully to become an annual event," Rotary Chair for Volunteers Craig...
No changes planned for city traffic system in spite of increased volume
PENTICTON - Penticton motorists don’t have much to complain about when it comes to traffic issues in the city but with summer here, traffic on city streets is on the rise. The influx of summer visitors and the corresponding increase in vehicles on local highways, combined with traffic changes in the city’s south end this...
Boat inspectors at work in Okanagan
PENTICTON - Inspectors are making sure Penticton beaches remain mussel-free this summer. Inspectors Branden Beck and Graham Wheating say it’s their second time to be stationed at the Kaleden scales, inspecting boats for any sign of invasive zebra and quagga mussels, part of a provincial program that has three crews monitoring highways, beaches and boat launches...
Willowbrook residents cleaning up after nature’s fury
PENTICTON - Several Willowbrook property owners continue to clean up after a brief, localized storm hit the community on Monday, June 29, around 3:30 p.m. “It must have been a twister," Kurt Klaes says, describing the storm front as 'a white wall.' On July 2, he and wife Ruth are still cleaning up with a...
Penticton Vees mourning loss of team Chaplain
PENTICTON - The Penticton Vees lost a part of their family with the passing of the team’s chaplain, Jamie Weberg. Weberg passed away Sunday, June 28 after a two-year battle with cancer, said Fraser Rodgers, spokeperson for the team. "He was diagnosed in late 2013 with a type of bone cancer. It was an incurable...
Police report crime rates at summer levels
PENTICTON - You might say Penticton RCMP were busy as beavers heading into Canada Day. RCMP spokesperson Don Wrigglesworth says call volumes over the weekend were 'consistent with summer activity,'noting the detachment answered 75 calls through Saturday night including, yes, a call about a car hitting a beaver near the Channel Parkway on Wednesday, June...
Penticton Indian Band steps toward self-governance
PENTICTON -The Penticton Indian Band took a big step forward in its ability to self govern as the band formally announced their participation in the First Nations Land Management Regime today, June 30. The regime will allow the Penticton band opportunity to opt out of 32 land-related sections of the Indian Act in order to...
Gyro Park in Penticton the place to be for Canada Day
PENTICTON - There are lots of things planned in Penticton to ensure people can celebrate Canada’s 148th birthday. Main events for Canada Day on Wednesday, July 1, in Gyro Park include the pancake breakfast at 8 a.m., a Public Market and Food Fair at 9 a.m., along with the opening ceremonies and cake cutting at...
Search continues for man missing in Osoyoos Lake
PENTICTON - Search and Rescue volunteers and the RCMP dive team have joined the search for a missing man in Osoyoos Lake today. The 34-year-old man from West Vancouver went missing after falling of a personal watercraft into the lake around 6 p.m., Sunday, June 28, according to a RCMP media release. Police say the missing...
Intel purchase of Yaletown tech firm comes with a Penticton connection
PENTICTON - A leading edge, high-tech Vancouver company’s recent sale to computer chip giant Intel is a success story with a Penticton connection. Recon Instruments, a Yaletown based company which is an industry leader in heads up display technology, made business headlines earlier this month with the announcement the company had been acquired by computer...