The Hawkins Sound Ranch just outside of Prince George is looking to integrate a piece of rock history into its modern system.

According to Corey Allan Hawkins, Owner and Operator of the Hawkins Sound Ranch, they’re putting the finishing touches on integrating a Trident 80B recording console into their system

Hawkins said the console was designed by Malcom Toft, who worked with The Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Elton John.

“The first one he came out with was called the Trident A Range, and there’s only about 13 of those left in the world right now,” Hawkins explained.

“One of the most common things that studios around the world started asking him was if they could come up with a cheaper version, but still had the same sound and tone that would colour a record. He then created what is known as the Trident 80B.”

According to Hawkins, other artists to record on a Trident 80B include Green Day, Queen, and Frank Zappa who owned the console that Hawkins possesses.

“I was looking for sort of a higher end console, I had already had a Trident 24A, which was made for the home studio use,” Hawkins said.

“I knew about the Trident series and their reputation and what records were made on them. I came across this auction at Julian’s Auction in Los Angeles in November of 2023. I think the minimum bid was only about $10,000, which seems ridiculously low for not only the history and provenance of who owned the board, but just the fact that most of them go for $30,000 without having that provenance.”

Hawkins put in a bid after talking to his wife, thinking he wouldn’t get it. He was having dinner with a friend when he received the email informing him he won the auction.

“It didn’t come with the cables or the power supply, so I ended up reaching out to Malcom Toft who invented the board, and had actually built it,” he said.

“He was creating power supplies, so I ended up buying a power supply off him, fired that up for the first time actually just a few weeks ago.”

Hawkins said they’re working on custom cabling to wire the board into their modern system, at which time they’ll be able to determine what works and what doesn’t.

He added they’ve started a GoFundMe with a goal of $5,000 to help cover the costs of the cables and the work.

“By this time I’ve already spent about $25,000 of my own funds to get the board here, paid for it, to get the power supply and everything else,” he said.

“I’ve got a technician here in town who has worked on my studio from the get-go and he’s absolutely amazing and probably the only person in Prince George that can do this kind of work.”

Hawkins estimates the cables will cost $3,200, with the rest going to restore the board.

“I don’t imagine it will be much, the lights on the VU meters don’t work, there’s a few pods that are kind of frozen,” Hawkins explained.

“Generally the board is in immaculate condition, but we won’t know until we get those cables and actually do some recording and find out if they can work or not.”

Hawkins said he wants his studio to become a destination studio.

“We want to give back to the community,” he said.

“I think it’s just such a cool piece of history, but it also sounds great, and I think that will attract a lot of bands.”

The GoFundMe can be found here.

Prince George City Council has the cost for recommendations from the City’s Advisory Committee on Bear Awareness.

The costs will be presented to City Council in a report at tomorrow’s (Monday) meeting.

The recommendations were originally presented to City Council in November. Council had requested a report come back with the costs of the recommendations at that meeting.

In total, the Committee brought forward eight recommendations.

The first recommendation is to establish a “Sustainable Waste Coordinator” position focused on sustainable waste management and committing financial support for the position for the next five years.

According to the report, the salary cost and non-labour expenses to support this would be approximately $140,000. The report estimates this would be a 2.5 per cent increase in solid waste rates, an approximate impact of $4, $6 and $7 on small, medium and large garbage containers respectively.

The second recommendation is to have that Sustainable Waste Coordinator included on a Bear Aware Technical Committee which would also consist of a number of community stakeholders, such as the Northern Bear Awareness Society, UNBC, and the BC Conservation Officer Service. This recommendation doesn’t have a dollar figure attached to it, but the report states the bear-focused City staff position would be essential to this committee.

The third recommendation involves incorporating automated bear-resistant waste bins on a two-year pilot project, and returning a report to City Council following the pilot’s completion.

Staff comments on recommendation five said the rough estimate for the purchase of a bear-resistant bin is between $400 and $500.

The report states there are roughly 26,000 bins in the city, and it would cost approximately $10 million to replace the City’s bin inventory.

Recommendation four is to continue to phase in bear-resistant solid waste bins in public places. The report states the city has been doing this for over a decade.

Recommendation five is to direct administration to consider actively participating in and supporting programs aimed at reducing bear attractants through initiatives such as bear-resistant bins, fruit gleaning and harvest sharing, and public education, and combining support for these programs.

Recommendation six is to adopt a new bylaw specific to wildlife attractants and solid waste while recommendation seven is to amend the City’s Zoning Bylaw to permit electric fencing to secure wildlife attractants.

The final recommendation is to include education materials on human-bear interactions with the City’s utility bills on the spring and fall billing cycles, and to incorporate bear awareness information on the garbage collection schedule.

The City includes an inserter that can reliably do inserts of two-double-sided 8 1/2 by 11 pieces of paper into a standard size envelope.

One page is used for the bill, while the other page is used to convey important information.

According to the report, if the City were to purchase a new inserter to handle additional inserts with the bills, it would cost an estimated $25,000. They would also have to change the size of the envelopes at an estimated cost of $3,000 per utility cycle.

Other items to be discussed at tomorrow’s meeting includes an update on the City’s corporate work plan, and first three readings of the City’s tax rates bylaw for the year.

The full agenda is here.

Updated 9:00 am, Sunday, April 6th:

Cougars Director of Business Taylor Dakers confirmed to My PG Now there are approximately 100 tickets remaining, with another 100 set to be released at noon today. (Sunday)

Original Story:

Over 5,000 tickets went quickly ahead of game six between the Prince George Cougars and the Portland Winterhawks at CN Centre.

The Cougars kept their season alive with a Friday 7-2 victory in Portland.

Prince George will host Portland Sunday night at 6:00 with the Winterhawks ahead 3-2.

Tickets can be purchased on the Cougars website.

If a 7th game is needed it will be played Monday night at 7:00 also at CN Centre.

A homeowner in Kersley’s burn pile was the cause of a half-acre fire on Friday, April 4.

The Kersley Volunteer Fire Department says the fire occurred about a kilometre away from their Fire Hall. This allowed them to arrive on the scene quickly.

“The Homeowner had a small pile burning in the middle of the field, and it got into the grass and got away,” says Deputy Chief Dennis Syvertsen. “It didn’t take very long, we had it contained and extinguished, everything worked out smoothly.”

The Quesnel Fire Department was called in for some assistance as the fire reached a portion of the tree line.  Syvertsen says the departments were on the scene for an hour.

