Okanagan News

Structural steel and mass-timber construction at Kelowna's new Parkinson Recreation Centre is nearing a major milestone, while work on the building's swimming pools and mechanical systems continues, according to the city's October 20 construction update.

Voters across the Okanagan elected new mayors in several communities on October 17, unseating incumbents in Vernon, Armstrong, Enderby and Penticton, while preliminary results showed narrow contests in Lake Country and Peachland.

The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS) Board of Directors has approved a comprehensive review of its fire services, with an independent consultant expected to examine current operations and make recommendations to guide future decisions.

Nine new outdoor pickleball courts opened at Glenmore Recreation Park on Oct. 8, expanding public recreation facilities in north Kelowna as construction continues on other parts of the park.

The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen is offering 400 free residential radon test kits this fall, doubling the number available through its participation in a national testing program last year.

More than 11,000 ballots have been cast in Kelowna's 2026 municipal election, with one advance voting day remaining before residents head to the polls on Saturday, October 17.

The City of Kelowna has terminated its agreement with Tennis Clubs of Canada for a planned indoor tennis facility at Mission Recreation Park, saying the organization did not meet its obligations for capital investment and construction.

The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen says it has no evidence that anyone falsely claimed to represent the regional district during a visit to a wildfire-affected property, correcting a public warning issued three days earlier.

The fall open-burning season began Thursday, October 15, in five Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen fire-protection areas, with residents required to obtain authorization and check air-quality conditions before burning.

The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS) has completed a series of trail and visitor-facility improvements at the historic Adra Tunnel, building on the restoration that reopened the Kettle Valley Rail Trail landmark to the public in May 2025.

Police are seeking witnesses and video footage after a vehicle left the roadway and entered the Similkameen River on Oct. 6, leaving a 17-year-old girl dead and other occupants injured.

Kelowna RCMP are investigating an alleged kidnapping in which a person was taken from the Lower Mainland to Kelowna and held against their will, in what police believe was an attempt to put pressure on one of the victim’s associates.

Property owners and their designated representatives can enter specific Bald Range wildfire-affected properties under a Prohibit Entry Order, while general visiting and occupancy remain prohibited as post-fire hazards and recovery work continue.

The City of Vernon says the Active Living Centre remains within its approved budget and is targeting Oct. 30 for substantial completion, with a six-week operational-readiness period expected before the facility opens to the public.

Osoyoos has begun the formal process of dismantling its Near Market Affordable Housing program after 10 homes were sold through the program over roughly a decade, with the Town citing administrative demands and questions about its effectiveness.

The City of Kelowna has opened the future operation of H2O Adventure + Fitness Centre to competition, inviting proposals to manage the City-owned facility while the YMCA of Southern Interior BC continues operating it under an agreement that runs through 2028.

Vernon council has approved $1.5 million to replace the condenser at Priest Valley Arena, drawing on a recreation-facility maintenance reserve and funding allocated from the city’s 2027 infrastructure reserve envelope.

The federal government has conditionally committed up to $22.4 million to install utilities at Kelowna International Airport, opening the way for development of more than 165 acres of aviation and industrial land east of the airport’s runway.

Some Silver Star Road customers are scheduled to lose water service Oct. 2 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. while planned construction is completed, according to the Regional District of North Okanagan.

The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen has approved funding for a post-wildfire rainfall-monitoring pilot in priority areas affected by the Bald Range wildfire in Electoral Area F.

RCMP are asking the driver of a silver Ford Taurus who was in the area of Main Street and White Avenue West late Sept. 11 to come forward as a potential witness in a robbery investigation.

Interior Health has posted no extension to an overnight interruption of emergency services at South Okanagan General Hospital that was scheduled to end at 7 a.m. Monday.

The B.C. Prescribed Fire Training Exchange, known as TREX, begins Monday in Kelowna and surrounding communities, with six sites identified as possible burn projects if weather, site and smoke-dispersal conditions permit.

Just under two years after Donegal Wilson took Boundary-Similkameen from Roly Russell, the Conservative incumbent and former NDP MLA are back on the campaign trail in a riding where health care, forestry, water and the rural economy are already emerging as central issues.

RCMP seized suspected fentanyl and cocaine, a firearm and cash after executing a drug-trafficking search warrant at a residence on 24th Avenue earlier this week.

Two Okanagan Sun players put their names in the record book during a 63–14 win in Prince George last weekend, setting up the club’s regular-season finale Saturday night with home-field advantage in the playoffs on the line.

A man who went missing during a paddleboarding emergency on Okanagan Lake remained unaccounted for in the latest public update from Vernon North Okanagan RCMP, with no subsequent notice saying he had been located posted by the detachment as of Saturday, Sept. 26.

A 23-year-old Penticton woman died after a pickup truck left Highway 3 east of Osoyoos and descended an embankment Sept. 19.

Charges have been laid against a man in connection with a February 2025 collision at Highways 97 and 33 in Kelowna that killed a woman.

B.C.’s Civil Forfeiture Office has initiated an administrative forfeiture proceeding over a Land Rover and $12,770 in cash seized by Kelowna RCMP during a July 5 traffic stop that is also the subject of ongoing civil litigation.