Wednesday, May 24, 2023 - Living at a rest stop

A Fraser Valley rest stop resident explains how he and his neighbours came to live at one of BC's increasingly crowded highway rest stops.

M&M Food Market

Wednesday, May 24, 2023 | 🌤️ High 21C | Forecast

Good morning!

I was travelling back from Vancouver Island via ferry on Monday afternoon. The tail ends of long weekends are always busy, but I survived (even when the BC Ferries website crashed). Here are my entirely anecdotal tips for the ferry at the end of a long weekend:

  • Be early. Forty-five minutes is the sweet spot for walk-on passengers on a busy day because the first buses arrive at the Swartz Bay terminal just after that. If you’re on the bus, be the first off of it.

  • Waiting in the terminal after getting a ticket? Sit in the tiny park out the door and down the stairs from the departure area. It has picnic tables and nice trees.

  • If you’re catching the bus on the mainland, line up early at the foot passenger exit on the ferry. The buses fill up on busy days.

Thanks to our newest Fraser Valley Current members John and Helen-Rose. You can join them and others by becoming a member here.

Grace Giesbrecht

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NEWS

Living at a rest stop

The Colebrook Road rest stop in Abbotsford. 📷️ Thomas Wilson

Scattered around the brightly lit parking lot at the Cole Road rest area sit about a dozen RVs, box vans, and other fifth-wheels.

Chris, 43, lives in one of them. The rest stop is historically reserved for weary drivers on long trips, but to Chris and the others living there, it’s home.

Related story

Need to know

🚡 Gondola or ski area? The province still hasn't determined how best to decide between the two proposals near Bridal Veil Falls [Vancouver Sun]

👉 BC’s housing minister says a large Abbotsford encampment near the Sumas Way interchange is unsafe and next steps will be announced in a ‘couple of weeks’ [Global]

👮 A 29-year-old man is in custody after a ‘high-risk’ incident Monday involving shots allegedly fired at police in Chilliwack [Global News]

🔥 The cause of a fire at The Brick in Langley on Saturday morning remains unknown [Langley Advance Times]

🚁 A helicopter pilot captured a marriage proposal mowed into a hayfield [Chilliwack Progress]

🌸 Spectators packed Glover Road for Fort Langley’s May Day Parade [Langley Advance Times]

🌊 Floodwaters closed the campground at Derby Reach in Langley [Langley Advance Times]

🚗 Chilliwack’s beloved pink car landmark is being held hostage for charity [Chilliwack Progress]

👉️ High water levels are restricting traffic on Rockwell Drive north of Harrison Hotsprings [Agassiz-Harrison Observer]

🏥 A new 15-bed internal medicine unit is coming to Abbotsford Regional Hospital [Abbotsford News]

🌬️ Vancouver parents are calling for air conditioning in schools as future Lower Mainland heatwaves loom [Global News]

🚓 A tenant who threatened the bailiff evicting him was arrested in Abbotsford [Abbotsford News]

🔥 The forest fire discovered north of Mission last week is under control [Mission Record] You can check out the latest BC wildfire situation on the province’s Wildfire Dashboard here [BC Wildfire Service]

☀️ The Concord Pacific Dragon Boat Festival's TD Main Stage lineup has just dropped, with Dear Rouge and Sabai headlining the region's summer kickoff party!*

*Sponsored Listing

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Contact Liz Riley at [email protected] or 905-814-2420 to inquire further about the opportunity of owning an M&M Food Market store in Abbotsford or Mission.

The Agenda

The Chilliwack Pride Festival will happen in August this year. 📷️ BlurryMe/Shutterstock

Chilliwack to provide partial funding for pride celebrations

Chilliwack will provide $5,000 for the Chilliwack Pride Festival this summer.

Hosted by the Chilliwack Pride Society, the festival will happen this August and will feature a full Saturday of vendors, food, art, artisans, vendors, and drag performers. The celebrations will stretch down Mill Street, Wellington Avenue, and Victoria Avenue and through Central Community Park.

The society originally asked the city for $10,000 to put the event on. Chilliwack will chip in half of that—as well as the free use of tables and tents (valued at $2,000). The society budgeted $35,000 for the party, with the largest expenses for road closures and rentals. Other fundraising and sponsorships are slated to cover the majority of the rest of the costs.

🤝 Now hiring

Plant waterer at NBM group in Langley

Customer service representative at Rossdown Natural Foods in Abbotsford

Laboratory assistant at LifeLabs in Chilliwack

Social Development & Education Clerk at Cheam First Nation

Pet groomer trainee at Petsmart in Abbotsford

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

🌳 Tree-planting fundraiser: Arboriculturist Susan Murray will give a presentation on trees from around the world at Trinity Memorial United Church in Abbotsford on Sunday at 5pm. The by-donation fundraiser will help plant trees in Abbotsford, and is also a potluck dinner. Register online by Friday at noon to attend.

🚣‍♀️ Free kayaking lesson: Take a free 45-minute introductory kayaking lesson from a certified instructor on Cultus Lake on Saturday. Choose from a 1pm, 2pm, or 3pm start time. Suitable for adults and children over seven years old. Register online.

🐝 Bee festival: The Langley Demonstration Garden hosts its annual Festival of the Bees on May 27. It will feature beeswax candle-making, seed bomb creating, a plant sale and more. The kid-friendly event runs from 10am to 2pm. Details online.

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

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