Thursday - July 11, 2024 - Three new murals for Chilliwack festival

☀ High 29C | Air quality advisory

Good morning!

I don’t often feel the need to shake my non-existent cane and say: ‘Back in my day,’ but kindergarten registration has changed that.

Back in my day, you just… started kindergarten. At least that’s what I remember. Maybe there was one short day to give teachers a chance to prepare, and then you were flung into the realities of full-day schooling, which wouldn’t end for another 13 years.

Now things are clearly different. We’ve already attended one meet-and-greet for future kindergarteners in June. In September, parents will attend an adult-only meeting, followed by a week of one-hour sessions for the kids, followed by a parent-student classroom tour, followed by a week-long gradual entry to a full school day.

I’m confident that these plans were borne out of good intentions—to make things better for teachers, or students, or administration. But they are certainly not for the benefit of the parents.

Not everyone has the flexibility to leave work. Not everyone has retired family to help shoulder a changing schedule. Although this process may have started in altruism, it is likely to leave families feeling like the education system isn’t built for people like them.

– Grace

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Traffic & Weather

🌤 Local forecast: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope

🚘 Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google, and find DriveBC’s latest updates.

🛣 Click here for links to road cameras across the Fraser Valley, including those for the Coquihalla, Highway 7, Hope-Princeton, Fraser Canyon, and Highway 1 in Langley and Abbotsford.

NEWS

No three-bedroom rentals for new Langley apartment

The developer of a six-storey rental building in Langley City is asking to kibosh its three-bedroom units, and the company blames the change on low demand due to expensive rents.

The building proposal had already been approved by council back in December, with 113 apartment units. The vast majority of the units were one- or two-bedrooms, but five were studio apartments and five were three-bedroom units.

But, now the developer wants council to let them nix the five large apartments, instead converting them into more one-bedroom units.

The reason: no one will want to rent them because they are too expensive.

• Today, Grace looks at the plan to eliminate the five three-bedroom apartments from Langley City’s future rental stock and what that will mean for the city.

Related

Need to Know

💔 A family of three was killed in a head-on collision that closed Highway 7 near Agassiz for 14 hours Tuesday [Agassiz Harrison Observer]

🏗 Demolition began at Chilliwack’s Cheam View United Church hall yesterday, as the building makes way for a new affordable housing development [Chilliwack Progress] / We first reported on the project back in 2021 [FVC]

🔎 A Chilliwack man’s body was found near a Hope Boston Pizza last weekend; BC’s homicide team is investigating [Hope Standard]

🐼 The Greater Vancouver Zoo’s red panda Arun celebrated his 10th birthday with cake and cards [Aldergrove Star]

🗳 The countdown to the Harrison mayoral by-election is officially on, with the appointment of a chief election officer [Agassiz Harrison Observer]

🔥 A new wildfire was sparked on the east side of Harrison Lake Wednesday [Vancouver is Awesome]

🐱 A 13-week-old kitten in Langley is getting orthopedic surgery to fix her broken hips [Langley Advance Times]

🚗 Two people broke into a car dealership in Chilliwack on Monday and stole a Jeep Cherokee SUV [Fraser Valley Today]

🩺 Abbotsford Hospital has a new hand-held device that uses infrared light to find veins under the skin [Abbotsford News]

🧡 A youth group will be hosting a three-day powwow on Mission’s former residential school grounds this weekend [Mission Record]

🚫 BC has ordered a provincewide campfire ban starting at noon this Friday due to the heatwave [Vancouver Sun]

📷 CURRENT CAM: Congratulations to Al, who was the first person to identify this week’s Current Cam as the Court Apartments on Gladwin Road in Abbotsford.

SPONSORED BY HARRISON FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS

The Harrison Festival starts this weekend

The 45th Anniversary of the Harrison Festival is set to kick off again this July. With free music on the beach, an artisan market, indoor evening concerts, theatre, workshops, and a Children's Day, the Festival has a little something for everyone! July 13-21 in Harrison Hot Springs.

The Agenda

City approves three new paintings for Chilliwack Mural Festival

Chilliwack will get six new murals for the upcoming mural festival this August, three of which have already been given the go-ahead by council.

Argentinian artist Fio Silva will paint a nature-inspired mural in District 1881 by the CR Sabers store. Featuring a blue heron, the mural will explore themes of nature, time, and strength. She will be painting from July 31 to Aug. 11.

Spanish painter Juanjo Surace will take a different approach, with his mural looking at the human use of AI in day-to-day activities. The mural of robots playing cards will overlook a parking lot on Wellington Avenue, and will be completed between Aug. 3 and Aug. 16.

Local Chilliwack artist Carly Bouwman will paint her mural further south. She will complete a vibrant welcome sign for the Cottonwood Mall on Luckakuck Way. Her painting will be underway during the month of July.

Three other murals are set to come before council before the Chilliwack Mural Festival from Aug. 15 to Aug. 17. There are currently more than 35 different murals in the city.

At a council meeting approving the new murals, council members asked what could be done with old murals as they begin to fade. Staff said those murals could eventually be painted over if needed, as the artist contracts do not specify a set time the mural must be on display. The Chilliwack Arts Council is keeping an eye on the state of murals in the city.

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🗓 Things to do this week/end

🖼 Art show: The Chilliwack Visual Artists Association is presenting Anything Goes at the O'Connor Art Gallery from Wednesday, July 10 to Saturday, Aug. 10. A reception will be held at the gallery on Saturday, July 13 at 1pm. Details online.

🏕 Khalsa camp: The Khalsa Centre at Miracle Valley in Mission hosts a family camp from Friday, July 12 to Sunday, July 14. Families can learn about the Sikh way of life in a child-friendly environment. Details and registration online.

🟠 Beading workshop: Beader Rebekah Brackett will lead an orange shirt pin beading workshop on Saturday, July 13 at The Reach Gallery Museum. The workshop is free, and registration is required. Details online.

Want even more? Insider members get a comprehensive events listing every Thursday, plus a weekly Saturday round-up edition with behind-the-scenes content. Becoming a member costs less than $2 a week and helps support the ongoing production of The Current’s newsletters and in-depth journalism. Become a member here.

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Catch up

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