The Lower Sahali Bulletin

News, information and conversation about our neighbourhood

Issue 2, Early August 2009

Wildfire / Fire Safety for Lower Sahali

N
o one wants to see a repeat of the disastrous BC 2003 forest fire season. Kamloops has also instituted a ban on outdoor burning of any type.
I know many people in the neighbourhood are doing their part to be I called the helpful Sheldon Guertin with Kamloops Fire Rescue, he was
“firesmart” in your lives. 
 kind of enough to also share the following information. There has been
As I write this, the fires that lit up so rapidly in West Kelowna are still an unfortunate string of suspicious fires in Kamloops, so please report any
burning and very much on my mind. In Lower Sahali, City Hall has rated us suspicious activities to the RCMP. Try to record as much information as you
a low to medium wildfire risk area, but it is still important to be vigilant. An can. Describing the situation and the people involved as this helps the RCMP
overall wildfire risk of extreme is expected to be with us most of the summer. do their job better.
If you are traveling and/or spending time in nature this summer, there are When traveling, please report people throwing cigarette butts out car
also things you should know. windows, and make double sure that any and all campfires or cigarette butts
Basically, any street in the neighbourhood that borders a natural area are fully extinguished.
(such as Peterson Creek park) is considered a medium wildfire risk
area. Other streets are classified low risk areas. I’ll post a colour map
of the different risk areas at sahalionline.ca.
If you are looking to get tips on “firesmarting” your home, you
can obtain the FireSmart Manual from the Kamloops Fire Rescue
web site (http://bit.ly/MugiK) or by calling Kamloops Fire
Rescue at 250 372 5131. Here’s a useful excerpt from page 4:
ff Do you have a cleared zone around your house and
buildings?
ff The first 10 metres of space around your home is your
“First Priority”. It’s the most critical area to consider for fire
protection. A good fuel free space gives firefighters a chance
to save your home from an advancing fire. A home without a
good fuel free space around it can make firefighting difficult, if
not impossible.

What to do?
ff Remove any shrubs, trees, deadfall or woodpiles from this
Fire Earlier this Year in Uplands Area of Barnhartvale
area and keep your grass mowed and watered.

