News for Youse: Smart meter fee, UBC landslide, Vancouver sexual assaults, Banksy goes undercover

Regulator approves smart-meter charge  A B.C. Utilities Commission panel has given interim approval to B.C. Hydro charging customers $35 per month if they refuse to allow smart meters on their property.

UBC landslide  University Endowment Lands RCMP is urging people to avoid Trail 5 in the 6500 block of Northwest Marine Drive after a "significant landslide" yesterday afternoon. Nobody is believed to have been injured or killed; what's left is a sheer cliff with a 200-metre drop to the sea.

UBC area sexual-assault attempt The RCMP says a 20-year-old female student resident escaped a 5'10" Caucasian male in his mid to late 20s, who tried to place his hand under her skirt. The attack occurred at 3:30 a.m. on Sunday (October 13) in the 2700 block of Fairview Crescent.

VPD warning about sexual assault  A 25-year-old North Vancouver woman was attacked early Saturday (October 12) morning after flagging down what she thought was a taxi in the 100 block of Water Street. Vancouver police say it was a van with side doors and the driver—a 5'11" to 6'0" bald, obese aboriginal man—took her to an East Vancouver location and sexually assaulted her. 

Injury at EDM concert  Vancouver police have also reported that a 22-year-old man underwent surgery for a serious head injury after falling 20 feet from the upper level of the Pacific Coliseum onto concrete below. Several bands were performing at the EDM show, including W&W, Nervo, Adventure Club, Kill Paris, and Trevor Guthrie. 

Alan Franey resigns as VIFF leader  After 26 years as festival director of the Vancouver International Film Festival, Alan Franey, has stepped down. He says he hopes to focus on VIFF programming in the future.

Tokyo antinuclear protests  About 40,000 people demonstrated yesterday against the Japanese government's push to restart nuclear reactors. