A new report said governments need to double the current pace of home construction across the country if they want to get to 2019 housing affordability levels.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation says new estimates show that requires up to 480-thousand new homes being built every year for the next decade.

“Doubling the pace of housing construction in Canada is achievable, but not without a significantly larger and modernized workforce, more private investment, less regulation, fewer delays, and lower development costs. It will also require significant innovation in construction technology and growth in labour productivity,” said Aled ab Iorwerth, Deputy Chief Economist for CMHC.

“By estimating housing supply gaps across Canada, our goal is to ensure policymakers from all orders of government, as well as the private sector, understand the scale of the challenge. Systemic changes are essential if we are to double the pace of homebuilding in Canada.”

By province, the most significant housing supply gaps are in Ontario and Nova Scotia, which saw some of the fastest rising housing costs due to the pandemic.
Another is British Columbia.

As for the large cities, CHMC stated Montreal has the largest housing supply gap followed by Ottawa-Gatineau.

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A private, fixed-wing, civilian aircraft violated the air restrictions centered above the G7 Summit in Kananaskis air space on Sunday just after 11am.

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The world will be watching and listening when a global conversation regarding food security and the future of farming takes place this month in the Town of Olds. 

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Two huge fans of the Edmonton Oilers received the surprise of a lifetime last Friday (June 7th).

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A Lethbridge man has made friends with Lady Luck for the second time in a year.

James Hill recently won $100,000 on POKER LOTTO, not long after winning $200,000 on a scratch-and-win ticket in February.

Hill says it took him a minute to believe what he saw on the store’s self-scanner screen.

“I couldn’t read the screen at first,” he says. “I had to scan it three times and then have the
cashier scan it for me again.”

When he won the $200,000 he planned to buy a new vehicle and put the rest into savings. This time however he says the plan is to put the money in the bank and relax.

The winning ticket was purchased from the Circle K located at 2515 Highlands Road W in
Lethbridge. He won his second major prize of the year by matching all five cards drawn on the May 14 nightly draw.

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Forests Minister Ravi Parmar says British Columbia is hoping for the best this wildfire season but is preparing for the worst.

“My message to all British Columbians is that … we’re ready,” Parmar said Monday during an emergency preparedness briefing. “We’ve got 1,300 wildland firefighters ready to go to be able to support and protect communities.”

Parmar urged B.C. residents to stay informed and prepared, particularly with forecasts calling for warm and dry conditions across much of the province.

He said more than 100 B.C. firefighters are currently assisting with wildfires in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, but most will return as the province’s wildfire season intensifies.

Neil McGoughlin with the BC Wildfire Service said forecasters expect warmer-than-normal temperatures this summer, highlighting several “areas of concern” due to ongoing drought, low snowpack, and limited spring precipitation. Those regions include the southwest Interior, the Chilcotin, and the far northwest.

However, McGoughlin said the primary area of concern this season is the northeast’s Prince George Fire Centre region. The region already has three wildfires of note, including the out-of-control Kiskatinaw River wildfire, which has prompted evacuation orders over a large area near the Alberta border.

The BC Wildfire Service said Monday the Kiskatinaw River wildfire has grown to more than 216 square kilometres and continued spreading eastward over the weekend. Crews remain in the evacuated community of Kelly Lake to defend homes and critical infrastructure.

Keven Dunbar, executive director of provincial and regional operations with the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness, said as many as seven structures have burned in Kelly Lake, but a complete assessment has not yet been done due to ongoing wildfire risks.

Evacuations have also been ordered due to the Summit Lake wildfire, covering approximately 190 square kilometres, and the Pocket Knife Creek wildfire, which is about 610 square kilometres.

Rob Schweitzer, assistant deputy minister with the Ministry of Forests, said the province is actively preparing for increased wildfire activity in the northeast. He said most wildfire personnel in B.C. are now in the region, setting up sprinkler systems and assessing homes to improve protection efforts.

B.C. had its most devastating wildfire season on record in 2023, with more than 2.8 million hectares burned. Last year’s season was less severe but still above average, burning more than one million hectares.

Emergency Management Minister Kelly Greene emphasized preparedness, urging residents to have emergency plans ready.

