Kristen Holliday

2 days ago | castanetkamloops.net | Kristen Holliday

City of Kamloops staff say a FireSmart program offering incentives for residents to remove hazardous vegetation like junipers and cedars had such a large and immediate uptake, the initiative had to be paused to allow staff to catch up. The community fuel reduction incentive program was launched on April 22, offering local homeowners up to $800 if they signed up for a free FireSmart assessment and agreed to remove hazardous cedar and juniper vegetation near their homes.

2 days ago | castanetkamloops.net | Kristen Holliday

A Kamloops non-profit is among a group of nearly two dozen low-barrier housing providers calling for an immediate weapons ban in supportive housing and a new legislative framework to help manage facilities and protect residents. The B.C. Coalition for Safe and Sustainable Supportive Housing is urging the province to remove supportive housing from the Residential Tenancy Act to create custom legislation factoring in the realities of low-barrier housing facilities.

2 days ago | castanetkamloops.net | Kristen Holliday

A one-block stretch of First Avenue in downtown Kamloops will see a couple of temporary closures over the coming days. In a social media post, the City of Kamloops said First Avenue between Nicola Street and Columbia Street will be closed from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday. “Traffic will be detoured along Battle Street to Second Avenue,” the city said.

2 days ago | castanetkamloops.net | Kristen Holliday

A former Kamloops MLA has died. Art Charbonneau, who represented Kamloops in the legislature from 1991 to 1996, died at home surrounded by family on April 25 after suffering a stroke. He was 85 years old. According to Charbonneau’s obituary. he earned a degree in civil engineering and co-founded consulting firm Northwest Hydraulic Consultants in Alberta before moving to Kamloops in the early 1980s. Carrying the NDP banner, Charbonneau was elected to office in 1991.

3 days ago | castanetkamloops.net | Kristen Holliday

Juniper Ridge residents will have an opportunity this summer to get some practice on neighbourhood evacuation routes, with similar tours in the works for other areas of the city. In a report prepared for a council meeting on Tuesday, City of Kamloops staff said residents will be invited on a self-driven emergency evacuation tour to familiarize themselves with the routes. “The tours will not be mock evacuations.