SUMMERLAND REVIEW THE VOICE OF OUR COMMUNITY SINCE 1908
VOLUME
67
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ISSUE
NO.
29
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S U M M E R L A N D,
WWW.SUMMERLANDREVIEW.COM
B.C.
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T H U R S D AY,
J U LY
17,
2014
WHAT’S INSIDE:
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16
PA G E S
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$1.15
Eligible voters outside the community should have the opportunity to participate in civic elections through mail-in ballots, municipal council members say. “The option should be there for any election in the community,” Coun. Peter Waterman said during a discussion on mail-in ballots at the council meeting on Monday evening. “Regardless of numbers, people should have the ability and capacity to participate in the election.” Others offered similar thoughts, suggesting options such as electronic voting be considered in the future. “It’s time we got into the real world here,” said Coun. Martin Van Alphen. At present, mail-in ballots are offered in some communities, but not in Summerland. Municipal administrator Tom Day said efforts to prepare mail-in ballots are significant and there is a short
Street banners this year will commemorate the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I.
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Fewer school suspensions
The number of student suspensions in the school district has reached a four-year low.
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Critteraid support
The live-in caretaker of Critteraid is moving on to pursue other interests.
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Watching water
Thirsk Dam has now stopped spilling, which means the community must rely on the water in its reservoirs to meet its needs for the rest of the year.
GST
Mail-in ballots pondered by John Arendt
Banners in remembrance
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time frame for the work to be completed. “I’m not sure how much benefit we’d get out of it,” he said. In the last municipal election in 2011, voter turnout was low, with just 36.1 per cent of Summerland’s 8,276 eligible voters participating. In the 2008 municipal election, the voter turnout was close to 47 per cent. Concern about mail-in ballots was raised in part because some electors are away for the winter by the time the election is held in mid-November. After this fall’s municipal elections, the election date will be in October, before many of the snowbirds have left for the season. In the end, a change to mail-in ballots was not adopted and council voted to give final reading to the 2014 General Local Government Election bylaw. Coun. Peter Waterman voted against the bylaw adoption. He said his position was a protest vote. “Electors should have the option to vote,” he said.
Garbage smells attract bears
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YOUR SMILE
by Kristi Patton Black Press
You may have a heart of gold, but so does a hard-boiled egg.
Bicycle ride
Carla McLeod Special to the Review
Cyclists in the fourth annual Prospera Granfondo Axel Merckx Okanagan 2014, rode through Summerland on Sunday morning. They are pictured here riding down Hillborn Street. Up to 3,000 cyclists of all skill levels took part, including Canadian Olympic athlete Clara Hughes. The ride started in Penticton’s Gyro Park and rolled through the communities of Summerland, Okanagan Falls, Oliver and Kaleden and then back to Penticton. The ride is touted as being one of the best cycling events in North America.
Garbage, and now fruit, continues to be a nagging problem for those trying to mitigate human-wildlife conflict in Summerland. Zoe Kirk, Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen WildSafeBC community coordinator, said Summerland continues to be a hotspot for bears. One of the reasons is residents putting their garbage out early. “It is like a smorgasbord for the animals,” said
Kirk. “They get the smells of tomatoes or old pizza and come back again and again. They get habituated and addicted to it much like humans and fast-food restaurants. They just get hooked.” Currently Summerland does not have a bylaw that restricts residents from putting out their garbage the night before it is picked up. “It is a matter of getting personnel out on the ground and an education campaign like WildSafeBC did in Naramata. See RIPENING Page 2