NEW - March 27, 2023 edition - Workplace violence in schools

Monday, March 27, 2023 | Today: ☀️ High 14C, Low 3C | 7-day forecast

Good morning!

Last week we celebrated our second anniversary. This week, we’re going to ask for a belated birthday present. For the first time, we’re asking readers who like and value The Current to step up and become members. You’ll get an email later today with all the details, but the gist is this: If you have appreciated our contributions, stories, and presence in your inbox, becoming a member is a way to show your thanks, get some fun new perks, and—most of all—do your part to make sure we can keep producing The Current long into the future. Thank you for all your support so far and onwards!

NEWS

Workplace violence in schools

A distressing number of violent incidents and other harmful acts of force have been reported by Fraser Valley school workers in the last five years.

Since 2018, the number of workers injured by others in schools has increased significantly, according to WorkSafeBC numbers obtained by The Current.

Today, Joti writes about the number of local school workers who reported a violent incident to WorkSafeBC in the last five years. 

Need to know

📷 An Abbotsford photographer who captured photos of a Sikh separatist leader currently at the centre of police manhunt says he’s not sure if he’ll be allowed to return to India [CBC]

🚑 One person died after a collision with a train in Langley Sunday morning [CityNews]

🗳 Harrison council voted to investigate how village staff are treated after some workers left their post following the election [Agassiz Harrison Observer]

👮🏻‍♂️ An Abbotsford man captured with the help of a police helicopter in 2021 has now been charged with 14 new offences, including an Aldergrove shooting [Abbotsford News]

📉 Mission wants to be the safest city in the Fraser Valley by 2026 [Mission Record]

👷🏽 Chilliwack Mall redevelopment plans calls for four units, a drive-thru, and an outdoor patio [Chilliwack Progress]

⏱ Abbotsford has set money aside to replace the original scoreboard at Abbotsford’s Rotary Stadium [Abbotsford News]

🚔 Two people were injured in a ‘targeted’ shooting in Chilliwack on Saturday; Police are looking for information about a white Dodge Ram pickup truck [Global]

🚧 Road work at Mission’s 7th Avenue and Grand Street will cause traffic delays on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday [City of Mission]

🚒 Two people died in a Saturday morning house fire on Skwah First Nation in Chilliwack [Chilliwack Progress]

🚦 Traffic lights were installed at 6th Avenue and Old Hope-Princeton Road in Hope [Hope Standard]

🚍 TransLink will consider a fare increase on Wednesday [CBC]

😔 Anti-Semitic graffiti was spray-painted over a donated mural on the Langley Baseball clubhouse [Langley Advance Times]

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The Agenda

Neighbours take issue with possibility of ‘low-income’ kids living nearby

Seniors worked their whole lives for a peaceful retirement and shouldn’t have to live next to low-income kids or worry about them riding their bikes. That’s the view of some residents of an Abbotsford street where a rental apartment building is proposed.

The building would be operated by a non-profit and units will be rented at below-market rates. It would include 13 three-bedroom units, a relative rarity in Abbotsford. A public hearing will be held on a proposal to build a 104-unit apartment building on Horn Street Monday. Some nearby residents worry about the traffic caused by many more cars using the road. Others are worried about “low-income families with children” living near strata complexes reserved for people older than 55.

“The proposed complex for multi generation is not appropriate and is not suitable in so many ways for this neighborhood and could have a very negative effect,” one resident wrote.

The public hearing will be held today at 6pm.

Council adopted wrong motions for McKee Peak plan

The procedural error that stymied the McKee Neighbourhood Plan involved the duplication of an incorrect set of motions when council adopted the first and second readings of the plan in January.

Council says it is reviewing its administrative processes to eliminate the potential for similar problems in the future.

Those errors will force the plan to be re-introduced and a new public hearing to be held. The questions raised by Semá:th First Nation concerning the adequacy of consultation remain to be settled.

Council will address the issue at Monday’s meeting. You can read the city report on the error here. 

Things to do

🗓 Abby Writers’ Grind: Writers of all abilities, genres, and publishing goals meet each Saturday at the Clearbrook Library to share successes, rejections, and help each other work through plot holes. Next meeting April 1. 

🗓 Sasquatch Trails Mystery: A Spring Break Adventure: Experience Agassiz and/or Harrison Hot Springs while following clues and solving puzzles to help a baby Sasquatch find his parents. The adventure is on until April 1.

🗓 Family Nature Festival: Visit the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve in Chilliwack on March 31 and April 1 for a full day of family-friendly activities like guided tours, yoga, and art classes.

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