This fire was the first time the Kersley Volunteer Fire Department got to use their new Wildland Fire Truck, which Syvertsen says, “worked flawlessly.”

“It was beautiful and perfect. From where we parked, the hoses reached out into the bush, and could cover more. Zero issues, it did everything as we hoped and wanted.”

Kersley is 23 kilometres south of Quesnel.

–Files by Teryn Midzain, My Cariboo Now

Prince George Fire and Rescue responded to a residential structure fire earlier today (Saturday).

At around 2 o’clock, crews from three halls were in the 6000 block of Fairmont Crescent in College Heights, where they found fire coming from the front door.

The City said crews were quick to extinguish the fire, with no reported injuries.

The fire damage is estimated at $300,000 and the cause is under investigation.

Work has begun to create a new logo for School District 57.

SD57 contracted Monogram Communications to begin a consultation and design process.

In the meeting agenda for next Tuesday (April 8th), it said the historic logo no longer resonates with the school or greater community, and is rarely used throughout the school district.

The School District added the logo isn’t just part of the visual identity of the organization, but can bring pride and belongingness to members.

During the consultative process, feedback will be gathered, as well as ideas and impressions to help guide the design work.

The School District looks to be ready to reveal the new logo by September of 2025, with more information on timelines and process in the coming days on the School District 57 website.

Other items to be discussed during the upcoming Public Meeting includes the 2025/26 Capital Plan Bylaw, and the Draft 2025/26 Annual Budget.

The BC General Employees’ Union (BCGEU) and LifeLabs employees held a solidarity rally on Thursday as contract talks continue.

Some employees have been without a contract for over a year, with bargaining continuing to be a slow process, especially after the company was bought by an American company during negotiations last summer.

Even with a smaller presence in Prince George, BCGEU and LifeLabs Bargaining Committee Chair Mandy De Fields said the rally was still a success.

“Not all our workers in the area are unionized, but our medical laboratory technologists that work there are, and so we haven’t had a great deal of visibility in the community, so we thought we’d come up, and create that visibility and awareness so that the public knows what’s going on.”

De Fields added the public, along with members with other unions joined the rally to show support.

One of the biggest issues they’re dealing with currently is wages, and keeping up with the work and economic climate.

She said technologists are significantly behind those in hospitals doing the same work, anywhere from 12.5 to 16.5 per cent.

The second issue is working conditions, such as arbitrary productivity expectations, where in order to meet them, staff are skipping meal and washroom breaks.

De Fields said because of their workloads and working conditions, she’s hearing from members that they are rapidly becoming patients themselves.

Update (Saturday, 12:38pm):

The Prince George RCMP have more details regarding 20-year-old Ravinder Singh, who was last seen Wednesday.

Police said investigators have been able to place Singh at a restaurant on the 5500-block of the Hart Highway at around 4:00 p.m. Wednesday.

“We are asking anyone who was using the Hart Highway around 4:00 p.m. on April 2 to please check their dash cameras to see if they captured Mr. Singh.” said Media Relations Officer, Corporal Jennifer Cooper.

“Additionally, if you have home or business surveillance along the Hart Highway, if you can please look to see if it recorded any sightings of Ravinder so we can determine where he went after he left the restaurant.”

The Prince George RCMP extends its appreciation to those who reported sightings of Singh to help with the investigation.

Original (Friday, 12:23pm):

The Prince George RCMP is asking the public to keep an eye out for 20-year-old Ravinder Singh.

He was last seen on Wednesday, at Northwood Pulpmill Road at around 3:20pm, and police believe he may have intended to use the Beaver Forest Service Road to travel east towards Shelley.

The RCMP added Singh isn’t from Prince George and may not be familiar with the area he’s traveling in, and it’s unknown if he was properly provisioned to stay outdoors overnight.

He was last seen wearing blue jeans, a black jacket and a black hat, with a light-coloured shirt, carrying a black backpack and a bicycle helmet.

Singh is described as:

• Indo-Canadian male
• 180 cm (5’11”)
• 70 kg (155 lb)
• Black hair
• Black eyes
• Traveling via bicycle
• Originally from Surrey, B.C.

Anyone with information, or has video footage of Singh in PG on Monday and Tuesday, travelling from Ospika Boulevard and Tyner Boulevard towards Northwood Pulpmill Road via bicycle is asked to call the Prince George RCMP at 250-561-3300.

BC Premier David Eby touched down at the Prince George Conference and Civic Centre today (Friday) providing the final keynote address the two-day COFI Conference.

Prior to his speaking engagement, Eby met with local media, delving into several topics including the possibility of welcoming more Americans into our province.

He said with the Trump administration creating a lot of unrest, some American residents are considering leaving their country and to being work elsewhere.

“Whether it’s medical professionals, whether its people who are experts in particular fields such as researchers or people who want to start businesses, we want to be welcoming them into Canada and British Columbia right now. Unfortunately, we saw a significant reduction in the provincial nominee program that allows us to sponsor those folks for Canadian citizenship.”

Sticking with the unrest south of the border, toll measures on US Trucks travelling to Alaska were also up for discussion.

The province filed legislation last month that would permit them to levy tolls on vehicles between the Lower 48 and Alaska.

The bill, known formally as the Economic Stabilization (Tariff Response) Act, is a measure to counter the tariffs placed on BC by American president Donald Trump.

Eby hopes Alaskans see the harm be doing by the recent trade war.

“This measure is to get the attention of those Republicans in Alaska to remind them of how much we have in common and frankly give them the motivation to stand up against a president that threatens people who question his agenda.”

“By speaking directly with Alaskans pointing out these connections through this bill and by threatening to put tolls through the traffic that put through British Columbia – I think it is part of an overall strategy, we don’t want to use it but we didn’t ask for this trade war either.”

With all the trade war drama aside, our premier noted relationships with neighbouring states like Washington, Oregon and California remains strong even with the political unrest.

“I have had some really positive meetings with Washington state’s governor (Bob Ferguson) he has recently come onto the job and is new to it. He is coming up to visit us and we are going to be doing exchanges with the ministers and deepening those ties. It’s important to have friendships with Americans – it is just one president, one American and we have a whole bunch of Americans who value our relationship.”

In addition, the premier commended the work by Lisa Murkowski, the senior senator for Alaska, in supporting a bill to try and thwart Donald Trump’s ability to impose tariffs on Canada.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution Wednesday night that would thwart President Donald Trump’s ability to impose tariffs on Canada.

The Senate voted 51-48 to approve the bill and send it to the House of Representatives.

