BLACK HAWK DOWN This falcon appears to be surrendering as Oprah, the resident osprey at The Dunes at Kamloops Golf Course, swoops in. KTW reader Gordon Gore, who has been documenting the lives of ospreys in Westsyde, came across this stunning scene during a recent visit to the course. It seems the falcon was busy attacking an immature ring-billed gull when the commotion attracted Oprah. With the osprey nest a mere 100 yards away, and with that nest harbouring baby Ozzie, Oprah likely felt threatened and decided to dive bomb the falcon/gull fight and clear the area of any other birds.
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WEDNESDAY
TODAY’S WEATHER AUGUST 14, 2019 | Volume 32 No. 65
Sunny and hot High 31 C Low 14 C
Which way do we go? One way or two? JESSICA WALLACE STAFF REPORTER jessica@kamloopsthisweek.com
RIBS AND RODS Relive Ribfest and Hot Nite in the City via our photo gallery of the two events on page A12.
A Kamloops city councillor is resurrecting discussion to scrap one-way streets downtown in a bid to improve business and pedestrian access. Coun. Denis Walsh called one-way streets — which are located on Seymour Street, Lansdowne Street, First Avenue and Third Avenue — restrictive and outdated. He said one-way streets create highway-like conditions for vehicles passing through and discourage foot and bicycle traffic in the core at a time when people are increasingly seeking alternative transportation. He said the majority of drivers using the one-way streets do so to pass through the downtown core to other parts of the city, rather than to shop. “I think we’re strangling our growth of our downtown by having an arterial highway splitting our city,” he said. City engineering manager Deven Matkowski said one-way streets were implemented downtown in the late 1980s as a way to enhance traffic flow. One-way streets exist in pairs downtown — east-west on Lansdowne and Seymour streets and north-south on First and Third avenues — creating corridors that allow smooth traffic in one direction.
If removed, it is expected the same volume of vehicles would not be able to get downtown. Discussion about scrapping one-way streets downtown is not new. It came up during the last time the city underwent downtown planning in the early 2000s. Ultimately, they remained, with Walsh maintaining it is a polarizing issue that stems on “car-centric people who think automobile is king.” For that reason, Walsh wants to gauge public desire for such an initiative before bringing forward any notice of motion on the matter. Asked if pushing for such a change constitutes a conflict of interest for him — Walsh owns two businesses downtown (The Vic and MovieMart) — he said the improvements would benefit the area as a whole and noted his businesses are located on two-way streets. The Vic is at the corner of Victoria Street and Fourth Avenue and MovieMart is at the corner of St. Paul Street and Fourth Avenue. The city is wrapping up community engagement on the downtown plan, with the final plan expected to be adopted sometime this year. The plan will guide land use in the downtown, Sagebrush and West End neighbourhoods for the next two decades.
SEPTEMBER 6th, 2019 $200 Individual Registration Sponsorship starts at $500
THE DUNES Largest Charity Golf Event in Kamloops
DAVE EAGLES/KTW FILE Third Avenue is a one of four one-way streets in downtown Kamloops, stretching south to north from Columbia Street to Lansdowne Street.
ONE-WAY/TWO-WAY/HAVE YOUR SAY
Vote in our Question of the Week at kamloopsthisweek.com
Special Guest Speaker Layne Matchuk
Sept 5, Paramount Theatre Donation at the Door A family friendly evening featuring Humboldt Broncos survivor Layne & his family.
Proceeds support the Kamloops Brain Injury Association, for more information contact events@kbia.ca or phone 250-372-1799