What were the top news stories of New Westminster in 2022?
Since Dec. 21, we’ve been presenting a daily countdown outlining the stories we decided were the year’s 10 most newsworthy.
As we get set to ring out 2022, we’ll recap them one final time — although, come to think of it, it won’t be the final time you’ll see most of these stories in the headlines. Plenty of these issues look set to continue well into 2022 and beyond.
10: Death of a monarch
New Westminster’s royal roots came to the forefront in September after Buckingham Palace announced the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
9: War in Ukraine
As Russia invaded Ukraine, New Westminster’s Ukrainian community gathered in prayer — then got to work helping to support those fleeing the country and those left behind. Before long, the whole city got behind the effort.
8: Safety at NWSS
From a rally against sexual harassment and rape culture in the spring, to a series of dangerous incidents in the fall, the issue of safety — or lack thereof — at New Westminster Secondary School was thrust into the spotlight.
7: Bike lane brouhaha
Bikes lanes and a $36-million network to connect neighbourhoods and schools generated their share of headlines — and controversy — in 2022.
6: Space crisis in New Westminster schools
Too many kids and nowhere to put them. In a fast-growing city like New Westminster, it’s not a new problem. But the crisis around overcrowding came to a head in 2022.
5: From pandemic to ‘tripledemic’
2022 began with the rise of the Omicron variant and ended with B.C.’s health-care system in crisis thanks to a surge in respiratory illness (COVID-19, influenza and RSV) among children.
4: Royal City no more?
The decision to drop the “Royal City” moniker and crown logo in official city branding began as a motion from outgoing mayor Jonathan Cote before the October civic election, and it ended in a polarized community debate.
3: Mother Nature strikes back
Snow, heat, bad air, windstorms, freezing rain and still more snow all brought the weather to the forefront in news coverage in 2022.
2: A year of change
October saw change brewing at New Westminster’s city council and school board tables, as the departure of former mayor Jonathan Cote paved the way for an exciting three-way race for the mayor’s chair — and some potential chinks in the NDP-affiliated, labour-endorsed team’s armour.
1: Downtown in crisis
Safety. Homelessness. The toxic drug crisis. Crime. Poverty. Construction. Festivals. Community. It was a year of both highs and lows for downtown New Westminster, and Columbia and Front streets were never far from the limelight in 2022.
📢 What do you think? What was the biggest news story in New Westminster in 2022? Got an opinion to share? Send us a letter.
Follow Julie MacLellan on Twitter @juliemaclellan.
Email Julie, [email protected].