“I was really glad to see Murkowski step up and speak out. I am writing a letter to her that is in the mail right now and appreciate as a Republican that nobody benefits from these kinds of trade wars,” said Eby.

Eby also touched on the importance of improved inter-provincial trade stating that a bill is in front of the legislature right now that will allow them to recognise any province or territory’s rules that are good enough for BC to offer services or sell into our area.

“It should be just as easy to sell to Ontario as it is to Washington State and that currently is not the case. With President Trump’s actions we would rather sell to Ontario.”

Eby also confirmed the overhauling of BC Timber Sales (BCTS) to give the struggling sector a leg up.

“One is to ensure that we are connecting the trees that we have to the jobs that we have available in the province. We are adding value to the mills that are here, we have the mills, we have the people, they just need to come together.”

“The other (priority) is to make sure we are accessing fibre through the management of our forests whether it be through commercial thinning, addressing wildfire areas, clearing fuel out of the forests. That also helps pulp mills and it helps create jobs.”

BCTS manages forest harvesting on more than 20% of B.C.’s public land.

In January, the Ministry of Forests initiated a review, undertaken by an expert task force, to create pathways for a stronger, more resilient sector.

BC Timber Sales will work shoulder to shoulder with all divisions within the Ministry of Forests, including the BC Wildfire Service, local communities, First Nations and industry partners to:

* reduce fuel loads in high-risk areas;

* remove health-damaged trees to improve recreational site safety and ecosystem resilience;

* expand the use of commercial thinning to maintain forest health while supplying fibre to the market;

* rehabilitate rangelands to restore productive landscapes; and

* strengthen its partnership with BCWS to expand the use of prescribed fire as a key forest-management tool.

The next event to be hosted by the Conference and Civic Centre is the Minerals North Conference which runs from April 30th to May 2nd.

This weekend’s Judo tournament in Prince George will determine the top athletes in the province.

The Provincial Judo Championships are being held at the Northern Sports Centre starting today, hosting close to 400 athletes across the province from ages 8 to senior level.

Prince George Judo Club Vice President, Melanie Holliday said the tournament will have good local representation.

“There’s probably 80 per cent of our club alone, in Prince George Judo Club. It would be at least 100 from Prince George competing at this tournament from ages 8 to senior level.”

Team BC members will also be competing to get qualified for this year’s nationals in Calgary in May.

This is the second time Prince George will be hosting the tournament, with the previous one last year at the Northern Sports Centre, getting support from Viasport, Tourism PG, and Team BC.

Opening ceremonies start today (Friday) at 6pm, kicking off the tournament.

“It’ll start off with the U-8 to U-12, and then shortly after that, probably just after 7:30, they’ll start the Kata, which is another form of Judo. That’s done probably by 8:30 or 9:00.” said Holliday.

The tournament will start again tomorrow (Saturday) at 8:30am, with the public invited to attend both events.

More information can be found on the Prince George Judo Club’s Facebook page here.

The City of Prince George kicks off its Alternate Approval Process today (Friday) with the goal of borrowing $11.4 million for three capital projects.

The process is open from now until May 20th.

At the February 3rd council meeting, civic officials approved using the process to finance these projects, which were included in the Five-Year Capital Financial Plan:

• Equipment Financing – $5.49 million
  Funds will support annual vehicle and equipment replacement through the MFA Equipment Financing Program. This includes mobile equipment replacement ($4.18 million), janitorial equipment ($20,000), fire hose renewal ($50,000), fleet column lifts hoist system renewal ($140,000), a tractor ($400,000), and arborist equipment ($701,500).
• Stormwater System Renewal – $2.62 million
  This program includes relining, replacing, and upgrading stormwater infrastructure such as culverts, catch basins, flood pumps, and storm mains to reduce flooding, erosion, and water quality degradation.
• Civic Centre Building Automation System & Chiller Renewal – $3.26 million
  Funding will replace and upgrade the building automation system, air conditioning, and related components to improve energy efficiency and climate control.

Local governments require elector approval for long-term borrowing.

The alternate approvals process allows eligible voters to submit response forms opposing the proposal. If 10 per cent or more of eligible voters (5,629 for Prince George) submit forms, a full referendum is required.

Forms are available on the City’s website and at City Hall. Completed ones can be submitted in person, by mail, or email ([email protected]).

Integris Credit Union and Coastal Community Credit Union signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for a potential merger.

In a release from Integris, the MOU is a commitment to thoroughly evaluate the benefits and implications of a merger, ensuring it aligns with the best interest of members, clients, employees, and communities.

It’s believed the merger will expand capabilities, benefiting members and clients by enhancing services, while maintaining local presence.

“This partnership is about looking to the future. By exploring how we can grow together, we’re opening new opportunities to strengthen our resilience and improve the products and services our members rely on. Together, we can do more—for our people, for our members, and for our communities”, said Alexandra Goseltine, Chair of Integris’ Board of Directors.

If the boards of directors of both credit unions agree to pursue a merger, it will be subject to consent from the BC Financial Services Authority, review by the Competition Bureau, and any applicable member votes as may be required under credit union legislation.

More detailed information can be found on the Integris Credit Union’s website here.

Prince George’s unemployment rate is headed in the right direction, although it’s not quite at the same level as it was 12 months earlier.

In March, the jobless mark came in at 7.2% – during the same time last year it was a point lower at 6.1.

February’s unemployment rate in the city was 7.6%.

The number of people working in the city last month was 50,300 – roughly the same figured when compared to 12 months earlier.

3,900 people were unemployed in PG during March, a slight dip from February when it was 4,200.

Labour Division analyst, Vince Ferrao told MyPGNow.com BC’s unemployment rate is at 6.1%, a slight uptick when compared to the first two months of 2025 – he adds the mark hasn’t moved a whole lot in the past year.

“Over the past 12 months it has gone up 0.6% – so it was higher 12 months ago.”

Nationally, employment fell by 33-thousand jobs in March, dropping the jobless mark in Canada to 6.7% – it was 6.6 a month earlier.

BC Jobs Minister Diana Gibson issued the following statement on the March Labour Force Survey:

“All over the world, people are looking for new trading partners as the tariff threat now impacts countries around the globe. We are working to diversify our trade to support our businesses and protect and create more jobs.

“Today’s Labour Force Survey data shows in March, while the national trend is down, B.C. held steady with a small increase of 5,700 jobs compared to last month, with the highest increase in full-time employment among provinces at 10,000. So far this year, B.C. has gained 35,400 full-time jobs, the highest increase among provinces.

