MERRITT - The City of Merritt unveiled its proposed budget for 2025 and preliminary five-year financial plan Friday (March 28) which could see a municipal property tax increase of up to 12 per cent.If the 12 per cent municipal tax increase follows through, the city says Merritt property owners with an average household...

FRASER VALLEY - The B.C. government announced Monday (Mar. 31) that it has successfully transferred ownership of a 36-hectare property in the Fraser Valley with deep cultural and spiritual significance back to an Abbotsford First Nation. According to a statement from the B.C. Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconc...

SURREY, B.C. - U.S. authorities have arrested a 67-year-old man from Surrey, B.C., accusing him of smuggling banned goods to Pakistan's military and its nuclear weapons program over more than 15 years. The U.S. Department of Justice says in a Friday news release that Mohammad Jawaid Aziz was arrested trying to cross in...

UPDATE: A spokesperson for BC Emergency Health Services says paramedics received a call at 7:35 a.m. Monday about an incident in the 42400 block of Yarrow Central Road in Chilliwack. According to BC EHS spokesperson Bowen Osoko, two ambulances with primary care paramedics and an air ambulance with critical care paramed...

CHILLIWACK - Telus Communications is looking to install a telecommunications antenna on a rural property about a kilometre north of Keith Wilson Road in Chilliwack. Telus Communications has submitted a proposal to build a 42-metre telecommunications monopole with six initial antennas at the top on a 16.7-acre parcel of...

HOPE - A professional artist with 20 years of experience in marketing and commercial graphic design hopes to win a seat on Hope council in the upcoming by-election.Bonny Graham, whose art appears on the downtown and highway District of Hope banners as well as the newly installed welcome signs ("Ey kwese e'mi"...

FRASER VALLEY - Former Abbotsford newspaper reporter Kevin Gillies has been selected as the Liberal Party's candidate for Abbotsford-South Langley in the upcoming federal election. According to a statement from the party, Gillies is a longtime resident of the Fraser Valley, having lived in Mission and Abbotsford since ...

ABBOTSFORD - A 25-year-old businessman is looking to become the Abbotsford-South Langley riding's first Member of Parliament. On his campaign page, Sukhdeep Gill stated that he would use his local upbringing to serve his community, writing that he grew up on - and started managing - his family's local blueberry farm wh...

ABBOTSFORD - One of the University of the Fraser Valley's (UFV's) latest degree programs is already giving back to the community- by helping to build it. The Bachelor of Regional and Community Planning (BRCP) is a four-year degree that draws multidisciplinary connections from environmental studies and art to natura...

MISSION - Due to physician staffing challenges, the Mission Memorial Hospital's Emergency Department will be temporarily shutting down for the second night in a row. Fraser Health has issued a public service announcement saying the E.R. is set to experience a service interruption from 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 30, to ...

CHILLIWACK - Young Chilliwack artists will get to show off the products of their creative minds starting in April at the Chilliwack Cultural Centre's O'Connor Group Art Gallery. Art 33 will feature high school students' art from SD33, with works ranging from painting and sculpture to photography and mixed media. "...

UPDATE: Despite an acclamation notice that appeared on its website Saturday, and despite confirmation from the candidate himself Saturday night, a spokesperson for the Liberal Party of Canada now says Jake Sawatzky will not be the Chilliwack-Hope candidate in the upcoming federal election. "The Chilliwack-Hope can...

MERRITT - Parents studying at the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology (NVIT) in Merritt won't have to choose between family and schooling for much longer. Construction has started on a $19.6 million on-campus family housing complex featuring 12 two- and three-bedroom townhouses for primarily Indigenous families and a...

CHILLIWACK - Here are three people wanted by police in our region this week. This list is provided by Crime Stoppers.Name: Matthew StamperAge: 36Height: 5'11" ft Weight: 260lbs Hair: Brown Eyes: BrownWanted: Possess Firearm without License or Registration. Possess Firearm While Prohibited x2, Possess Unauthorized ...

CHILLIWACK - An honourably discharged Canadian Navy veteran, former small business owner and single father is now running to become the next Member of Parliament for Chilliwack-Hope. Jeff Galbraith is looking to use his diverse experiences as the People's Party representative in the upcoming federal election. "Can...

MISSION - Fraser Health has announced another temporary service disruption at the Mission Memorial Hospital due to doctor shortages. From 6:30 p.m. Saturday, March 29, to 8:00 a.m. Sunday, March 30, the hospital's Emergency Department will be closed to ensure all patients already in the E.R. can be seen by a physician ...

ABBOTSFORD - Abbotsford police were out to keep Friday night fun on local roads- not tragic. "Last night, our frontline officers were actively engaged in ensuring road safety within our community," shared the Abbotsford Police Department in a social media post Saturday morning (Mar. 29). Eleven vehicles were ...

CHILLIWACK - Kamloops Blazers majority owner is looking forward to the recently announced WHL expansion in Chilliwack and Penticton. Speaking with Marty Hastings of CFJC Today, Tom Gaglardi said the expansion would give the franchise access to more higher-end players, as well as natural geographic rivals for his team. ...

HOPE - Hope Mountain Centre is bringing back a beloved community event for what could potentially be its last year. The Centre's annual Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival (VIMFF) will be screening later in April, with another round of films about hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking, and more. After over ...

CHILLIWACK - Over 2,400 customers in Chilliwack lost power Friday night due to a motor vehicle accident, but by 8:45 p.m., most of those customers have had their electricity restored. According to BC Hydro's dashboard, power went out at 6:55 p.m. for 2,423 customers in downtown Chilliwack, Fairfield Island, Little Moun...

CHILLIWACK - The current Member of Parliament for Chilliwack-Hope is seeking re-election, and he's officially kicking off his campaign this weekend.In a statement released Monday, Mark Strahl announced that he will be running as the Conservative Party candidate for the federal election in April."I was born and rai...

LANGLEY - The B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Transit is urging drivers to plan ahead as crews remove an overhead sign on Highway 1 eastbound near the 264th Street interchange late tonight, March 28. Between midnight and 4:30 a.m., there will be 20-minute intermittent eastbound lane closures to allow for the safe r...

ABBOTSFORD - After some consultation with the public, a 200-bed long-term care facility could soon be built near the Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre. At the March 11 Council meeting, City of Abbotsford staff explained Fraser Health's plans to build two buildings just south of the Maplewood House long-ter...

British Columbia's top doctor says respiratory illness season has come to an end, but the province will soon launch a spring COVID-19 immunization campaign and encourage everyone to ensure they're fully protected against measles. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says COVID-19 hospitalizations have hit the low...

VANCOUVER - Vancouver police say they are investigating 28 anti-Tesla incidents and will deploy more than 130 extra officers to "maintain order" at protests targeting the electric carmaker this weekend. The force says in a statement that the incidents targeting Tesla are suspected to be politically motivated ...

AGASSIZ - The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) has now announced the end of a lockdown in Mountain Institution that was put in place last week. On March 21, a lockdown began at the medium-security prison in Agassiz so staff members could conduct an exceptional search, which was ordered to ensure the safety and secu...

CHILLIWACK - Models of all shapes, ages and sizes will be hitting the catwalk at Evergreen Hall again for the Thrifty Boutique's annual Fashionista Fashion Show. While last year's show went "classy and a little bit sassy", the boutique's 7th runway will be filled with more "Vintage Vibes" as more th...

VANCOUVER - A Vancouver abortion and reproductive health clinic that has operated for more than three decades is shutting its doors due to funding uncertainty. The Elizabeth Bagshaw Clinic says the facility's lease is set to run out this summer, and relocating and investing in a new site "did not make sense" ...