Visit us online at www.sahalionline.ca

 Sahali Sales & Specials
ff Do you enjoy crafting, stamping, and
decorating? Please call Laural-Lee,
your neighbourhood Stampin Up! ®
Demonstrator @ 250-314-6747 for an
opportunity to learn new techniques and
earn FREE product.
ff Social Dance classes start in September!
Great packages for beginners, including
the first two hours of instruction FREE !
Obtain lesson schedules, fee information
and lesson details by contacting
Maureen at (250) 374-7898 or email
mmacleoddance@shaw.ca.
ff Ramada Inn Rooftop lounge - join us on
the patio for a barbecue. Every Friday
12 – 4 loaded smokies and a beer or
cooler $6.25. 555 Columbia St W. 250
374-0358
Neighbour to Neighbour Notices
ffAntique wooden door, painted, with window.
Glass doorknob & original hardware. Complete
with frame. Fits 34” x 82” opening. $200 OBO
Phone (250) 374-1472
ffWall-mounted exterior light fixtures. Two white,
two brass. FREE! Call (250) 374-1472
ffFelicia reminds people to be careful with their cats
outside. She has been informed of coyotes in the
area. Brenda adds that she has seen red foxes as
well.
ffCouch, Yard Tools, Exercise Bike - various prices /
obo: (250) 434-6596
ffAnn points to the Mr Rogers Theme song, a
wonderful ditty on the beauty of neighbours -
www.sahalionline.ca/mrrogers
I’d like to thank our second issue
sponsors. All of these businesses are
longstanding neighbourhood businesses
with very good reputations. Please see
their ads and, if you have the opportunity,
consider thanking them for their support
of our neighbourhood:
ff 3B Best Beauty Buys has a wonderful
selection of a unique fashion jewelery -
20% to 50% off. See Beverlee’s special
anniversary sale - (250) 372-3339. In Sahali
Centre Mall.
ff Beachin Clothing and Gifts is the store
where the sun shines everyday. Owner
Barb is one of the friendliest people I
have ever met and she has a great eye for
fashion and design. In Sahali Mall, (250)
374-3666
ffHP Laserjet Printer Model 1020 b&W - $25. Call
Arjun, (250) 377-1797
ffEpson CX4550 Colour Print / Copy / Scan - FREE!
Call Arjun, (250) 377-1797
ffStork Craft Liberty toddler bed for sale $50, and a
Stork Craft Starlite crib that converts to toddler bed
for $80. Phone (250) 314-6747
ff2004 Honda Civic SI, automatic, remote control,
power windows, cd player, a/c, sun roof, blue in
colour, only 85 000 km, includes 2 year old winter
and all season tires, $15 000 - phone Marg at (250)
851-9296, (250) 574-9296
ffHP PCS 1610 printer broken, something seems
wrong with printer carriage. If you think you might
ff Glover’s Pharmacy of choice for many
in Kamloops, including myself. Aaron
Glover and his staff are knowledgeable
and helpful. 10-1380 Summit Drive, (250)
851-3131
ff Sahali Centre Mall, http://www.sahalimall.
ca: Our neighbourhood mall with a diverse
selection of shopping opportunities! Also
offering free display space for non profit
groups!
ff The UPS Store, 230-1210 summit Drive,
(250) 372-5665: New owner Clint
welcomes all inquiries about shipping,
printing, copying. Contact him for info on
their many services! The UPS Store is the
official printer and distribution provider for
the Lower Sahali Bulletin!
be able to fix and use, take it
away for FREE - call Stephen at
(250) 372-0800
Guidelines for Notices
ffAny resident of Lower Sahali can submit a free
notice. Email to arjun@fullworld.com or call 250
377 1797.
ffI reserve the right to refuse any notice, but don’t
see this happening often at all.
ffI trust neighbours will treat each other honestly, but
my high priced legal advisors would like me to let
you know I can’t guarantee any of the notices.
ffThanks for reading this!
A Personal Invitation to Join
the Lower Sahali Network
I
’d like to extend a
personal invitation to
all neighbourhood
residents to join the Lower
Sahali Online Network.
I’m hoping this will be a
useful way for many people to share useful
information, promote events like garage sales,
talk about common interests like gardening
and computing and much more. I will also put
on the network all the content from issues of
the Lower Sahali Bulletin. It’s an experimental
project that I hope will grow legs.
I’ve set up the online network on a very
popular site called Ning.com. Ning hosts over 1.2
million different and diverse networks.
The Sahali Online Network is at http://
sahali.ning.com. We’ve got an online forum, a
gardeners’ group, and the ability for members to
post events. Members can also set up their own
groups and invite neighbours to join the network.
The online network is currently only for
residents in Lower Sahali. Depending on how
things go, the opportunity to join the network
might be extended to the folks in Upper Sahali.
There is a small and easy (I hope) sign up
process to get on the network. I’ll walk you
through it.
First, when you visit http://sahali.ning.com,
you will see a sign up screen. If you are already
a Ning member, enter your user name and
password. If not, click where it says “click here to
sign up”. All the sign up process requires is your
email, desired password, and birthday - all of
1. 2.
which are securely kept and not shared without
your consent.
Second, once you have signed in or signed
up, you will see a screen that allows you to
create a network profile. All this requires is your
full name and street name (not your address, just
the name of your street). You can also choose
3.
to upload a photo of yourself, if you would like.
Click the JOIN button to finish the process.
Third, you will see a screen that says “Your
membership to the Sahali Neighbourhood
Network” is pending approval”. Don’t worry, an
email has just been sent to me so I can approve
your membership. I might need to send you a
quick email to verify your lower Sahali residency,
but the approval process should typically take
less than a day.
Fourth, you will get an email appproving
your membership. Clicking on the link in the
email will take you to the online network page. 4.
I have also posted a short video going
through the process. The video also provides a
quick tour of the online network. The video is at
______________.
 Cou n c i l + S c h o o l B o a r d
Update on City Recycling Program
City Hall environmental services supervisor
Glen Farrow recently updated City Council
on the curbside recycling program. A couple
of reminders from Glen that plastic bags and
styrofoam are not currently accepted under
curbside recycling. Many grocery stores will
recycle plastic shopping bags. Glen also asks that
residents consider breaking down cardboard
into pieces no larger than a standard magazine
cover. Since the beginning of curbside recycling
in Kamloops, recycled materials have increased
225% and there has been a 16% decrease in the
annual amount of materials going to the dump.
Way to go Kamloops!
City Council Pass Pesticide Use Restriction
- to Start in 2010....
Council has approved restrictions on cosmetic,
non-health related use of pesticides on residential
properties. As of March 15th 2010, only certified
Visit us online at www.sahalionline.ca
Please Recycle
applicators will be apply to pesticides within city
limits. Notices will need to be posted 24 hours
before using pesticides and have to remain for 48
hours after use. There is an exception for edibles
- fruit trees, vegetable gardens and the like. For
more information, call Karla Hoffman with City
Parks and Rec at (250) 828 3888.
City Approves Selective Covert Video
Surveillance in Public Facilities
Councillors Denis Walsh and John O’Fee
represented two different views on the covert
video surveillance. Councillor O’Fee said that
he felt that it would be a very rare case to film
people secretly and this would need to go through
a stringent approval process. Councillor Walsh
felt that there was no need, and covert video
surveillance could get the city sued. Council
approved the policy . For more information,
contact Cindy Kennedy at (250) 828-3485.
N e i g h b o u r h o od Notes
Did you know?
Tips from Ann on Bestwick on Holding a
Neighbourhood Potluck.
O
ur neighbourhood potlucks began five
years ago when we first moved into
Lower Sahali. Our house had a large
living room and we made lots of kitchen
counter space and room for flow-through.
We hosted a housewarming, inviting all the
people that had helped us move and our
new neighbours from about five houses
in each of three directions. (We live on a
corner.) To invite the neighbours we went
door-to-door, introduced ourselves, invited
them to a potluck and left a written invitation
as a memory refresher. At several houses
we were spontaneously offered a cup of
tea, which began the getting-to-know-you
process. Everyone was really happy to meet
their neighbours, so much so that, a year
later, we repeated the same process and have
continued to do so annually. If there’s a new
family in the area we try to pick a time that suits
them.
In addition to the joy of meeting the
wonderful people that live right next to you,
it gives a feeling of security to know the
names and phone numbers of your immediate
neighbours in case of emergency. Also,
we’ve been pleased to see that some bonds
of friendship have blossomed from meeting at
the potlucks, particularly between parents of
young children.
The potlucks are truly potluck, with no
planning and I’m always impressed by the
generous quantity and delicious quality of the
dishes that are brought.
I’m sure there are many possible variations
on the theme. Perhaps others could share their
experiences.
The Lower Sahali Bulletin
Editor and Publisher: Arjun Singh
Published every two weeks.
Send story ideas and comments to: arjun@fullworld.com
Phone: 250 377 1797
I’d like to thank all the people who helped make this issue
possible!
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