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Kelowna news
Sexual touching incident Halloween night in Kelowna
KELOWNA – RCMP are looking for a man suspected of sexually touching an underage girl in Kelowna Halloween night. Police say a man with a dark beard and dressed as a woman, sexually touched the girl in the Rutland area around 8 p.m., Oct. 31. RCMP aren’t saying exactly were in Rutland the incident happened....
One year after killing, why there still aren’t any cameras on Okanagan buses
KAMLOOPS HAS 25 KELOWNA – One year after the horrific killing of a Kelowna man on a B.C. Transit bus and six months after they promised to begin installing them, there still isn’t a single operational camera on any Kelowna buses. Last year, on Oct. 30, Caesar Rosales was killed in front of more than...
Falling loonie costs Kelowna taxpayers extra $180,000 for new fire truck
KELOWNA - By last March, the sagging Canadian dollar had already cost Kelowna taxpayers an extra $130,000 for purchase of a new fire engine from the U.S. But the loonie has dropped further since and Kelowna Fire Department chief Jeff Carlisle is again asking Kelowna city council to top up the purchase price of the...
Kelowna judge who died of brain hemorrhage was ‘the heart of the chambers’
KELOWNA - Courthouse flags across the district are at half-mast today after the sudden passing of a beloved provincial court judge. Judge Anne K. Wallace was just 61 when she collapsed in her home Monday evening after a full work day. A sudden brain hemorrhage left her in a coma and doctors declared her legally...
Web series following Kelowna photographer looking for funds to start season two
KELOWNA - A local production company has just released the last episode of the first season of a web series that follows a Kelowna photographer around the world. State of Mind Films produced the series 1 Stop Closer, which features Shawn Talbot as he creates images in exotic locations like Death Valley, Hawaii and the...
More seniors’ housing coming to Kelowna
KELOWNA - Seniors and people with disabilities in Kelowna will soon have more affordable housing options with the start of construction of the second phase of Apple Valley. The new five-story building will provide 78 additional rental apartments, bringing the total number of units at Apple Valley to 150. Residents will be able to enjoy...
Downtown surveillance camera furor dies down in Kelowna
KELOWNA - Surveillance cameras, as a hot button topic, just ain't what they used to be in Kelowna. In less than 15 years, Kelowna has gone from a city where the installation of a single surveillance camera prompted a public backlash and a warning from the privacy commissioner to where the multiple cameras the city...
Kelowna has dozens of Halloween events happening this weekend
KELOWNA - It’s the spookiest day of the year and with Halloween landing on a weekend this year, it's also one of the busiest for events in Kelowna. This weekend you can enjoy plenty of haunted houses, a massive corn maze and lots of other frightful options. Throughout the weekend, you can take a stroll...
Halloween will be a wet one in the Okanagan this year
OKANAGAN - Make sure your costumes are either waterproof or you have an umbrella handy because Mother Nature is looking to rain on your Halloween fun this weekend. Environment Canada is calling for at least a chance of rain throughout the weekend, with showers expected Saturday evening throughout the region. Temperatures are expected to be...
Lots of official eyes on downtown Kelowna streets
KELOWNA - Having eyes on the street is one of the keys to safe city streets, according to the downtown plan, and Kelowna’s urban core now has quite a few with more coming. The primary eyes are Kelowna RCMP, followed by the City of Kelowna bylaw officers, transit security, the downtown ambassadors and private security...
B.C. has highest rate of illegal cigarettes in Western Canada, study finds
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - As the province with the most contraband cigarettes in Western Canada, the amount of illegal tobacco in B.C. remains steadily high. The statistics come from the latest study commissioned by the Western Convenience Stores Association. In September researchers collected discarded cigarettes at various locations throughout the province to determine which were illegally purchased....
Whitewater Cooks author to stir the pot in Kelowna
KELOWNA - The author of a bestselling line of cookbooks will be in Kelowna next week signing autographs and speaking about her famous line of sauces. The author of four bestselling cookbooks, Shelley Adams of the Whitewater Cooks series was the former head chef at Fresh Tracks Café at Whitewater Ski Resort in Nelson. Her...