“Preparedness is very much a team effort,” said Greene. “That means getting your grab-and-go bag ready, making sure your insurance is in order, that you have the things that you need as a household to respond as necessary.”

Greene recommended registering in advance for the BC Services Card app to expedite receiving emergency support if evacuations are necessary.

The province also announced Monday it is expanding a camera network to improve wildfire detection and monitoring. In a press release, the government said it is investing $200,000 to expand cameras that “detect smoke from wildfires and provide real-time data to support evacuation planning, resource deployment and wildfire behaviour predictions.”

The technology was successfully tested in five locations last year in partnership with the University of British Columbia’s Okanagan campus.

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A tight timeline from just after two o’clock in the afternoon until the start of Game 1 about four hours later offered eager hockey fans many opportunities to express their excitement for the 2025 Stanley Cup Final

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Alberta’s push for a pipeline through northern B.C. is threatening to cause friction, even as leaders presented a united front after the First Ministers’ meeting.

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The Edmonton Oilers will have a chance to avenge their defeat to the Florida Panthers in last year’s Stanley Cup Final.

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Canada Post is rejecting a proposal from the Canadian Union of Postal Workers to hold off their strike action for two weeks.

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On the economic front, a new poll shows most Canadians are in favor of retaliating against U.S. tariffs—despite growing fears of a recession.

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Canada could be hit by its second postal strike in six months.  

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Loblaw is warning of a spike in grocery store prices, as the company runs out of its pre-tariff stocks. 

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There’s a bit of a mixed message coming out of Ottawa when it comes to pipelines.

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First Nations leaders across Canada are speaking out strongly against Premier Danielle Smith’s talk of an Alberta separation referendum.

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The Public Health Agency of Canada says our country could soon lose its status as a country where measles has been eliminated….a status it’s had for almost 30 years. 

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You’ll be getting a notification on your phone today (WED).

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Canada could be hit by another strike by postal workers later this month.

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Across Canada, voter turnout hit its highest level in decades. 

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With the federal election in the books, Stratford Mayor Martin Ritsma is heading south to talk about perhaps the biggest topic of the recent campaign. […]

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Conservative John Nater has secured his seat in the Perth-Wellington riding following the 2025 federal election. Nater was elected as the Member of Parliament for […]

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It’s Federal Election Day, so be sure to join us here at the Ranch 106.5 tonight after the polls close for live election coverage and updates throughout the evening.

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There’s good news if you filed your taxes early—the final round of Canada’s carbon tax rebates for 2024 is now being sent out.

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Measles cases in Canada have now surpassed the previous high set in 2011.

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Tax time confusion has a lot of Canadians hitting pause.

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Vinyl is being celebrated whole-heartedly Apr. 12, as Record Store Day Canada gears up for another year of highly-anticipated launches of special releases, re-releases and rarities at independent record stores coast-to-coast.

Big Wreck is this year’s Canadian ambassadors, releasing an exclusive deluxe edition of Albatross on vinyl for the first time.

Led by Toronto singer, songwriter and guitarist Ian Thornley, Big Wreck exploded onto the music scene in 1997. The band’s hits include That Song, Blown Wide Open, The Oaf and Albatross.

“Looking at the other people they’ve had do that in the past, the other Canadian artists, it’s nice to keep good company,” says Thornley, about Big Wreck being named RSD ambassadors. Last year, The Tragically Hip had the honour.

Thornley adds he’s old enough to remember music before the rise of CDs and digital platforms.

“There was something almost ceremonial about taking the disc out of the packaging. You’d look at the artwork and read all these names on the record. It just required a little more of the listener.”

Nowadays, you can just tell your phone to play something, he jokes.

Back then, Thornley adds, the activity itself was listening to music. “You’d take the record out, there was a smell and the visual component to it. You’d either sit in front of the speakers or put headphones on and get lost in the music. I have very fond memories of my relationship with the music when I was very young. A lot of it had to do with vinyl. There’s a distinct sound to it, as well.”

“You can argue if it’s better or worse or whatever. To me, there’s a warmth and almost 3D quality to vinyl. Certainly, a good record player and a good amplifier, it’s just a different way to appreciate something.”

