Top Stories – June 23 – Museum On Hold

Time to talk about it. After announcing out of the blue the province was going to spend almost a Billion dollars to build a new Royal BC Museum, Premier John Horgan slammed on the brakes and says there will now be consultation. The Museum will lead a broad public engagement to consider all options for its future.

It’s that time of year on the west side. The Water Quality Advisory issued on June 6, has been upgraded to a Boil Water Notice for the Sunnyside/Pritchard Area. This is due to an increase in turbidity levels. Okanagan Lake continues to be about 12 centimetres above full pool.

Elections Canada says almost 100-thousand mail-in ballots were not counted in the federal election, most because they arrived after the deadline. Overall, there was an 82 percent increase in the number of mail-ins for last year’s general election, which took place during the pandemic, compared to the one in 2019.

UBCO Bachelor of Fine Arts students have painted a new mural in the Lower Mission area. It ties into the established sensitive habitats and ecosystems of the Okanagan theme with the depiction of a painted turtle. Today, at 5pm, everyone is invited to the official unveiling of the completed mural at Pandosy and West.

Summer officially arrived earlier this week, but the heat will arrive this weekend. The weather office says we can expect daytime highs rising into the low to mid 30’s with overnight lows only down to the mid-teens. Freezing levels will rise and could lead to an increase in stream flows. And to make things really interesting, a funnel cloud was reported near Penticton Airport yesterday afternoon.

BC Ferries is recalling about 150 workers who refused to get vaccinated and were laid off without pay. Along with other businesses in the travel sector it rescinded the vaccination mandate on Monday. The corporation has been struggling with staff shortages and canceled sailings.

The Union Gospel Mission is partnering with BC Housing, and the City of Kelowna to lease a new site for a temporary shelter for people experiencing homelessness. It’s at 858 Ellis and will have about 60 individual sleeping pods for privacy, as well as shared washrooms, storage space and other amenities. It’s expected open in September and will replace a temporary shelter on Doyle.

An osprey is also called a fishing hawk, but this one’s home got too close to its prey. Conservation officers had to move a nest and its two eggs to a higher pole in Kootenay Lake as it was in danger of being submerged. The officers went out in a boat, and while the mother bird watched from nearby, they moved the entire nest to a higher piling just a few metres away.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said students should pressure their political representatives to provide more support to Ukraine to help fight the ongoing Russian invasion. He was speaking virtually to an in-person audience at the University of Toronto. He said students can go to rallies and use social media accounts and communication to remind people of the tragedies that are happening in Ukraine.

Sports

Stanley Cup playoffs in Tampa saw Nazem Kadri score in overtime to give Colorado a 3-2 win against Tampa and a 3 games to 1 lead in the series. Game 5 is tomorrow back in Denver where the Avs will be hoping to raise the Cup with a win.

The West Kelowna Warriors have acquired the rights of Aiden Reeves from the Prince George Spruce Kings in exchange for future considerations. The 19 year old comes to the Warriors after spending the past 3 seasons with the Prince George Cougars in the WHL.

The federal government is freezing Hockey Canada’s funding until the organization signs up with a federal agency that can independently investigate abuse complaints and issue sanctions. In a settled lawsuit filed in April, a woman said eight unnamed CHL players, including members of Canada’s 2018 world junior team, sexually assaulted her in June that year in a London, Ontario, hotel following a Hockey Canada event.

The 9th edition of the NHL Young Stars Classic will be held at the South Okanagan Events Centre in Penticton in September. It will feature players signed by the Canucks, Flames, Oilers and Jets. Ticket information will be announced later.