Time appears right for petition to dump daylight saving time
KAMLOOPS - It’s been a couple days since Bob Dieno and Tara Holmes created a petition and Facebook page asking the B.C. government to consider doing away with daylight saving time and they are getting strong support from many in the province. The petition ‘stop the time change in British Columbia’ received hundreds of signatures...
New concert tour bringing Hedley back to Kelowna
KELOWNA - Hedley is set to make another stop in Kelowna, this time as part of the Hello World Tour 2016. The B.C. natives announced the tour stop, which will include Carly Rae Jepsen, another B.C. favourite, and Francesco Yates, this week. The cross-country tour begins in Newfoundland in April and ends in Vancouver on...
Okanagan bus drivers to honour passenger killed one year ago
KELOWNA - A Kelowna man who was brutally murdered on a packed, local bus last year will be honoured by drivers across the Okanagan Friday. Caesar Rosales was 55 years old when he was killed Oct. 30, 2014, during his regular commute home after work. Exactly one year later bus drivers from Penticton to Vernon...
Poppy campaign kicks off this week
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - This year’s poppy campaign is expected to be underway this Friday, Oct. 30. Poppies will be available at all Legion offices and members will have them available at locations throughout the city. Funds from the poppies contribute to veterans, their families and others in need of assistance in the community. The long-standing tradition...
Get ready for winter fun at B.C.’s largest snow show
VERNON - The largest exhibition of snow machines and snow safety equipment is coming to Vernon in less than two weeks. The first ever B.C. Provincial Snow Show is made up of three events that were previously held across the Interior — in Vernon, Williams Lake and Prince George. This year, the Vernon Snowmobile Association...
Lots of love for Shania Twain’s farewell performance in Kelowna
KELOWNA - Kelowna’s Prospera Place was Shania Twain’s final performance on her Rock This Country tour and possibly her last concert ever. And locals made sure to send her off in style. The show sold out quickly and fans were all over social media saying thanks and wishing her the best. Locals like Rose’s Pub...
UBCO students to vote on fate of low-cost transit program
KELOWNA - The fate of the U-Pass transit program at a local university is in the hands of the students, who will vote over a fare increase next week. Students at the Okanagan campus of the University of British Columbia are holding a referendum over a fare increase for the program next week, which if...
Pilot project could put baskets of free condoms in Okanagan schools
VERNON - Baskets of condoms could soon be coming to local high schools as way of putting protection in the hands of those who need it — no questions asked. About 14 schools in B.C.’s Interior have free condoms available, but students have to ask for them, Vernon School District health coordinator Christine Balfour says....
City of Kelowna changes plan of attack for ‘extraordinary snow events’
KELOWNA - With last January’s near-record snow storm on their minds, the city is going to institute something that’s been the norm on the Prairies for decades — snow routes. “One of the biggest challenges staff face during snow cleaning efforts is vehicles on local residential streets,” public works manager Darryl Astofooroff says in a...
Vandals repeatedly smash windows of West Kelowna restaurant
WEST KELOWNA - A West Kelowna business owner is wondering who is out to get them after their front windows have been smashed four times this year, costing tens of thousands of dollars in damage and lost income. Luke Sumpantarat moved to West Kelowna when he was just 17 years old and in 2010 he...
Local prejudice against Muslims tackled at UBCO
'IF WE DON'T SPEAK ABOUT THESE ISSUES... WE START DEVELOPING ALL THESE MISCONCEPTIONS.' KELOWNA - A UBC Okanagan graduate is organizing a forum on campus to address some of the misconceptions about his religion that are clearly still a problem in Kelowna. Adnan Akiel Ahmad Bhat holds a masters in electrical engineering from the Okanagan...
Local ski hills are growing white
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - While some of us are still holding on to the last strings of warmer weather, those looking forward to skiing and snowboarding will be happy to know the snow is falling at area ski hills. All three of the big ski hills in the area — Sun Peaks, Silver Star Mountain and Big...