Another honour, Thornley admits, is potentially being involved in somebody’s similar experience one day. “Music is very important because you never know what a little song you have written might do for somebody else or what it might mean. I say that from experience. I think we’ve all had the experience where a song can be so meaningful. It could almost be better than a best friend at that moment when you need to hear something. I’ve always taken great pride in being able to do that for a living.”

Crafting an album is also a different art form. “That attention to detail is maybe a little bit lost right now,” Thornley says. “Listening to an album forces you on this journey with the artist. In that sense, it’s almost like watching a movie or a TV show.”

Aside from the upcoming vinyl release, Big Wreck has a pretty busy summer booked.

“Before that, we’re going to do some stuff in the United States on our way down to doing one of those cruises,” Thornley notes. “Creed is putting on this cruise and invited us.”

Check out your local record store for this year’s Record Store Day Canada selection.

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As Canada’s Federal Election campaign hits the halfway mark, pre-polling numbers are signalling that Canadians are more engaged in this election ever before.   According to Elections Canada, over 130,000 […]

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Prime Minister Mark Carney will meet Canada’s premiers Thursday to discuss possible retaliatory measures against the United States after President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs affecting nearly every country in the world.

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Mayor Martin Ritsma has talked up Canada’s economic advantages with business leaders attending the annual Canadian Dairy XPO in Stratford. Ritsma said the XPO brings […]

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Gas prices may have been rising over the past week or two, but we should see a big drop tomorrow.

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An avalanche east of Kootenay Lake on March 24 has claimed the lives of three men and critically injured another. Kaslo RCMP say the incident occurred just before 1 p.m., […]

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We’re off to the polls on April 28th, after Prime Minister Mark Carney asked Governor General Mary Simon to dissolve Parliament and call an election.

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You could pay less at the pump as early as April 1st – the big takeaway from a newly released analysis into the slashing of the consumer portion of the federal carbon tax.

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The newly crowned Liberal leader Mark Carney was sworn in this morning, Friday, March 14, at Rideau Hall.   On his way into the ceremony, Carney told reporters they’re a […]

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If the clouds clear tonight we could get a chance to see a total eclipse of the moon, hitting its peak around midnight. According to NASA, North America will be […]

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A looming trade war has prompted the Bank of Canada (BOC) to cut its key interest rate for the seventh time in a row. The BOC announced this morning (Wednesday) […]

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With the uncertainty of the Canadian/United States dollar exchange or teeter-tottering tariffs and the like, travellers with plans to visit the U.S. or leaving a port to catch a cruise have quite the dilemma these days.  

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Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s power play to move ahead with a 25 per cent surcharge on energy heading south of the border has prompted U.S. President Donald Trump to double […]

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Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s power play to move ahead with a 25 per cent surcharge on energy heading south of the border has prompted U.S. President Donald Trump to double […]

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Nearly two in five British Columbians say they need help to get out of debt. That’s according to a report by Ipsos on behalf of MNP, which also shows the […]

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Former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney will become Canada’s next Prime Minister.

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Canada’s chief public health officer is concerned about surging cases of measles, both in Canada and around the world.

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While the country is responding to the tariffs U.S. President Donald Trump has placed on Canadian goods as of Tuesday (March 4), the local MPP for the region has expressed […]

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took aim at U.S. President Donald Trump today (Tuesday), condemning his blanket tariffs as “a very dumb thing.” “It’s not in my habit to agree with […]

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WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that his threatened 25 per cent tariff on all Canadian goods entering the United States was set to go into effect at midnight […]

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U.S. President Donald Trump has confirmed that his threatened 25 per cent tariff on all Canadian goods entering the United States will take effect at midnight. Trump made the announcement […]

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The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has approved Vista Radio’s purchase of 21 Bell Media radio stations, including 27 regional repeater transmitters in British Columbia. This acquisition includes all […]

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Local musician Loreena McKennitt has been nominated for best traditional roots album at this year’s Juno awards. Her album, The Road Back Home, released in March 2024, was recorded the […]

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The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has approved Vista Radio’s purchase of 21 Bell Media radio stations, including 27 regional repeater transmitters in British Columbia.

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