Vernon news
UPDATE: Missing Enderby woman found dead
UPDATE: 9:39 A.M. MAR. 5 A missing senior with dementia was found dead Wednesday afternoon. RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says people fishing in the Salmon Lake area found Barbara Derenowski, missing since Monday afternoon, and reported it to the Merritt RCMP detachment. “Early indications appear that Barbara got her truck stuck in snow on a...
This Vernon actor brings the party to YouTube in new series
VERNON - YouTube sensation Ian Fisher got his start writing comedy sketches and goofing off as Mage the Street Magician in Vernon. That was back in Fisher’s teen years at Seaton Secondary. The Toronto-based actor has now moved on to bigger projects like The Party Show, but he'll never forget his earliest ventures. “No matter...
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...
Lake Country vows to heavily promote rail corridor purchase, counter opponent’s misinformation ahead of referendum
LAKE COUNTRY - Stung by a defeat they didn’t see coming, Lake Country government will be pushing hard to win the April referendum on the purchase of the CN Rail corridor. Mayor James Baker said the referendum format prescribed by Elections B.C. will allow the municipality to promote the $2.6-million purchase in a way they...
Smoke leads Vernon firefighters to the Ministry of Forests
VERNON - The Vernon Fire Department attended the scene of a fire Tuesday not knowing the Ministry of Forests set it on purpose. The B.C Wildfire Management Branch planned the controlled burn just off Highway 97 in the Predator Ridge area but didn’t give the Vernon Fire Department any notice. Deputy fire chief Jack Blair...
One of the Okanagan’s most expensive, multi-million dollar homes is hiding in Vernon
OKANAGAN - If a Vernon home complete with its own theatre, library, and heli pad sells for the asking price — close to $8 million — it would become the third most expensive residential property in the Okanagan Valley. But if you look the property up on B.C. Assessment, it doesn’t even make the top...
B.C. court hears speedboat did doughnuts on lake before fatal crash
KAMLOOPS – A speedboat was doing doughnuts on a lake in British Columbia's Interior in "pitch-black" conditions and on a moonless, overcast night minutes before a fatal collision in 2010, B.C. Supreme Court has heard.
How the Vernon Art Gallery is solving space problems with steel boxes
VERNON - A unique attraction is taking shape downtown Vernon. Five massive container boxes arrived in the empty lot across from Cenotaph Park Monday morning. In two weeks time, the steel boxes will house a major international art show. “It’s fairly unique,” Vernon Public Art Gallery executive director Dauna Kennedy Grant says. “I myself haven’t...
Golfers rejoice: Local course to open Thursday
SPALLUMCHEEN - At least one local golf course is boasting an early March opening. The Spallumcheen Golf and Country Club is opening its driving range Thursday, Mar. 5. — one of the earliest dates around. The course at Predator Ridge is eyeing an April 8 opening, and the Vernon Golf and Country Club says the...
Surprise construction costs blow new Vernon sports track budget
VERNON - Unexpected costs mean Vernon’s new sports track is more than three quarters of a million dollars over budget. But taxpayers shouldn’t worry about the $790,000 overrun, says Greater Vernon director Mike Macnabb. The extra funding is expected to be recovered through reserves and donations. “We have a very aggressive plan to get some...
Vernon’s top cop reflects on 35 years with the RCMP
VERNON - RCMP Superintendent Reg Burgess’ entry into the police force 35 years ago was a serendipitous one. The now 60-year-old had a business administration degree under his belt and was working as a loans manager in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He was single and rooming with a fellow who happened to be a police officer....
These videos about small Thompson-Okanagan towns will make you proud to live here
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - From brewhouses to outdoor theatre companies, a number of small businesses in the Thompson-Okanagan are being celebrated in a six-part video series. It’s part of a project called Small Business, Big Culture that highlights select cities across B.C. and Alberta. Vernon, Armstrong and Kamloops made the cut, in addition to Medicine Hat, Lethbridge,...
Court hears boat was travelling at ‘killing speed’ before crash on Shuswap Lake
KAMLOOPS – A speedboat was travelling at "killing speed" before a fatal nighttime crash with a houseboat on Shuswap Lake in 2010, a trial has heard.
The household remedy that started a major RCMP drug investigation in Enderby
VERNON - When authorities raided an Enderby business and lodging house last week, they noticed a horrible smell from a weird substance growing in a jar and called in the RCMP's drug lab unit from Vancouver—complete with full-body suits and gas masks. But your average health nut might have immediately recognized it as a home-made...
City of Vernon buys another high-priced lakeshore property
VERNON - It’s all part of the big picture. Over the last two decades, the City of Vernon has been buying lakeshore property on Okanagan Lake as it pieces together enough land for a public waterfront park. The latest is the property at 2602 Lakeshore Road for $707,500. A pretty good price considering councillors have...