Tuesday, August 15, 2023 - Cooking meat in a parking lot

Tuesday, August 15, 2023 | ☀ High 34C

Good morning!

The highway news has again resurfaced calls for the resurrection of the Interurban line to Chilliwack for passenger transit. I totally understand the desire for trains. Everyone loves trains.

But—please forgive me for my skepticism if you’re a believer—the trouble I have always had with calls to run trains on the old Interurban line through the valley is that it doesn’t seem like a huge upgrade over what we already have for your average traveller.

Right now, a bus from downtown Chilliwack to Lougheed SkyTrain Station in Coquitlam takes 90 minutes. From Abbotsford, it takes less than an hour. I struggle to see how a train taking the windier Interurban route is going to beat that. And while you might be able to avoid traffic, rapid buses on designated highway lanes can provide that bonus too. SkyTrain, with its quick acceleration and ability to connect neighbourhoods makes sense to me. But having ridden plenty of trains in Europe that crawled at snail’s pace through urban areas, I just can’t figure out how the Interurban beats a bus in a head-to-head race.

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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

The beauty of parking lot cooking

Barbecuing an excellent steak shouldn’t be complicated—except in competition.

When he’s competing, Kevin Legge admits there is a lot more that goes into cooking a steak. But for backyard barbecues his advice is to keep it simple.

“I’m a big fan of salt, pepper, garlic.”

Kevin has competed against some of the top barbecue cooks in global competitions like the Jack Daniel’s World Championships, World Food Championships, and his favourite: the Tony Stone Low and Slow in the Netherlands.

“It’s a great group of people wherever you go, they’re all like family. Everybody helps each other out with equipment if they need it, and that kind of thing. So it’s a global family of people who love to cook meat in a parking lot and see who does the best job.”

This weekend, barbecue teams from across Canada will be competing for Kevin’s approval at the Langley RibFest. ​​At least 40,000 visitors are expected to flood the grounds of Langley’s McLeod Athletic Park during the three-day festival, which Kevin helped start.

• Joti spoke with Kevin to get his tips on how to grill a steak at home that is sure to tempt any barbecue-lover’s taste buds.

Need to know

⛽ A historic corner store in Langley might re-open, but council isn’t enthusiastic about a proposal for a gas station [Langley Advance Times]

⚖ An Abbotsford man pleaded guilty to a stabbing near Mill Lake last year [Abbotsford News]

✈ A small plane crashed into a field near Hope [Hope Standard]

🚑 One person was hospitalized after a crash in central Aldergrove Monday [Aldergrove Star]

🚓 An Abbotsford man was arrested for impaired driving on back-to-back days [Abbotsford Police]

🥵 Sunday’s temperatures broke records in Hope and Agassiz [Agassiz-Harrison Observer]

🚒 Dozens of firefighters were called out to extinguish a house fire in Chilliwack Sunday [Chilliwack Progress]

👏 The Chilliwack Museum and Archives is offering free admission all week for people looking to beat the heat [Chilliwack Museum and Archives]

🔥 Hope fire crews put out a blaze after a semi truck caught fire on Highway 3 (and ignited the surrounding roadside) [Hope Fire Department]

The Agenda

Chilliwack construction dips

Construction in Chilliwack has been relatively slow thus far in 2023.

Through the end of July, the city issued building permits for $178 million worth of construction. That’s significantly below last year’s July year-to-date figure of $238 million, and also less than figures in the two previous years. (Numbers from 2019 aren’t availabe.)

Construction is down across the city, both in downtown Chilliwack—the site of most new builds last year—and in the busy Sardis and Vedder areas.

The one construction bright spot? The industrial sector, where the $33 million in permits issued so far is the highest since at least 2017. The vast majority of that sum, however, comes from a single project—the construction of Southern Irrigation’s new headquarters on Progress Way, at the former home of Pick-A-Part. The value of that building is pegged at $24.1 million.

Small towns open cooling centres

The Fraser Valley’s smaller communities are besting their larger cousins when it comes to providing cooled spaces for residents.

Hope opened its recreation centre’s ice rink common area and stands; the Canyon Golden Agers Society also opened their hall for seniors fleeing the heat.

The Agassiz Friendship House also was opened for cooling. Behaved pets are welcome and Agassiz Harrison Community Services can provide transit if needed. (The town’s recreation centre and library are also open.) Harrison Hot Springs, meanwhile, opened Memorial Hall.

Of the region’s larger cities, only Chilliwack has opened cooling centres like their smaller neighbours. Residents—and any well-behaved pets—can beat the heat at Evergreen Hall and the Sardis Sports Complex. Chilliwack’s museum will also be waiving entrance fees all week.

Langley City’s Facebook page urged residents to visit a park. Langley Township had no public information, though two local charities will operate cooling centres for homeless people. Abbotsford’s Facebook page directed readers to a stock page suggesting they visit a rec centre, library, or The Reach Gallery Archives. Mission directed residents to the library, leisure centre, or to two other air-conditioned spaces—one for homeless people, the other at the Mission Friendship Centre, which closes at 4pm.

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🍴 Lepp’s Bakehouse: Abbotsford. A bakery serving up sandwiches on fresh baked buns. The bakery's 'sandos' run for $13 and can be made vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free. Open 8am to 4pm.

🍴 Coolrunnings Bistro: Abbotsford/Matsqui Village. A unique small restaurant serving Jamaican food and drinks. Jerk wings cost $14 and slow-cooked goat stew goes for $25. Open Thursday to Sunday from 4pm to the mid-evening, depending on the day.

🍴 Langley Vietnamese Cuisine: Langley City. Family-run restaurant specializing in pho. Beef noodle soups cost around $10. Open 10am to 9pm.

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