“Compared to March of last year, B.C.’s private-sector employment is up by 32,700, the third-highest increase in private-sector employment across the country. And we have work to do to continue to support the private sector that is facing real impacts from Trump’s tariffs. Since July 2017, B.C. has gained 172,800 private-sector jobs.

“Our unemployment rate is 6.1%, one of the lowest in the country and below the national average of 6.7%. B.C. also continues to lead the country with an average hourly wage of $37.64, the highest among provinces.

“This month, women’s employment increased by 16,800, with full-time jobs up by 14,100 and part time up by 2,700. So far this year, B.C. has had the highest increase in women’s full-time employment among provinces, up by 32,500.

“The data this morning shows that in March, B.C. had employment increases in health care and social assistance (+6,600) and professional, scientific and technical services (+2,400). Construction has gained 14,500 jobs and manufacturing is up 8,600 jobs compared to this time last year.

“As British Columbians braced themselves for another week of uncertainty from the United States, our government continues to stand strong for people, take action and defend our jobs. This week, 22 B.C. companies and universities promoted the province’s unique technology products and services in Germany at Hannover Messe 2025, the world’s largest trade show for industrial and energy technologies.

“As we expand our trade diversification globally, we’re proud to showcase B.C.’s solutions to the challenges of advancing AI, improving energy efficiency and lessening the impacts of climate change worldwide. This is the largest number of B.C. companies that have chosen to travel to this event. Advancing our trade and investment opportunities on this global stage will open new markets for B.C.’s economy to grow and prosper, and create new jobs for people in British Columbia.

“B.C. is protecting services and defending people’s jobs and the economy. Growing a stronger and more diverse economy will help protect people in B.C. from instability outside our borders, with investments that will bring good-paying jobs to the province as part of robust and sustainable industries.”

Here is a breakdown of all the provinces:

• Saskatchewan 4.9%
• Quebec 5.7%
• Manitoba 6.0%
• British Columbia/Nova Scotia 6.1%
• New Brunswick 7.0%
• Alberta 7.1%
• Ontario/Prince Edward Island 7.5%
• Newfoundland and Labrador 10.0%

“He’s fighting the world now.”

That’s from former BC Premier Glen Clark who was part of a Canada/US Relations Panel during day one of the COFI Convention from the PG Conference and Civic Centre today (Thursday).

Clark, who led the NDP from February of 1996 to August of 1999 was joined by 15-year Port Moody-Westwood-Port Coquitlam Conservative MP James Moore and Fellow/Lead on Canada/US Relations Strategy Mark Cameron.

Clark, who has dealt with American President Donald Trump in the past says his demeanour behind closed doors is a lot different than what you often see portrayed in the media.

“That is why I think some countries; some politicians are having better success with him privately because behind closed doors he is not as crazy as you might think.”

“He is very articulate and charming actually and wasn’t at all spewing the extreme rhetoric that you see him use publicly. He is very much a performer, and he plays for the audience and supporters. Privately, he may still believe that, but he is much easier to deal with.”

He added the relationship between Canada and the United States has fundamentally changed and not for the better.

“Fundamentally, it is very hard to trust the Americans. We’ve had agreements with them, but they have ripped them up. I think the rules have changed; we need to look at other trading partners and strengthen our country separately and we need to look at our governments to make more investments and make us more competitive.”

As for pair down the inter-provincial trade barriers, Clark says eliminating all the red tape at once isn’t as easy as it sounds as Canada as seen as decentralised country as each individual province has its fair share of economic control.

“The decentralises giving us different rules in different provinces so that is why we have never felt that need to give up power to form a national strategy and this time because we do have a threat from the United States, it is more important than ever that all the provinces give up some of that power in the interest of the nation.”

While the end goal of the global war for Trump is unknown to many, Moore on the other hand says his motives are outdated and unsustainable.

“I think we wants to set in motion a trend of reinvestment back into the United States by putting more auto plants back into his country. I think he wants America to be made stronger while also making other countries weaker and I think that is a broken formula.”

Moore like a lot of other political pundits think the strategy by Trump to mark-up products from other countries like Canada will backfire, citing the instability of the stock market as a good example.

“Donald Trump has given us a big hand here in the sense that he is going to impoverish Americans. He crashed the stock market, jack up inflation and is going to make everything more expensive and he has made a lot of the world hate the United States, which I don’t think Americans aren’t going to like a lot of those things and they will want this to stop.”

“The trend that he wants to create is to enrich America while impoverishing Canada and that is something we can’t allow to happen.”

On Wednesday evening, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution that would cancel President Trump’s ability to impose tariffs on Canada.

The Senate voted 51-48 to approve the bill and send it to the House of Representatives, where it could be shelved. Four Senate Republicans teamed up with Democrats to advance the legislation.

In addition, the Democrat-sponsored bill would terminate a national emergency Trump declared in January, which he linked to illegal imports of fentanyl from Mexico, Canada and China

The COFI convention wraps up tomorrow (Friday).

Premier David Eby said the B.C. government will stand against the economic threat brought on by US-imposed tariffs.

Eby added he is relieved to see President Donald Trump soften his threats against Canada, but B.C. must remain cautious of more unexpected changes.

“I expect that uncertainty and continued announcements from the Presidents to continue, but I am glad to see a shift in how the President is talking about Canada and our Prime Minister,” said Eby.

“I’m hopeful this new, constructive relationship that appears to be evolving between the Prime Minister and the President means some stability and some grounds to sit down like adults and come to an agreement on how our countries can increase prosperity for everyone.”

Eby mentioned the heavy tariffs on Canadian exports into the US, particularly auto manufacturers, will have deep impacts on both sides of the border.

“These tariffs are a terrible policy. American families are going to see dramatic increases in everything they buy, on top of the costs that are already too high for so many families,” said Eby.

“As they face layoffs and see the contraction of their economy and the stock market continue to drop, one of the messages we have for the American people is that we do better together and we supported each other for many, many years.”

Softwood lumber is a particular concern for the province, as it makes up a significant portion of B.C.’s trade exports to the US, with provincial exports to the United States totalling 10.4 million cubic metres in 2024.

“My concern is that the president has committed to targeting our softwood lumber industry, more than they already have with their unfair duties,” said Eby.

“It’s going to drive up the cost of housing in the US, it’s going to cost jobs south of the border and in British Columbia. We’re going to stand with those workers to make sure they’re supported and with the industry to make sure we get through this.”

Eby said the province plans to strengthen manufacturing and trade relationships outside of the U.S.

