Vernon news

TV pilot highlights luxury homes being built in the Okanagan

KELOWNA - A local TV producer is putting the finishing touches on a pilot TV episode that gives viewers a glimpse of what goes into building Kelowna’s newest and most expensive homes. Pamela Tomlinson, who produced The Carnies, The Canadian Culinary Championships and a feature length film called Hitler’s Speech Writer, has turned her lens towards a local construction...

Vernon business frustrated as robbers walk free

VERNON - A Vernon business owner is fed up after two robberies at their store in the last year, and no arrests. Aman Sudan and her husband bought the local Mac’s Convenience Store franchise on 27 Street about a year ago. Since that time they’ve been robbed twice; the first time in January 2015 when...

Orange Shirt Day remembers residential school victims

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If you saw someone wearing orange today, don’t assume they are supporters of the federal NDP. “Orange Shirt Day is a reminder of the pain and anguish of residential school survivors and their families,” Rose Caldwell says. “For the ones who made it through and the ones who never came home.” Caldwell is...

Disagreement over use of Vernon dog park has council at end of leash

VERNON - City officials continue to spar over the use of a green space near Marshall Fields as an off-leash dog park. Residents have been using the area, which runs alongside Marshall Fields by the Lakers Clubhouse, to let their dogs run off leash for years, but now the City of Vernon is now tightening...

Marina proposal on Sugar Lake has locals asking questions

CHERRYVILLE - Concerns are brewing around a marina proposal and what it will mean for Sugar Lake. Sugar Lake Developments Ltd. has applied to the province for permission to replace an existing wooden dock with a new 30-slip marina on Sugar Lake, just north of Cherryville. The proposal has some locals fearing impacts on the...

Top female sailors to race in Kelowna this weekend

KELOWNA - Some of the best female sailors in the country will be in Kelowna this weekend for a competitive sailboat race that hasn’t been held in Kelowna since 2007. The 2015 Re/Max Canada Women’s Keelboat Championships is a fast-paced weekend of racing that takes place over three days in front of Waterfront Park in...

TAYLOR TRIAL: Witnesses describe finding body of teen in Kamloops neighbourhood

KAMLOOPS — The walking trail by a ravine near Guerin Creek was often littered with beer cans, bottles and garbage, but three dog walkers, a hydro worker and a letter carrier noticed something out of place the morning of Dec. 5 before a 16-year-old girl’s body was found in the neighbourhood. The body was CJ...

Clock ticking on Vernon ice sheet referendum

VERNON - It’s crunch time for local government officials looking to hold a November borrowing referendum for a new Vernon ice sheet. The City of Vernon wants to decommission the aging Civic Arena and add a second ice sheet to Kal Tire Place — but has had to jump through some hoops just to bring...

Record grape harvest bodes well for Fall Okanagan Wine Festival

KELOWNA - It's been a stellar year for Okanagan vineyards and it will continue with a ten-day celebration of all things wine, which is expected to attract more than 20,000 visitors. Many local wineries are picking grapes earlier than ever before this year, according to Lori Pike-Raffan, the public relations director for Okanagan Wine Festivals...

TAYLOR TRIAL: Teen and accused were ‘getting along’ hours before her death

KAMLOOPS — In the hours leading up to her death, a pregnant 16-year-old was getting along with her boyfriend and didn’t want to leave him the night before their trip from Kamloops to Terrace, a jury heard in Kamloops Supreme Court yesterday, Sept. 29. Claude Royer, a ministry of children and families worker, was among...

Thieves take a bite out of several Vernon businesses

BIZARRE ASSORTMENT OF STOLEN ITEMS FROM ACROSS NORTH OKANAGAN VERNON - Thieves have been doing brisk business in the North Okanagan recently as they pillaged business after business in recent days. RCMP spokesperson Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy says there doesn’t appear to be any reason for the spike other than it just happens sometimes. "It’s not...

Vernon residents upset about noisy shrimp harvesting on Okanagan Lake

VERNON - Noise concerns are being generated by shrimping operations on Okanagan Lake, but it's unclear which level of government complaints should be directed at. Vernon city councillor Juliette Cunningham raised the issue at a public meeting Monday, saying the noise from a shrimp boat working around Paddlewheel Park is leaving some residents complaining to...

Charges pending against erratic Kelowna driver who side-swiped cars on route to Vernon

‘HE TOLD POLICE HE DIDN’T UNDERSTAND WHY HE WAS BEING STOPPED’ VERNON - Charges of dangerous driving and possession of a controlled substance are being recommended against a Kelowna man who went on a wild drive from Lake Country to Vernon last week. The 38-year-old was arrested in downtown Vernon after making his way from...

Search and rescue groups could get more funding

KELOWNA - Search and rescue volunteer organizations are a step closer to receiving more funding from the province. A funding model that has been in development for two years is being sent out to other search and rescue groups in the province for input before it gets forwarded to the government. Director Jim McAllister of...