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Kelowna news
Lake Country council will decide tonight on referendum recommendation by district staff
LAKE COUNTRY - Mayor and council will tonight decide whether Lake Country voters will have their say on the CN Rail corridor purchase through a district-wide referendum. Staff are recommending the referendum be held April 25 and will ask the simple question of whether qualified voters agree that the district should borrow $2,615,000 to buy...
Patient reported missing from Kelowna General Hospital has been found
UPDATE: Kelowna RCMP say Rebecca Wolfe, 31, has been located and is safe. ——— KELOWNA – RCMP are asking for the public’s help to find a woman missing from Kelowna General Hospital. Rebecca Wolfe, 31, went missing on Thursday, Feb. 5 from the hospital, according to a media release from the RCMP. She is 5’8”...
Missing Kelowna man found
UPDATE: RCMP say a man reported missing Feb. 26 has been found. As per our…
Rocket Goulbourne signs entry-level deal with Philadelphia Flyers
KELOWNA - Kelowna Rockets forward Tyrell Goulbourne has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Philadelphia Flyers. The 21-year-old Edmonton native was a third-round selection of the Flyers, 72nd overall, in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. Goulbourne is currently in his fifth season with the Rockets and according to a media release, this is his...
Charges laid in crash that took the life of a Vernon nurse
VERNON - Charges have been laid in relation to an accident on 32 Street that took the life of a Vernon nurse in the early morning hours of Oct. 23, 2014. Vernon RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says Lori Victoria Vance will appear in court March 19 to face charges of impaired driving causing death and...
Micro suite exemptions from development charges prompts policy review by city staff
KELOWNA - It’s the third micro suite project to come before Kelowna city council in the last month and there’s already concerns about the latest housing trend. Councillor Luke Stack says micro suites are exempt from development cost charges under a provincial policy. It means the city can't collect money from the developers to help...
Attempted luring of a young boy prompts RCMP warning
KELOWNA - Police are asking for your help to find a man who allegedly attempted to lure a child into his house in Rutland a week ago. Mounties say the incident happened Feb. 26 at roughly 2:30 p.m. while a 10-year-old Kelowna boy was riding his scooter on the path in the area of Gramiak...
Changes will ensure prisoners’ privacy during strip searches: RCMP
KELOWNA – Local RCMP Supt. Nick Romanchuk says after being chastised by a provincial judge for illegally broadcasting images of strip searches to a guard room at his detachment, changes have been made that will ensure privacy for prisoners. “I’m not going to get into the intricate details of what’s in there but suffice it...
Warriors set for BCHL playoffs
WEST KELOWNA - With some help on the last day of the regular season the West Kelowna Warriors are into the BCHL playoffs after 58 games. The Warriors, who grabbed the 4th seed in the Interior Division with a 6-2 win over Surrey on Saturday, were thankful for their 1st round opponent Penticton knocking off...
Okanagan entrepreneurs kick butt at awards show
OKANAGAN – A win at the B.C. Small Business Awards is no small feat, so having two businesses from Kelowna and one from Enderby honoured at the ceremony in Vancouver was a pretty big deal. Soil Mate from Kelowna grabbed the Best Concept award, Kelowna’s Float Space won for Best Emerging Entrepreneur and Mel’s Main...
’80s themed psychic ski race returns to Big White
KELOWNA – After a 20 year hiatus, the Kelowna Cup ski race is coming back to Big White. The '80s themed race is a kind of psychic slalom where racers, some wearing costumes from the '80s, make a timed run down a course and then predict what their time will be for the second run....
Money isn’t everything as West Kelowna councillor Rosalind Neis found out during 2014 election
WEST KELOWNA - It seems candidates in elections everywhere are spending ever more to get elected, which makes West Kelowna councillor Rosalind Neis’ 2014 campaign war chest that much more impressive. There was nothing in it. Neis’ campaign contribution disclosure form, released Monday by Elections B.C., is full of zeroes — no corporate or developer...