“Part of the effort will be diversification to other markets and another part will be supporting industry and workers directly with programs to facilitate them moving into products and diversification across Canada,” said Eby.

The Premier added B.C. and Canada need to act on their own accord, regardless of US actions.

“You would get whiplash if you followed the President’s every announcement as a source of direction, so the feeling we have today of not being as bad as what other countries are facing right now is tempered by two things: one is the fact that it’s already quite devastating for many sectors in B.C., including our softwood and aluminum producers,” said Eby.

“The other thing that tempers any kind of feeling of relief is the fact that two hours from now, on Truth Social the president is going to post about whatever and undo any sort of sense of security we might have.”

–with files from Ryley McCormack, My East Kootenay Now staff

$220,000 of contraband cigarettes were seized by Quesnel RCMP in a search warrant of a house in Red Bluff.

Police said they conducted a search warrant on a residence in the 2000 block of Red Bluff Road on March 28th, as part of an ongoing investigation.

The search warrant led police to seize:

• 1100 cartons of contraband cigarettes
• $13,185 in Canadian currency
• 21 firearms and ammunition
• 8 lbs of marijuana bud
• 767 grams of Psilocybin (mushrooms)
• 330 grams of Cannabis concentrate
• and 15 grams of cocaine.

“The possession and sale of contraband tobacco products is becoming more common.” said Sergeant Clay Kronebusch.

“We don’t really know what the leading cause is, but it seems to be more common to see them being purchased without going through the proper channels and proper taxing, as tobacco products are federally regulated.”

Kronebusch says one male suspect was arrested during the search, but has been released since, with charges possibly pending from the Crown upon completion of the investigation.

– Files from Teryn Midzain, My Cariboo Now staff

The Prince George RCMP is investigating an attempted theft on Thursday of last week (March 27th), shortly before 10:00pm.

This occurred near the intersection of Tenth Avenue and Central Street East, when a woman walking in the area was approached by a man who tried to steal her purse and phone.

“The man made several attempts to steal the items from the victim, who began to scream for help. People in the area heard the cries and called 9-1-1, at which point the man fled the vicinity.” said Media Relations Officer, Corporal Jennifer Cooper.

“Thankfully, the victim did not suffer any serious injury in this incident.”

Patrols were conducted, but Cooper said due to the high amount of foot and vehicle traffic in the area, the man was not located.

The suspect is described as:

• Average build
• Approximately 5’8 (172 cm)
• Short brown hair
• Wearing a red hoodie at the time of the offense

Anyone who may have witnessed the event or have footage of the incident or suspect is asked to contact the Prince George RCMP at 250-561-3300.

The latest global tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump could create opportunities for affected countries.

PG Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, Neil Godbout said we have long and established trade relationships with mechanisms through the World Trade Organization to settle disputes.

“Softwood lumber is the primary example of that, certainly in our neck of the woods, is that somehow they’re unfairly competing with another jurisdiction, in this case, Canada when it comes to lumber.”

“There’s a mechanism to go and resolve those kinds of trade disputes in a reasonable way, and negotiating at the table, rather than acting unilaterally, which is what Trump is doing.”

Godbout said we’re already seeing provinces discuss and work towards interprovincial trade, but also seeing more discussions globally.

“We’re talking to our friends in Japan, in South Korea, Australia, and of course on the other side of the Atlantic in Europe.”

“We have other friends in the world, and this is an opportunity to expand those trading relationships.”

While Canada was unaffected by the blanket 10 per cent tariff on all exports to the U.S., the White House confirmed a 25 per cent tariff on all imported vehicles shipped stateside.

Canadian steel and aluminum producers will also face a 25 per cent tariff on their exports to the United States.

More detailed information on the tariffs can be found on our previous story here.

– With Vista Files

Prince George city councillor Trudy Klassen will join about 30 small cities from across Canada to attend the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction gathering.

It takes place from April 14th to 16th in Lethbridge, Alberta.

Klassen is slated to be part of the Municipal Leaders Table.

The conference will continue work on the first municipally led, integrated standards for treatment, harm reduction, recovery, prevention and enforcement services, policies and strategies.

Between January 2016 and September 2023, over 42,000 people living in Canada died due to apparent opioid toxicity.

Last year’s event was held in Timmins, Ontario.

Over 600 delegates are in Prince George for the BC Council of Forest Industries Conference taking place at the Civic Centre.

It runs today (Thursday) and tomorrow (Friday).

A number of speakers, panels and presentations are on tap for the event.

BC Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Terry Teegee is slated to provide the opening keynote speech this morning (Thursday) at 8:30.

In addition, a Canada/US Relations and Forest Products Trade panel is scheduled for 12:30 and will include BC Hydro Chair and former Premier Glen Clark, Former Federal Minister for Industry, Asia- Pacific Gateway James Moore and Fellow & Lead, Canada-US Relations Strategy, Public Policy Forum Mark Cameron.

BC Forests Minister Ravi Parmar has a pair of speaking engagements lined up for Friday.

Premier David Eby is also on tap to hold his keynote address tomorrow (Friday) at 12:30 pm.

The two-day conference will wrap mid to late afternoon.

An incident involving a moose in College Heights claimed the life of a dog and resulted in non-life-threatening injuries to a man.

According to the BC Conservation Officer Service, it happened at about 7:45 pm last night (Tuesday) along Varsity trail.

The victim and his wife were walking their two dogs when they saw a moose nearby.

The dogs began barking, with the moose charging at them a short time later.

The man attempted to pick up his dog and was injured by the moose.

Conservation Officers say the deceased dog was a Chihuahua.

Officers are investigating and attended the area this morning (Wednesday).

Moose and other ungulates may perceive dogs as threats and can become aggressive towards people and pets.

“My first priority is to get to know all the members and hear from them on what they like to see.”

That’s from Chrisie Berry, the new Executive Director of Downtown PG who will begin her new role on Monday (April 7th).

Berry told MyPGNow.com that while strides have been made to clean up the social issues, more work needs to be done.

“We want to see the safety and cleanliness improve downtown. You mentioned nightlife and I certainly think there is an appetite for that for the ability to become a thing, it’s just sort of what processes need to happen to make that happen.”

“Everyone is pretty aware of what is going on downtown and the unhoused population that is down there – we know that is on the tip of everybody’s tongue. It’s not something that can be fixed overnight and I can’t wave a magic wand. In the last couple of years here, we have had some increased lighting downtown, which changed the atmosphere and a lot of those pieces improved that.”

