Morning gStar
The
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
P R O U D L Y
S E R V I N G
O U R
N O R T H
O K A N A G A N
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C O M M U N I T I E S
F O R
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Y E A R S
It’s Our People who Make VERNON DODGE
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Vernon
Justin Hamer
250-545-2261
Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram ON 27TH STREET WWW.VERNONDODGE.COM
DLR #5204
APPROVAL GIVEN | Vernon development proceeds despite neighbourhood opposition [A6]
House fire suspicious RICHARD ROLKE Morning Star Staff
JENNIFER SMITH/MORNING STAR
Brayden Jones, a BX-Swan Lake firefighter, removes debris as he extinguishes a hot spot at a 25th Avenue home Tuesday morning. Visit www.vernonmorningstar.com for a video.
A fire that roared through an East Vernon home is considered suspicious. Members of the BX-Swan Lake Fire Department converged on a 25th Avenue home at about 8:30 p.m. “The cause of the fire is not known at this time, and the matter is still under investigation,” said Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy, with the RCMP. BX-Swan Lake firefighters were faced with a fully involved blaze when they arrived. “The fire had broken through a window on the second floor and into the attic and roof. It was self-venting,” said Stephen Hidasi, BX-Swan Lake deputy fire chief. “The knock-down was quick but the final extinguishment was challenging. The insulation was sawdust and pony walls cut off access to the fire.” The crews wrapped up their duties at about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday and then returned again for a few hours to ensure the site was secure. It’s believed the blaze began in the kitchen. “The main floor is relatively undamaged but the second floor attic is fully damaged,” said Hidasi. A passing jogger noticed the fire and called 911. “No one is believed to have been in the residence at the time of the incident, and the home is believed to have been vacant,” said Noseworthy. Anyone with information about the fire is asked to call the RCMP at 250-545-7171 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
Little population growth in North Okanagan RICHARD ROLKE Morning Star Staff
The North Okanagan’s population has barely budged. The latest provincial statistics indicate the Regional District of North Okanagan’s population in 2014 was 82,783, up 0.9 per cent from 82,031 in 2013. “It’s not a surprise to anyone. B.C. has been largely flat,” said Kevin Poole, Vernon’s economic development manager. “But it’s a positive — 0.9 per cent. Hopefully the trend will continue.” Vernon’s population in 2014 was Kevin Poole 38,861, up 0.9 per cent from 38,523 the year before. The largest growth within RDNO was Coldstream, increasing 2.2 per cent from 10,320 to 10,551. Lumby is up one per cent to 1,773, while Spallumcheen’s
population climbed two per cent to 5,185. The combined population for the five electoral areas is 18,647, up one per cent. However, there hasn’t been growth across the board. Armstrong’s population dipped 1.6 per cent to 4,879 in 2014 while Enderby’s dropped 1.2 per cent to 2,887. Poole links the stable population in the North Okanagan to people being lured to Alberta’s oil and gas sector. “This is a similar trend in many communities. People go where the jobs are,” he said. However, Poole is confident that as the oil sector rebounds, some people will continue to work in Alberta but will live in the North Okanagan for the lifestyle. He also points out that housing construction locally is strong. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation reports there were 31 starts in February, up from 14 during the same month in 2014. Year-to-date, there have been 55 units so far in Vernon,
up from 22 during the first two months of 2014. The biggest population news is in Lake Country, the fastest growing municipality in B.C. According to provincial statistics, the Central Okanagan municipality grew 5.6 per cent between 2013 and 2014. “It’s exciting to see how our community has evolved over the last 20 years since incorporation, embracing change while attempting to respect the key characteristics that make Lake Country so desirable,” said Mayor James Baker. Incorporated May 2, 1995, the municipality has a population of more than 13,000 today. “While we have evolved a lot since incorporation, welcoming thousands of young families and retirees seeking to enjoy our Okanagan lifestyle and sunshine, we have also worked very hard to protect the beaches, orchards and wineries that make our area so special,” said Baker. “In fact, while our community is growing rapidly we are currently seeing an expansion to our agricultural base, with the construction of a major new winery.”
BANNISTER HONDA “A Family Business, with Family Values ”
6425 Hwy 97 N, Vernon B.C. • 250-545-0531 • 888-545-0531 bannisterhonda.com DL# 8718 *Limited time weekly lease offer and all other offers are from Honda Canada Finance Inc., on approved credit. #The weekly lease offer applies to a new 2015 CR-V LX 2WD model RM3H3FES (“Specified Models”) for a 60-month period, for a total of 260 payments of $69.89 leased at 1.99% APR based on applying $400.00 “lease dollars” (which are deducted from the negotiated selling price before taxes). ‡In order to achieve $0 down payment, dealer will cover the cost of tire/battery tax, air conditioning tax (where applicable), environmental fees and levies on the 2015 CR-V LX 2WD only on customer’s behalf. Down payment of $0.00, first weekly payment and $0 security deposit due at lease inception. Total lease obligation is $18,171.40. Taxes, license, insurance and registration are extra. 120,000 kilometre allowance; charge of $0.12/km for excess kilometres. **MSRP is $27,685 including freight and PDI of $1,695 based on new 2015 Specified Models described above. License, insurance, registration and taxes are extra and may be required at the time of purchase. £For more information about the 2015 Motor Trend Sport/Utility of the Year® award, visit http://www. motortrend.com/oftheyear/suv/2015_honda_cr_v_is_the_motor_trend_suv_of_the_year */#/**Prices and/or payments shown do not include a PPSA lien registration fee of $30.31 and lien registering agent’s fee of $5.25, which are both due at time of delivery and covered by the dealer on behalf of the customer on Specified Models only. Offers valid from March 3rd through 31st 2015 at participating Honda retailers. Dealer may sell/lease for less. Dealer trade may be necessary on certain vehicles. Offers valid only for British Columbia residents at BC Honda Dealers locations. Offers subject to change or cancellation without notice. Terms and conditions apply. Visit www.bchonda.com or see your Honda retailer for full details.