KAMLOOPS – This Saturday, Aug. 16 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m McDonald Park will play host to a celebration honoring everything that makes the North Shore special, from the people and parks to the businesses and services.

Business improvement association executive director Steven Puhallo says this year Overlander Days will once again feature the Tastes of the North Shore but will include several new additions with proceeds from food sales going towards the Meals On Wheels program.

Several new attractions will also be set up for kids, including a dunk tank — proceeds to People in Motion, henna art and local firefighters with a firetruck. There’ll also be face painting, free access to the pool and splash pad, games, inflatable bouncers, princesses and super heroes.

A special seniors area will once again be set up. Live entertainment featuring local performers and demonstrations — including martial arts, yoga and fitness — is scheduled with Paisley Groove headlining in the afternoon. Information booths and businesses will also be on hand and for those cycling to the park, a bicycle valet will be available.

The event takes place Saturday, Aug. 16 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at McDonald Park.

Currently Environment Canada is calling for cloudy with a chance of rain and a high of 25 Celsius on Saturday.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Jennifer Stahn at jstahn@infonews.ca or call 250-819-3723.

After a lacklustre start to the year, Kamloops Real Estate sales are on the upswing. Find out which area is the most popular here: http://cfjctv.com/story.php?id=20814

Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary remain the wealthiest cities in the country but the gap between them in average household net worth is narrowing, according to data released Monday by Environics Analytics, a marketing services and data analytics company.

WealthScapes 2014, a database on the assets, liabilities and wealth of Canadians to December 2013, found that the average household net worth in Vancouver was $710,095 followed by Toronto at $693,652 and Calgary at $680,377.

“But the difference in affluence is getting smaller as the net worth in Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary grew by 6.5 per cent, 8.8 per cent, and 10.8 per cent, respectively, compared to 2012,” it said. “While increases in liquid asset and debt were similar among the three cities, the key differentiator was real estate values — up a modest 2.8 per cent in Vancouver, a strong 6.6 per cent in Toronto and roaring 9.1 per cent in Calgary.

“Vancouver continues to reign as Canada’s wealthiest city because of its pricey real estate — averaging $579,250 per household compared to $535,002 in Toronto and $485,364 in Calgary. Canada’s most populous city, Toronto, benefitted from a 6.1 per cent rise in savings — nearly triple the national average — and a 3.7 percent decline in consumer debt — which is a significant drop given that nationwide consumer debt remained essentially unchanged. And in addition to its healthy real estate performance, Calgary benefitted from a 2.9 per cent decline in consumer debt; those two indicators ranked among the best for large cities.”

Music in the Park: Riverside Park – August Schedule

Fewer Canadians are paying down their mortgages

Pay down my mortgage, I’d rather take a vacation

A new CIBC poll finds there has been a significant decrease in the number of Canadians using the low interest rates to pay down their mortgages faster.  While over half of Canadians with mortgages (55 per cent) are taking one or more actions to pay their mortgages down sooner, a similar poll last year had the figure at 68 per cent. However, while the numbers increasing payment value or frequency has dropped, there is an increase in the numbers making a lump-sum repayment. The new report also says that Canadians are expecting to 58 years old before they are mortgage-free.  So, if we’re not paying down out home loans, where is any spare money going? The report has shown a large increase in spending on home renovations (up 30 per cent) and vacations (up 20 per cent). “A mortgage is the largest debt most Canadians will take on in their lifetime, and being mortgage-free is an important goal for many,” says Barry Gollom, Vice President, Secured Lending and Product Policy, CIBC.  “With current low interest rates, this may be an opportune time to make progress against your mortgage – even a few small changes can make a big difference in the length of time it takes to pay off your mortgage and the amount you pay in interest charges.”