“I know that there is a clean team to help clean up downtown and that they are doing a fantastic job. That is kind of what I see – once I get in there and get my hands on things, and see where we are at and what kind of progress has been made, we will make the changes as necessary.”

Berry replaces Colleen Van Mook who is retiring from the role in May after a nine-year run.

Prior to her role at Downtown PG, Berry spent the last seven years at the PG Airport Authority.

BC Hydro has reached another key milestone on the Site C project as the dam’s fourth generating unit has come online.

Two-thirds of the project’s generating capacity is now operational.

“Congratulations to all the workers at Site C for reaching this important milestone in construction,” said Minister of Energy and Climate Solutions Adrian Dix.

“Another generating unit in operation is another step forward as we work to build a secure supply of clean, affordable, reliable electricity to power British Columbia into the future.”

The first generating unit was brought online in October 2024, with the second following in December and the third in February.

According to BC Hydro, each unit is capable of producing more than 180 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 80,000 homes.

Work has also started on testing and commissioning the fifth unit. The project remains on track to have all six generating units operational by fall 2025.

The Prince George RCMP is on the lookout for 44-year-old Jeremy Leslie Hargreaves.

Police say he is wanted on three endorsed warrants for:

• Theft under $5,000
• Possession of stolen property over $5,000
• Fail to comply with probation order
• Dangerous operation of a motor vehicle
• Theft of motor vehicle

He is described as:

• Caucasian male
• 5′ 10″ or 178 cm
• 240 lb or 109 kg
• Brown hair
• Blue eyes

Police say Hargreaves is considered dangerous and should not be approached.

Anyone with information on Hargreaves or his whereabouts is asked to contact the Prince George RCMP.

Theatre NorthWest’s next season will look a little different.

The theatre announced today (Wednesday) they will be moving from four productions to three for the next season.

“One of the things we know about our audiences, they are looking for larger shows with larger casts,” said Artistic Producer Marnie Hamagami.

“It will be unsurprising to any of our audiences to find out that larger shows with larger casts cost more money. They cost more money both in terms of royalties and in terms of actor and artist wages.”

The decision to reduce the number of shows also comes as a response to the current economic climate.

“Many of the larger cast shows that we have done in the recent past and are looking to do in the future come out of the United States, which means that we’re also paying royalties in American dollars,” Hamagami added.

“Of course the exchange rate isn’t in a great place right now, so these are all impacts that we have to consider when looking at the global organization.”

While the theatre said ticket sales have steadily improved post-pandemic, the recovery process remains ongoing.

Additionally, rising production costs and price increases across industries have also played a role in the shift.

Hamagami added an announcement for next season’s lineup will be announced soon.

It will be shorts weather in Prince George by the weekend with temperatures seven to eight degrees above normal.

That’s according to Environment Canada Meteorologist, Chris Doyle as Friday and Saturday’s daytime highs are projected to reach 13 and 14 degrees.

“The ridge is going to push inland over the next couple of days and sort of max out in intensity on Saturday and highs will reach the mid-teens for the Prince George-area. Compare that to seven or eight degrees for the normal high.”

“Don’t take it for granted as there is a pretty decent front coming in for Sunday so the clouds will increase with showers spreading into the area by Sunday night overnight into Monday and the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week will be unsettled and showery.”

April is expected to be warmer-than-average with higher amounts of precipitation, which may include thunderstorms.

Doyle stated the mix of conditions could lower the risk of early wildfires.

“Maybe that is going to be a countervailing effect, we will see how it unfolds. The higher temperatures are a problem but the higher amounts of precipitation can offset that to a certain extent so we are going to keep our fingers crossed.”

Doyle added it was a pretty normal March across the board with a mean temperature of -0.7 degrees, eight-tenths of a degree off the typical mark for the month.

The northern capital saw 31.3 millimetres of rain last month, pretty much on par with the seasonal norm of 29.2

The City of Prince George says the boardwalk updates at the Ferguson Lake Trail are complete.

The work done on the boardwalk included removing and replacing old support posts, improving the safety of the trail system.

Additionally, the access ramps to the boardwalk will be replaced in the coming weeks when snow and ice are gone. In the meantime, users can access the boardwalk with the existing ones.

The Ferguson Lake Nature Reserve is owned by the Nature Trust of BC and managed by the City of Prince George.

According to the City, the project is expected to be completed under the budget of $276,000.

$220,000 of that came from a Canada Community Building Fund grant of $220,000, and the rest will come from the City’s General Infrastructure Reinvestment Fund.

Cory Longley is giving federal politics another chance.

He is taking a second crack at the Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies riding in this month’s federal election.

Longley was selected as the NDP’s candidate.

The riding is currently held by Conservative Incumbent Bob Zimmer who is seeking his fifth stint in Ottawa.

Other candidates looking to unseat Zimmer are David Watson of the People’s Party of Canada and Mary Forbes of the Green Party.

The deadline for parties to nominate candidates or for Independent candidates to put their names forward is Monday (April 7th).

A minor fire at Tidewater Renewables has been extinguished.

According to the City of Prince George, 19 crew members responded just after 8am yesterday (Tuesday) – the fire was located in the main renewable diesel processing unit, at the refinery.

Two apparatus with six members remained on scene providing support after the blaze was put out just after 9:30.

The impacted area of the complex was isolated and stabilized. All personnel have been accounted for, and no injuries were reported.

Tidewater continues to investigate the blaze and is encouraged of the low damage levels from the incident.

Car owners across the province are being warned to limit the chances of auto theft through an initiative.

The Integrated Municipal Provincial Auto Crime Team (IMPACT) is partnering with the BC Government and ICBC for auto crime enforcement month, a campaign to get people to protect themselves and their vehicles from crimes.

Acting Inspector of IMPACT Eugene Lum said high-tech auto theft prevention will be emphasized this year to help reduce the number of stolen vehicles.

“As we continue to see criminals develop more and more sophisticated methods of committing auto crime, we want to arm the public with the tools they need to curtail it.”

This year’s theme is ‘RETHINK’ standing for:

R – Remove valuables

E – Eliminate opportunities for thieves

T – Track your car with GPS technology

H – Hide your key signal

I – Invest in anti-theft devices

N – Never idle unattended

K – Keep track of your keys

The goal of the theme is for vehicle owners to not get complacent and empower owners and drivers with knowledge to better protect themselves from auto crimes.

Auto theft had its lowest number of cases across the province last year, down nearly seven per cent since tracking started in 2015.

Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Gary Begg said it’s encouraging that auto theft rates continue to trend downwards.

