Wednesday, July 19, 2023 edition - Two decades of change in Abbotsford

Wednesday, July 19, 2023 | Today: 🌞 High 26C

Good morning!

I found some of the first blackberries of the season yesterday. I love picking wild berries in the summer because I neither need to work to cultivate them nor buy them for $8 per tiny plastic box at the grocery store. I just have to battle the brambles and the bees.

If you’ve ever thought about going berry-picking but aren’t sure about identifying wild plants, blackberries are the perfect place to start. Poisonous aggregate berries (little berries clumped together into one big berry) are rare worldwide, and none grow west of the Rockies. So if something looks even a little bit like a blackberry or a raspberry, you can eat it.

WORTH KNOWING

🌤 Local forecast: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope

⚠️ Here’s the current smoke forecast / Check the BC Wildfire Dashboard here

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

NEWS

Two decades of change: Abbotsford

This is the first in a series of articles using satellite imagery to chart the changing face of Fraser Valley communities—and the land on which they sit. These images are best seen using a computer or tablet. You can click each image for a larger version.

Abbotsford has grown tremendously over the last 20 years. And yet, compared to its neighbours to the east and west, that growth has seemed less transformative.

Change has been evident both on the ground and in the sky. But the community’s structure remains oriented around familiar areas—and the patterns of life and of politics in the city have yet to see the transformation witnessed elsewhere in the valley. That is despite the fact that, of all the Fraser Valley communities, the City of Abbotsford and its politicians have been the most vocal about the need to transform the city’s growth trajectory, re-orienting it towards existing neighbourhoods, rather than sprawl.

• Check out the images and our analysis here.

• Watch for the following instalments in this series: Mission, Chilliwack, Langley, small towns, the valley’s rivers and landscape.

Need to know

🧊 Some BC landlords are telling tenants not to install air conditioners [CBC]

🐠 Freshly-painted yellow fish markers on storm drains in Langley are intended to educate about the effects of pollutants on habitats [Langley Advance Times]

🗳 Harrison Hot Springs will hold a by-election for an empty council seat on Sept. 16 [Agassiz-Harrison Observer]

🚨 Homicide detectives are investigating a suspicious death in an Abbotsford home [Abbotsford News]

 🏘️ Fewer houses are up for sale in Chilliwack [Chilliwack Progress]

🚗 A car crashed into a Langley car dealership [Langley Advance Times]

👉️ A Zellers pop-up shop is coming back to Willowbrook Mall in Langley [Langley Advance Times]

🚔️ A man who stole a trailer and crashed it into an Abbotsford home was sentenced in court [Abbotsford News]

👮 Chilliwack RCMP is investigating three trucks that caught fire in a driveway [Fraser Valley Today]

💙 Get together with family and friends to experience an unforgettable weekend of live blues music at the Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival. Grab your tickets today!*

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The Agenda

2023 breaks record for worst wildfire season

A record-breaking wildfire season continued this week, with 235 new fires started last week and 384 currently burning. The fires have collectively burned more than 13,900 square kilometers across the province, marking this summer as BC’s biggest fire season on record.

More than 20 of the current fires are considered wildfires of note—meaning they are relatively close to infrastructure or people or particularly visible. The only fire of note in southwestern BC is burning 18 km north of Mission near Davis Lake, and has reached 150 hectares in size. Firefighters ran two controlled burns along the fire’s flanks last week. Although officials say the burns successfully controlled the blaze's northern flank, the fire is still considered out-of-control. You can find the latest on it here.

Further north, fires in the Cariboo region have closed Highway 20 to Bella Coola. The Canadian Armed Forces have deployed 150 soldiers to Burns Lake and Vanderhoof to help wildfire fighters beat back the blazes. The fires have also claimed the life of a 19-year-old firefighter.

Find the latest details on forest fires in the province here.

Drought conditions to temporarily limit commercial water extraction in Hope

Everyone needs to pull their weight to conserve water, BC’s Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma said Tuesday. That includes big companies—at least, during a drought.

BlueTriton Brands’ (formerly Nestlé) water extraction in Hope will be among the companies asked to reduce water usage during the drought spreading across the province.

“Everyone, including corporations, industries, people, communities, governments, we all need to be doing our part to mitigate the impacts of drought,” Ma said in response to a question from The Current.

“We have asked them to reduce their water use at this time. We're actively monitoring the conditions and won't hesitate to issue temporary protection orders to restrict water if necessary,” she continued. Ma also said that bottled water is an important resource for communities facing water shortages or evacuation orders.

Ma did not say what, if any, specific limits would be imposed. Commercial water companies currently pay a small fee to extract water in BC but don’t pay for the water itself. The BC NDP criticized this deal when it was struck in 2016.

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It’s time for a good old fashioned day at the races! The Cup, Vancouver’s favourite race day, returns this weekend for its 12th edition of rousing derby action at Hastings Racecourse. Limited tickets are still available, get yours today!

🤝 Now hiring

• Sleep clinician at Snore MD in Langley

• Account Manager at Van Belle Nursery in Abbotsford

• Live-in house parent at Teddy’s Homes in Chilliwack

• Part-time receptionist at Woody’s RV in Abbotsford

• Early childhood educator at Kids and Company in Langley

Hiring in the Fraser Valley? Reply back and let us know!

📸 Current Cam

Each week we showcase a different photo from across the valley and invite readers to share their best guesses about where it was taken.

Any guesses as to where this week’s Current Cam was taken? Fill out this form with your best guess—or with a picture we can use in a future edition.

Things to do

🛶 Free paddling: Fort Canoe & Kayak Club is holding a free open house Sunday, July 23 from 11am to 4pm on the Bedford Channel in Fort Langley. Try out a recreational or sprint canoe-kayak, experience surfski and learn about club programs. Book a time online. 

🪕 Concert: Enjoy a free concert at South Abbotsford Church on Sunday, July 23 with music from around the world where Mennonites have settled. Donations will be accepted for a fund that supports three MCC programs: Indigenous Neighbours, Ukraine, and International Refugee Settlement. More information online. 

🎸 More concerts: Concerts in the Parks returns to Hope’s Memorial Park. Enjoy live music every Friday at 6:30pm. View the artist line up online.

Have an event to tell us about? Fill out this form to have it highlighted here.

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