Thursday, August 17, 2023 edition - How to share an air conditioner

Thursday, August 17, 2023 | ☀️ High 30C

Good morning!

I had friends in university from the southern states. And they really didn’t like our southern-BC summers. In their home states, some a stone’s throw from Mexico, freezing-cold air conditioning is a staple in almost every home and business. That’s not the case on this side of the border. Today’s story is about the increasing importance of A/C in BC as our summers get hotter, and one community’s method of handling the heat.

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WORTH KNOWING

🌤 Local forecast: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope

⚠️ Here’s the current smoke forecast / Check the BC Wildfire Dashboard here / Check out wildfire heat imagery here

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

NEWS

How to share an air conditioner

Seven air conditioners can make a big difference in a 200-odd person town.

Two years after a heat dome settled on the province and killed 619 people, a non-profit in Yale made a plan to help keep indoor temperatures down for the community’s most vulnerable residents.

The air conditioners—which arrived at the first homes this week as heat warnings were issued throughout the province—were bought to help those at risk from increasingly-common extreme heat events. The portable units will be loaned out like life-saving library books during the canyon’s searing summers.

To Maureen Kehler, one of the architects behind the plan, the air conditioners are just the first answer to a pressing question:

“How do we work together to make sure we’re all as safe as we can be?” she asked. “With the climate crisis, we have to.”

The provincial government has announced a plan to give away 8,000 air conditioning units over the next three years. But the large-scale plan has met early criticism.

• Today, Grace writes about different plans to get air conditioners to vulnerable homes.

Need to know

🔥 Shifting winds are likely to create a smoky weekend in the Lower Mainland [Firesmoke.ca]

🔥 Officials warn those winds may create extreme fire conditions on Thursday [BC Wildfire Service]

⚠ If you are planning to head to the Shuswap area, reconsider your plans [CBC/Marcella Bernardo]

👉 The body of a missing Kwikwetlem First Nation councillor was found in Mission, and a man has been arrested [Vancouver Sun]

👉️ The mayor of Harrison Hot Springs apologized after forgetting a land acknowledgement during Canada Day ceremonies [Agassiz-Harrison Observer]

🌈 Organizers say this year’s Chilliwack Pride Festival will have “a little more of everything” [Chilliwack Progress]

💵 Project AIM raised almost $18,000 for menstrual products with a fundraiser in Agassiz [Agassiz-Harrison Observer]/ You can read our story about the non-profit here [FVC]

⚡ BC Hydro said faulty equipment was to blame for a massive power outage in Chilliwack [Fraser Valley Today]

🍾 Chilliwack is cancelling curb-side glass pickup this week to limit how long crews spend outside in the heat [City of Chilliwack/Facebook]

🛩️ The Abbotsford Air Show tried some new logistical tricks this year after a rocky show for some in 2022 [Abbotsford News]

🚰 A track-and-field championship event in Langley didn’t sell plastic water bottles, much to the chagrin of one writer [Langley Advance Times]

🥶 BC United is calling the NDP government’s air conditioner giveaway a failure [Fraser Valley Today]

🧑‍🚒 Chilliwack is recruiting paid on-call firefighters [Chilliwack Progress]

🎨 The West Fine Arts Show in Langley raised $20,000 [Langley Advance Times]

🌺 Langley’s 17th annual ukulele camp is accepting registrations [Langley Advance Times]

👉️ A Mission man is facing multiple child pornography charges [Mission City Record]

🤸 An independent school in Yarrow is building a new gym [Fraser Valley Today]

🚲️ RCMP are investigating seadoo and dirt bike thefts in Mission [Mission City Record]

📷 CURRENT CAM: Congrats to Mike Woods, who was the first to identify Syéxw Chó:leqw Adventure Park as the location of yesterday’s Current Cam photo.

The Agenda

New sport space planned for Jinkerson park

Jinkerson Park in Chilliwack is getting another upgrade.

Multi-use game areas—a fancy term for fenced-in paved spaces with hoops and nets for various sports, from basketball to futsal to ball hockey—have proven popular in the city. Two already exist in different local parks. Jinkerson Park’s MUGA will be the third such project, and will cost over $400,000 to build.

Jinkerson Park will also be the home of a new pump track this year. The new sports space will be built right next to the track.

New 41-stall parking lot coming for Yarrow Community Hall

Yarrow Community Hall’s parking lot is too small.

The community hall lot also serves Chilliwack’s popular Vedder Rotary Loop trail. After street parking was restricted on Community Street two years ago, demand for parking has outstripped the nearby supply.

The city is planning to build a new 41-stall lot adjacent to the hall and perpendicular to Community Street. The project includes streetlighting, landscaping, and infrastructure for an EV charger. The city will pay a private company $190,300 to construct the lot.

Throwback Thursday

Before Fort Langley was a bustling touristy hotspot, it was a forest along a riverbank. Loggers, including the “fallers” at work in the photo above, sawed and chopped through massive trees to procure timber for construction projects both near and far. Long, sharp-toothed saws that required two people to wield and heavy handled axes were their primary tools.

🗓 Things to do

Ongoing, August 17 to 23

✈️ Airshow: The Chilliwack Flight Fest, a free airshow, will run this weekend with a hangar dance and teaser show on Friday, August 18 and full show on Saturday, August 19. Shuttle available. More info online.

🏡 Visit Green Gables: Kilby Historic Site’s Behind the Gate Theatre Company presents Anne of Green Gables. Shows run from August 17 to 20. Tickets are available online and include admission to the historic site.

🖼️ Art: Watch painters create masterpieces outdoors at the Kilby Historic Site August 18 to 20. Artists will be set up throughout the site and paintings will be available for purchase through the artist. Details online.

🪓 Chainsaws: Hope's Chainsaw Carving Competition returns this weekend to Memorial Park. Carvers begin Thursday morning, with events throughout the weekend and speed carving Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. A schedule is available online.

🍖 Street meat: Langley’s Ribfest returns this weekend from Friday, August 18 to Sunday August 20. Try the competing sauces before ordering ribs or a sandwich. More info online. Read our story, featuring one of this weekend’s barbecue judges, here.

Thursday, August 17

🐟️ Save a stream: The Fraser Valley Conservancy will host a workshop about stream health at Windebank Creek in Mission on Thursday, August 17. Find more info online.

🎵 Concert: Ranj Singh will perform at the Willoughby Park Amphitheatre as part of Langley Township’s Summer Festival Series on Thursday, August 17. Details online.

🎺 Blues music: Blues musician Sue Folley will play a concert on the outdoor stage at the historic Dewdney Pub on Thursday, August 17. Tickets available online or at the door.

Friday, August 18

🕺 Swing dance: The Hamilton Street Swing Band will play at the Aldergrove Swing Dance in Langley on Friday, August 18. Beginner lessons are provided. Tickets online.

🌳 Go play outside: The City of Abbotsford will host a Go Play Outside event in Mill Lake Park with free family-friendly games and activities on Friday, August 18. There will also be food trucks. More info online.

🎻 Symphony: A full orchestra will play in Mill Lake Park in Abbotsford for Symphony in the Park on Friday, August 18. There will also be food trucks. More info online.

🌽 Get lost in a field: The Eagle Acres Corn Maze opens for the season on Friday, August 18. More info online.

🎞️ Movie and a Market: The City of Mission is hosting an 80s-themed market on Friday, August 18 in the Fraser River Heritage Park. A screening of The Goonies starts at 9. Info online.

Members get access to our full weekly events listing. Find it here. Become a member here.

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