“I want to thank the IMPACT team and ICBC for their ongoing efforts to raise awareness and promote strategies that help protect vehicle owners across British Columbia.

IMPACT encourages all vehicle owners to make sure vehicles are locked even after locking with a fob, install an after-market anti-theft device, hide an AirTag or GPS tracker in your vehicle, and keep your fob secured when you are at home.

– with files from My Cowichan Valley Now staff

A Canadian research team has developed a new way to quickly determine personalized treatments for young cancer patients.

The team, led by researchers from the University of British Columbia and BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute, focused on growing tumours in chicken eggs and analyzing their protein.

This the first research in Canada to combine these two techniques to identify and test a drug for a young patient’s tumour in time for their treatment.

The study by co-lead authors Dr. Georgina Barnabas, a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Philipp Lange’s lab, and Tariq Bhat, a PhD student in Dr. James Lim’s lab, focused on an unnamed patient diagnosed with a rare pediatric cancer that resisted conventional treatments.

They used a method that involves growing a small piece of the patient’s tumour using a chicken egg.

Having an identical tumour outside the patient allowed them to test for personalized drug responses in a matter of weeks.

Dr. James Lim said the technique speeds up the process of evaluating a treatment option in a way that wouldn’t be possible with traditional methods.

– with files from My Cowichan Valley Now staff

Westcoast Energy is about to begin construction on its Aspen Point Project located in the Peace Region.

It is an expansion of their natural gas pipeline. The $1.2 billion dollar project will help benefit communities and residents in the area.

The project will add 535 million cubic feet per day of natural gas transportation capacity to the Westcoast natural gas pipeline system.

This expansion is needed to meet the growing demand for natural gas, and LNG exports.

“At Enbridge, we believe in building strong communities by investing directly in the communities where we live and work. The contractors we hired are required to support this same commitment. This project will create jobs and business opportunities, and we’ve required our contractors to prioritize hiring and sourcing services from Indigenous groups and local communities.”

“The Aspen Point Program not only represents our ongoing commitment to meeting the energy needs of the region, but also our strengthened relationship with local communities and Indigenous groups. From the project’s inception, we have worked closely with them and we remain committed to continue to do so as we move into the construction phase and into operations,” said Dave Challoner, Enbridge Manager of Projects and Aspen Point Program Project Lead.

The project involves adding pipeline segments to increase natural gas capacity, installing new electric-powered compressor units at two existing stations and at a new location, as well as constructing powerlines and a switch station to supply electricity to the new units.

The Enbridge company estimates up to 475 workers will be working during peak construction months, between July 2025 and April 2026.

The Aspen Point Program is expected to contribute an estimated $505 million or 0.2% increase to B.C.’s overall GDP, during construction period.

“We are always looking at ways to make the industry more competitive.”

That’s from BC Council of Forest Industries President and CEO Kim Haakstad ahead of the two-day sector convention taking place at the PG Conference and Civic Centre Thursday and Friday.

Haakstad told Vista Radio finding a few more global trading partners will be one of the keys during the event, due to the current trade unrest between Canada and the United States.

“Today, 75% of our forestry supports go to the United States but the 25% that goes to other jurisdictions such as Asia-Pacific is higher than some of the other forestry jurisdictions in Canada.”

“We are a sector that is facing a lot of challenges right now – not just from the United States but also because we are just not harvesting enough trees to meet the wood demand in British Columbia right now. So, we focus on conversations on what we could here in British Columbia to make our sector more globally competitive.”

In addition, BC’s forest sector has experienced the sharpest Gross Domestic Product contraction when compared to most of its peer regions coming in at a rate of -3.6%.

That’s according to a report from the Council of Forest Industries regarding competitiveness and sustainability when compared to other regions such as North America, South America and Europe.

Haakstad noted the report also raised some additional concerns.

“It shows that we have had a decline in wood harvest and we have had some other challenging circumstances that means we are harvesting less wood. There is a lot of cost built into our system – we are always looking at ways to make the sector more competitive.”

BC’s harvests declined by 6.5% annually from 2013 to 2023, while most peer regions saw stable or growing levels.

Lastly, Haakstad acknowledges the north including Prince George has been among the hardest hit regions when compared to mill closures and curtailments.

“A lot of the challenges that have been faced by forestry by the companies in the Prince George-region and in Northern British Columbia really relate to our access to wood supply to keep those facilities running. And so, the government has committed to work with us on a target to get to 45-million cubic metres as a way to target harvest every year.”

Over 600 delegates are to be in attendance.

Among the program’s speakers will be:

• Honourable David Eby, Premier of BC (invited)
• Honourable Ravi Parmar, BC Minister of Forests
• Regional Chief Terry Teegee, British Columbia Assembly of First Nations
• John Rustad, Leader of the Official Opposition, MLA for Nechako Lakes
• Chief Councillor John Jack, Huu-ay-aht First Nations
• Glen Clark, Chair, BC Hydro and Former Premier of BC
• James Moore, Senior Advisor Edelman, former Federal Minister of Industry
• Kate Lindsay, Senior Vice President & Chief Sustainability Office, Forest Products Association of Canada
• Lennard Joe, CEO, BC First Nations Forestry Council
• Kathy Aubsow, President and CEO, Sustainable Forestry Initiative
• John Kitzhaber, Former Governor of the State of Oregon
• Lisa Dominato, Councillor, City of Vancouver
• George Abbott, BC Treaty Commissioner and Former BC Cabinet Minister
• Jennifer Gunter, Executive Director, BC Community Forest Association
• Kim Haakstad, President & CEO, COFI

A link to the full agenda can be found here.

Prince George residents are feeling a little less pain at the pumps today. (Tuesday)

The BC Government introduced legislation yesterday (Monday) to drop the Carbon Tax rate to zero dollars, which took effect today.

As a result, gas prices dropped roughly 17 cents in Prince George, as expected.

On Monday, gas prices at Costco, usually the cheapest place to fill up in Prince George, was at 152.9 cents per litre for regular gasoline.

This morning, prices at Costco dropped 17 cents on the dot to 135.9 per litre for regular.

Yesterday, it was 157.9 cents per litre at the Mobil station in the Superstore parking lot.

Today, those prices dropped 17.6 cents to 140.3 cents per litre.

According to GasBuddy.com, prices updated in the last two hours (as of 2:26 pm) in Prince George are between 137.9 cents per litre and 140.9 cents per litre. (Not including Costco, which is members only)

The countdown is on.

