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Bumps in the road

In-SHUCK-ch Forest Service Road has only continued to deteriorate, residents say

The state of the As traffic on the In-SHUCK-ch Forest Service Road continued to increase before COVID-19, some residents once again spoke out about its condition.…

COVID-19 relief funds targeted by cybercrooks

High-tech thieves spoofed CERB, Canada Revenue COVID-19 assistance sites: report

Cybercriminals have been mimicking Canadian and other governments’ COVID-19 financial relief web sites to steal credentials and siphon off taxpayer money, a report released May 15 says. “Over the last two months we observed a surge in the creation of COVID-19-themed credential phishing website templates that mimic the brands of numerous governments and trusted non-governmental organizations including the World Health Organization, Internal Revenue Service, Centers for Disease Control, the United Kingdom government, the government of Canada and the government of France,” the report from California-based global online security firm Proofpoint said.…

B.C. schools to re-open part-time June 1; participation optional

Reopened schools will look different from before COVID-19, officials say

B.C. students and schoolchildren will have the option to return to the classroom part-time starting June 1, premier John Horgan said Friday. Horgan said the program will be completely voluntary, and the choice to participate will be completely in the hands of individual parents.…

Canada extends wage subsidy to end of August; reconsidering 30%-loss threshold

Ottawa will officially extend the wage subsidy program by three months to the end of August, Prime minister Justin Trudeau said this morning. Trudeau said the federal government decided on the move because of the coming reopening of the Canadian economy, which may require some companies to start rehiring employees in ernest.…

B.C. Supreme Court to resume partial operations in June

Criminal, civil, family law, extradition cases set for after June 8 going ahead

B.C.’s top courts will resume partial operations with work phased in over the next few weeks for some trials set to take place in June, notices issued May 14 say. “The province is still impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and efforts taken to contain it,” a notice from B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson said.…

Happiest in the mountains: Stefan Ples

Well before people started to pay for lift access and a day’s skiing, skiers were climbing Whistler and the surrounding mountains, either in search of skiable terrain—such as the George Bury expedition in 1939—or simply to spend time outdoors exploring, such as Pip Brock in the early 1930s. One person who spent countless hours ski touring on Whistler Mountain was Stefan Ples.…

How much can we ask of others?

Over the past few weeks, there have been enough lines drawn in the sand to make beach volleyball courts on every waterfront the world over. As governments have scrambled to handle not only the medical realities but also the financial and social fallouts of the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s been a constant din of folks digging in deeply on one side or the other of each targeted response.…

Home sales down, but prices remain steady

Local realtors don’t expect to see property prices waver as pandemic continues

The COVID-19 pandemic might have impacted the number of home sales in Whistler and Pemberton this spring, but local realtors don’t expect prices will take a dip. “January and February were very strong,” said Pat Kelly, president of Whistler Real Estate Co. “There was lots of interest and actually an improvement over 2019.…

Superior Poultry outbreak declared over, plant reopens

The Coquitlam poultry-processing plant stil has 61 positive cases of COVID-19 but has met guidelines for reopening

The largest COVID-19 outbreak at a B.C. food-processing facility, Coquitlam’s Superior Poultry Processing Ltd., has been declared over and the plant has been given the go-ahead to open, given that it has passed a two-week incubation period. There remain 61 active cases related to the facility.…

Stawamus Chief, Murrin Park and Brandywine Falls are opening today

The two Squamish parks will open for first time since COVID-19 closures

Just in time for the long weekend, three popular parks in the Sea to Sky are opening up. In Squamish, the Stawamus Chief and Murrin Park will be taking visitors today for the first time since COVID-19 pandemic closures were announced at the end of March.…

Feds pledge nearly $470m to fish harvesters

PM also announces new support for Indigenous communities and the loosening of restrictions at some federal parks

Canada’s fish and seafood sector is getting a boost from Ottawa to the tune of $470 million. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday (May 14) the launch of the Fish Harvesters Benefit.…

Young Whistler riders coping with COVID-19 world

Astle, Cruz adapting as 2020 seasons delayed

Downhillers Georgia Astle and Lucas Cruz were both looking for big things in their respective 2020 seasons. For Whistler’s Astle, she was committing to chasing the Queen of Crankworx crown in a big way while Pemberton’s Cruz was set to make his UCI World Cup elite men’s debut this year.…

Missing live music? Enter Quaranstream

New Whistler website offers a hub of livestream concerts and archived shows

Shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March, Shane Martz was hunkered down in his Whistler home and decided to tune into a livestream festival hosted by Beatport. “I watched it with a few of my friends [remotely],” he says.…

Teamwork only way to keep Whistler operating

“Come fly with me, we’ll fly, we’ll fly away” Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn…

Whistler stakeholders weigh in on B.C.’s reopening plan

Cautious and careful the name of the game as Whistler prepares for a new normal

With the provincial government’s announcement on May 6 that COVID-19 restrictions will be eased in four phases—beginning in mid-May with elective surgeries, personal care services, provincial parks and more—local stakeholders are trying to picture what Whistler’s “new normal” might look like in the coming weeks and months. “It seems to me like a careful, patient and deliberate plan.…