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Nanaimo, Parksville and Area

trail improvement
New boardwalk solves 'ankle-breaker' section of Linley Valley trail
NANAIMO - More than 200 meters of aluminum boardwalk now tops a challenging section of trail on the south side of Cottle Lake in the popular Linley Valley recreation area. Charlotte Davis, manager of parks operations for the City of Nanaimo, said their contractor recently completed the boardwalk which she said vastly i...
22h ago
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provincial housing rules
City of Nanaimo prepares for transit hub housing densification push
NANAIMO - Officials in Nanaimo are working on implementing the provincial plan to increase available housing density near transit exchange areas. Passed on Nov. 30 bill 47 requires municipalities to develop bylaws related to transit-oriented areas (TOA), to permit housing developments which meet the minimum provincial ...
Mar 26, 2024
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Small drug seizures down in Vancouver post-decriminalization, police say
VANCOUVER - Data from Vancouver police shows a "dramatic" drop in small drug seizures after decriminalization came into effect in British Columbia last year. The department says during the first nine months of the program officers did not seize any drugs under 2.5 grams, as is outlined in Health Canada's thre...
Mar 26, 2024
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island bus service
Victoria to Tofino: cross-island bus service through Nanaimo resumes Good Friday
NANAIMO - Bus connections linking all points of Vancouver Island are resuming ahead of the summer tourist season. The Tofino Bus, operated by Wilson's Transportation, makes regular weekly runs from Victoria to Tofino/Ucluelet while stopping in Nanaimo, Parksville, and Port Alberni, and will resume service on Friday, Ma...
Mar 26, 2024
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disturbing case
'He's a zombie:' court hears detailed facts of murder at Nanaimo coffee shop
Editors note: The following article includes graphic details of violence. Discretion is advisedNANAIMO - Highly disturbing facts of the murder of a beloved Nanaimo man at a coffee shop have been revealed in court.On Monday, March 25 in BC Supreme Court in Nanaimo James Carey Turok, 32, pleaded not guilty to second degr...
Mar 25, 2024
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approved
New, improved stun gun is accepted for police use in B.C., province says
VICTORIA - British Columbia has approved the use of an updated Taser weapon for officers around the province to use as a less-lethal weapon during police confrontations. A statement from the Ministry of Public Safety says the Taser 7 offers the ability to discharge a second shot without reloading a new cartridge and it...
Mar 25, 2024
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British Columbia

Killer whale rescue tactics could involve plan to lift orca calf out of lagoon
ZEBALLOS, B.C. - Experts are reconsidering their options on a rescue plan for the young killer whale trapped by the tide in a remote lagoon off Northern Vancouver Island. Paul Cottrell, the marine mammal co-ordinator at the Fisheries Department, says they are thinking about changing tactics in efforts to convince the ...
2h ago
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Republican committee to select Buck's likely replacement, adding a challenge to Boebert's campaign
DENVER (AP) - A panel of Colorado Republicans will select a candidate Thursday who will likely serve out the final months of U.S. Rep. Ken Buck 's term - and could pose a challenge to Rep. Lauren Boebert's bid for another term in Congress. It's an unusual and confusing twist in a closely watched primary race for a dist...
6h ago
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Marine LNG jetty project in Delta, B.C., gets environmental assessment certificate
DELTA, B.C. - British Columbia's Environment Ministry says a marine jetty project in the city of Delta to facilitate liquefied natural gas exports has been issued an environmental assessment certificate. Environment Minister George Heyman and Transportation Minister Rob Fleming say they issued the approval after "...
10h ago
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Protection fund, bill of rights for renters coming; 'renters matter,' Trudeau says
VANCOUVER - The federal government wants to support those who rent their homes with a protection fund, a bill of rights and a plan to give reliable renters credit when they step up to by a home. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says there's something fundamentally unfair about paying $2,000 a month for rent, while those ...
16h ago
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Indigenous nation gives stranded B.C. killer whale calf name: Brave Little Hunter
ZEBALLOS, B.C. - A marine scientist says he expects rescue efforts to help coax a stranded killer whale calf from a shallow lagoon off northern Vancouver Island to continue today despite federal Fisheries Department concerns about limited opportunities due to changing tidal flows. Jared Towers, who's with the whale res...
18h ago
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Trudeau says premiers complaining about carbon price didn't pitch better ideas
OTTAWA - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is pushing back against premiers who are asking him to cancel an upcoming increase to the federal carbon price, saying they have not proposed better ideas to fight climate change. Trudeau says in a letter to premiers today that the last time they discussed the issue in 2022, their...
Mar 26, 2024
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Canada

In the news today: Foreign interference inquiry continues, Ontario opens comms centre
Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today... Foreign interference inquiry to hear from chief electoral officer Canada's chief electoral officer, Stéphane Perrault, is slated to testify this morning at a commission of inquiry into foreign...
2h ago
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Foreign interference inquiry slated to hear from chief electoral officer
OTTAWA - Canada's chief electoral officer, Stéphane Perrault, is slated to testify this morning at a commission of inquiry into foreign meddling allegations and how the government responded to them. The hearings are delving into possible foreign interference by China, India, Russia and others in the last two gen...
2h ago
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Killer whale rescue tactics could involve plan to lift orca calf out of lagoon
ZEBALLOS, B.C. - Experts are reconsidering their options on a rescue plan for the young killer whale trapped by the tide in a remote lagoon off Northern Vancouver Island. Paul Cottrell, the marine mammal co-ordinator at the Fisheries Department, says they are thinking about changing tactics in efforts to convince the ...
2h ago
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Ottawa signs $3.7B health deal with Quebec, final province to sign onto health accord
OTTAWA - Health Minister Mark Holland signed a $3.7-billion health pact with Quebec today, which means all 13 provinces and territories have now signed on to Ottawa's new health accord. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first pitched a new health-funding deal to provinces more than a year ago to increase federal health tra...
14h ago
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Suspects plead not guilty in human smuggling case involving family's death at border
ST. PAUL, MINN. - A man accused of helping smuggle people across the U.S.-Canada border into Minnesota, including four members of an Indian family who froze to death in 2022, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to seven counts of human smuggling. Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel, 28, who prosecutors say went by the alias "Dirty...
15h ago
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Measles cases in Canada are increasing, Canada's chief public health officer warns
Canada's chief public health officer says the number of measles cases in the country continues to rise. Dr. Theresa Tam says in a statement the Public Health Agency of Canada is aware of 40 measles cases in Canada so far this year. That's more than three times the number of cases reported in all of 2023. Tam says sh...
16h ago
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