Special Olympics athletes and volunteers gathered in the Kin Centre Atrium in Prince George this morning (Tuesday), marking 100 days to the start of the Special Olympics BC Games.

“The excitement is unbelievable, we’ve got lots of folks that are helping out as volunteers,” said Co-Chair of the Planning Committee Lyn Hall.

“The support is unbelievable, just unbelievable.”

Hall said now it’s time to glue everything together.

“We’ve got our venues, we’re working on transportation within the games venues, we’re working on food, provisions we’re going to provide to our athletes,” he said.

“This is where we’re really in the crunch time, and the planning is done, but now we’re fine tuning it and making sure that we’re ready to go.”

Director of Volunteers Donna Flood said a thousand volunteers are needed for what they want to do.

“We’ve got working in food services, we’ve got over a thousand athletes we have to feed breakfast, lunch and dinner to, so all hands on deck there,” she said.

“We have all our venues where we’re looking for volunteers to support accommodation, but also the different venues for the sport, so if you want to see the basketball, you want to see the lawn bowling, sign up for any of those to help out. Transportation, logistics, even just administrative services, helping us do some data entry, and then even before the games, we’re looking at setting up at the different markets, going to different service groups and just getting out there and soliciting volunteers, so we have a job literally for everybody.”

People can sign up to be volunteers on the Special Olympics BC Website here.

The Special Olympics will kick off with the annual Torch Run on July 9th, put on by the RCMP.

“We will be posting the route later on, but it’s basically going to go from our RCMP detachment on Fourth and Victoria, all the way to CN Centre,” said Cpl. Jennifer Cooper of the Prince George RCMP.

“What we’re hoping to do is have lots of people come out, line the route, cheer on our athletes. It’s a different style of run than we normally have, so what we’re going be seeing is law enforcement officers partnered with Special Olympics athletes, holding the torch as we run along the route together.”

Cooper noted they’ll need volunteers for that event as well.

The Special Olympics BC Games will take place July 10th to 12th in Prince George.

While it’s still nearly two months away, registration is now open for the Canada North Resources Expo.

The event makes its biennial return to Prince George this Spring.

The Expo, which rounds together Northern Canada’s most valuable natural resource sectors, will take over the CN Centre May 23-24.

“New this year we’ll be displaying heavy machinery across the show floor” said National Show Manager, Mark Cusack.

“Exhibitors are truly stepping up their game for the 6th edition of this trusted event.”

The expo provides opportunities for visitors and exhibitors to connect over the newest innovations and trends within the forestry, construction, or infrastructure sectors.

Tons of big iron will cover four acres of indoor and outdoor space.

The show will also be hosting a “Future of the Industry” day on the second day of the event.

Show Hours:

Friday, May 23 from 9:00am – 5:00pm

Saturday, May 24 from 9:00am – 4:00pm

The Prince George RCMP recovered several pieces of stolen property while conducting an unrelated investigation in the area.

On March 12th, officers were at a residence on the 100-block of Thacker Crescent looking to speak with a person associated to that address when they discovered several generators that matched the description of items recently reported as stolen. A search warrant was obtained for the property multiple items were recovered.

“The total value of the recovered pieces, which included two Honda generators, several power tools and a crane pulley hoist, was approximately $12,000. The items have since been returned to their rightful owner, stated Corporal Jennifer Cooper, Media Relations Officer for the Prince George RCMP.

Police are reminding the public to ensure any items in your home that are of value are documented thoroughly, either by writing down the serial number or by filing detailed pictures of the items in your home or office.

Local Mounties remind you to visit our Safety Tips page on Theft and Vandalism for more information on how to keep your home and business secure.

This investigation has since been concluded.

A Fort St. John company is one of seven to be recognized with a BC Construction Association Builders Code Champion Award. 

Northern Legendary Construction Ltd picked up the Initiate of the Year honour. 

April is Construction & Skilled Trades Month in BC.  

It’s an opportunity to celebrate the hard work and commitment of the 28,000+ businesses and 250,000+ people who work tirelessly in every community. 

“We want to extend a special thank you to all the hard-working individuals who make BC’s construction industry the powerhouse it is,” said Chris Atchison, President of the British Columbia Construction Association (BCCA).  

“This month, and every month, we celebrate the incredible efforts of the businesses and builders who make the development and growth of our province possible.” 

BCCA Builders Code Champion Award Winners: 

• ETRO Construction Ltd. — Workplace Culture Champion (Large company) — Burnaby 

• Green Island Builders — Workplace Culture Champion (Small-medium size company — Victoria 

• Emil Anderson Group — Recruitment, Hiring, Retention Champion (Large company) — Kelowna 

• 4C Services Inc. — Recruitment, Hiring, Retention Champion (Small-medium size company) — Vancouver 

• Axiom Builders — Community Champion (Large company) — Vancouver 

• KJ Controls Ltd. — Community Champion (Small-medium size company) — Nanaimo 

• Northern Legendary Construction Ltd. — Initiate of the Year — Fort St. John 

BCCA Builders Code Champion Award – Honourable Mentions: 

• EllisDon Corporation — Vancouver 

• CGI Constructors —  Victoria 

As the weather continues to warm up, the City of Prince George is monitoring closed parks, washrooms, and outhouses for their anticipated opening dates.

The following parks, gates, public washrooms, and outhouses are listed with their expected opening schedule:

Park Openings:

• Jumpstart Multisport Courts – April 1, 2025
• Masich Place Stadium – April 1, 2025. Open for public walking, bookings, and user groups.
• Beach Volleyball Facility – April 1, 2025. Washroom availability expected by mid-April (weather dependent, dependent on frost levels).
• Nechako Riverside Park – April 1, 2025. Gates and outhouse opening.
• Rainbow Park Outhouses – April 1, 2025
• Carrie Jane Gray Park – Gate to be open April 1, 2025
• Connaught Hill Park – Mid-April 22, 2025 (weather dependent)

Washroom & Spray Park Openings:

• Lheidli T’enneh Memorial Park (LTMP) Public Washrooms – Mid-April (weather dependent, dependent on frost levels).
• Lheidli T’enneh Memorial Park Spray Park – May 16, 2025 (weather dependent).
• Duchess Park Washroom – Mid-April (weather dependent, dependent on frost levels).

Sports Fields: Sports fields will remain closed until early May, dependent on weather and field conditions.

Drinking Fountains: The following drinking fountains will be opened mid-April (weather dependent):

• Masich Place Stadium
• Jumpstart/Rotary Skate Park
• Duchess Park Playground
• Duchess Park Dog Park
• Ingledew Dog Park