Here’s what the City of Kelowna is doing about climate change
KELOWNA - The city is turning climate change into revenue, some $235,000, according to a report Kelowna councillors will receive on Monday. Sustainability coordinator Tracy Guidi will update councillors on the city’s efforts to meet the goals of the Climate Action Revenue Incentive program. It helps fund local initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in...
Inn from the Cold won’t have to close early
KELOWNA – Inn from the Cold will not have to close early, thanks to a funding boost from the province. The temporary winter shelter recently announced it would be closing due to a lack of operating funds. On Friday the provincial government stepped up with a one-time funding of $22,000, which will allow the shelter...
Why this controlled burn was needed in a West Kelowna park
KELOWNA - You might notice smoke coming from West Kelowna’s Kalamoir Regional Park today while crews conduct a controlled burn. Due to vandalism on some of the trees near the King Road entrance to the park, the Central Okanagan Regional District is burning wood debris that could pose a fire hazard. The regional district picked...
Westside Road shooter not guilty of attempted murder
KELOWNA – Michael Ellis, the man accused of shooting at police as he and two others tried to escape along Westside Road in 2012, was found not guilty of attempted murder but could still face a lengthy jail term after he was found guilty of more than a dozen other related charges. Justice Ian Josephson...
Wage increase approved for West Kelowna firefighters
WEST KELOWNA - West Kelowna firefighters' wages and property tax bills with both get a bit of a bump over the next few years following the approval of a new collective agreement. West Kelowna council has ratified the new collective agreement between the International Association of Firefighters Local 4457 and the District of West Kelowna....
Kelowna fighter makes UFC history
KELOWNA – Matt Dwyer will never forget his first trip outside of Canada. Not only did the Rutland Senior Secondary graduate score his first win in the UFC, but he did it with a rare punch that will be on highlight reels for years to come. The move he used is called a superman punch...
UBCO gets knuckles rapped over back road campus access
KELOWNA - It may be a case of a few rule breakers wrecking it for everyone else. UBC Okanagan has announced an agreement with Curtis Rd. residents to reopen the private road in North Glenmore to limited use by a limited number of staff and students. The road has been closed to UBCO since Feb....
Money talks, experience walks: Here’s what Sharon Shepherd thinks cost her the election
KELOWNA - It was supposed to be the political comeback for two-term mayor Sharon Shepherd. Edged out by Walter Gray in 2011, Shepherd was pushed by many to take another crack at it when Gray announced he would not run again in 2014. In the minds of her supporters it was supposed to be an...
Race on to save CN Rail corridor deal despite no vote
KELOWNA - Whether it takes a referendum in Lake Country or Kelowna buying the whole thing outright, both politicians and staff in the two municipalities say they’re determined to find a way to make the CN Rail corridor purchase a reality. “We see this as too good an opportunity to pass up,” said City of...
Other shelters step up to help homeless displaced by Inn From the Cold money woes
KELOWNA - It seemed as though lack of funding and subsequent closure of 35 beds at the Inn From the Cold overnight shelter program could mean the end of safe transitional accomodations for some of Kelowna's homeless, but two other charities are stepping forward to announce they have room and nobody will be turned away....
UPDATE: Witnesses say cop ran red light, sent woman to hospital
KELOWNA – Witnesses to an accident involving a police vehicle that sent a Kelowna woman to hospital Tuesday afternoon are saying the officer caused the accident by running a red light. Amanda May Embree was on her way to Mission Creek Park with two friends and a three-year-old boy around 3 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 24. "We were...
RCMP helicopter permanently flying north
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Don't expect to see RCMP helicopters flying overhead as often going forward, a Kamloops-based RCMP helicopter will be handed over to the North District this April leaving only one to cover the entire district. “They’re moving the one from Kamloops to Prince George. (The district-level decision) was based on the fact that they...