Monday, June 5, 2023 edition - How to (re)name a road

Monday, June 5, 2023 | ☀️ High 24C

Good morning!

Travelling east on the highway during a summer weekend is much like trying to pick the quickest check-out lane at the grocery store during the holidays. None of the lanes are moving particularly fast, but you’re just hoping you’ve chosen the one that is moving faster than the others. Highway traffic (in all directions) has gotten worse in recent years, but I really dread travelling east in the summer. The roads are extremely congested. The same can be said when trying to find a piece of real estate at a beach on a hot day, or even trying to book a campsite in the summer.

Has the increase in traffic deterred you from enjoying the outdoors? Or maybe you’ve discovered a workaround. Let us know by answering today’s poll below.

Thanks to our new members like Christine and Brian. Learn how you can support local journalism by becoming a Current Insider here. 

NEWS

How to (re)name a road

It can take a long time to rename a short street.

Trutch Avenue in Chilliwack was slated for renaming almost two years ago. The north Chilliwack road was named after Joseph Trutch, a pivotal character in BC’s colonial history who was infamous for his negative impact on Indigenous land rights.

The city agreed to rename the road, but consultation on the street’s new name remains in the hands of local Indigenous communities. In the meantime, Chilliwack has now introduced new rules designed to increase the diversity of road names in the city—and possibly reduce the need to rename new roads in the future.

• Today, Grace writes about naming—and renaming—streets.

Need to know

🚔 An Agassiz man on probation for child pornography is facing another charge [Agassiz Harrison Observer]

⚖️ Another Langley Mountie is facing criminal charges; he is the second Langley Mountie charged recently [Langley Advance Times]

🏈 American rapper LL Cool J is scheduled to perform at the BC Lions home opener on June 17 [BCLions/Twitter]

🚲 A waitlist has been opened for BC e-bike rebates after high demand [CTV]

🚙 ICBC is offering an insurance discount to eligible motorists who drive less than 10,000 kilometers per year [ICBC]

🌤 You can find this week’s weather forecast here: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope

👮🏻‍♀️ Abbotsford police are investigating a fatal collision that killed a 58-year-old motorcyclist [Abbotsford police/Facebook]

🚑 A three-year-old boy was airlifted to hospital after falling into Cultus Lake Thursday [CTV]

🚓 RCMP are searching for a missing woman in her mid 60s who was travelling from Vancouver Island to Hope [RCMP]

🛠 Construction to improve the Vedder Road and South Sumas Road intersection is scheduled to begin this month [Fraser Valley Today]

🚨 RCMP is searching for an Abbotsford teen last seen with a man at an Edmonton airport [Vancouver Sun]

🗳 Chilliwack council will consider road improvements to Tyson and Keith Wilson roads at Tuesday’s meeting [Fraser Valley Today]

🚔 RCMP are searching for a missing 67-year-old Langley man [RCMP]

🚒 There are two ‘out-of-control’ wildfires burning near Harrison Lake [Agassiz Harrison Observer]

☺ TODAY’S SMILE: How many beers does it take to fill the Stanley Cup? [DKSportsbook/Twitter]

SPONSORED BY FORT LANGLEY JAZZ FESTIVAL

Jazz legends open Fort Langley Jazz Fest

Kick off the 2023 Odlum Brown Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival with a concert you won’t forget, featuring Phil Dwyer’s Connections Quartet.

Phil Dwyer’s Connections Quartet brings together premier musicians in a one-of-a-kind concert including JUNO-award winner, saxophonist and pianist, Phil Dwyer; Juno-award winner Brad Turner on trumpet and piano; renowned international drummer Alan Jones; and Phil’s son, Ben Dwyer on bass.

The quartet will perform new and other works from over 40 years of playing in various configurations together. This illustrious group of artists will perform as two trios and a quartet, all in one with Phil and Brad taking turns at the piano with their alter egos performing on saxophone and trumpet.

Thursday, July 20 7-10pm at Chief Sepass Theatre! Get your tickets here.

The Agenda

After failure, Mission may try new pickleball location

Mission is considering creating six new pickleball courts—and how to prevent the noise complaints that doomed its last attempt.

Last summer, the city launched a program to convert tennis courts at Hatzic Middle School into a space for the booming sport of pickleball. Doing so was expected to cost the city around $62,000.

But a trial of pickleball at the site failed dramatically, staff reported in the fall. Pickleball courts in other communities have frequently drawn noise complaints, and Mission’s project met a similar fate. The problem was so bad that the Mission school district declared that it was no longer interested in hosting any pickleball courts in the future. Trial sessions at Heritage Park Middle School also were rejected because of neighbourhood concerns and complaints.

Now, Mission staff say they have found a new location—and that they have developed a new plan to try to avoid the noise problems that doomed last year’s efforts. They’re now looking at creating six courts at Wren Park on Silverhill Avenue. The park is in a rural area in Silverdale. There are three homes located nearby, and staff suggest first consulting with their residents and other neighbours to see if there is support for adding new pickleball courts.

Staff also pointed to a recent study by the BC Pickleball Association suggesting that noise concerns can be alleviated with the construction of a three-metre-high noise barrier and the use of quieter equipment.

Council will weigh in on the proposal at its meeting Monday evening.

Abbotsford community group joins calls for end to transit strike

The Indo-Canadian Seniors Society is the latest group to call for an end to the Fraser Valley’s transit strike.

The Abbotsford chapter of the society wrote a letter to Abbotsford council outlining how the strike has negatively impacted seniors from accessing places of worship, socializing opportunities, and taking essential trips to seek medical care.

“Individuals that are affected by the cancelled bus service say they feel like prisoners in their own homes,” the letter states. Eastern Fraser Valley bus drivers walked off the job more than two months ago over wages.

The society asks the council to “intervene and get the bus services working again by accepting the bus drivers’ terms,” adding 400 families have signed a petition in support of ending the strike. (Municipal councils are also bystanders in the dispute; the drivers' union is negotiating with a private contractor hired by BC Transit, not the cities themselves.)

The Current previously spoke to BC Labour Minister Harry Bains about why he hasn’t appointed a mediator to help both sides come together. Read that story here.

Community Profile

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Things to do

🧶 Knitting: The Hope BC Knitting & Stitches Club meets Tuesday at the Hope Library from 1 to 3pm. More online.

🫐 Farmers market: The Langley Community Farmers Market opens for the summer on Wednesday. The weekly market will take place from 3 to 7pm at the Derekdouble Day Arboretum.

👉 Pow-wow: Wac’ipi C’ante Was’te Yuhapi is holding its second annual pow-wow at Semá:th First Nations beginning June 9. The three-day weekend event will include drumming, dancing, culture & community. We spoke to Bear Paw, the pow-wow’s founder last year; you can read that story here.

Find more events in our members-only weekly calendar.

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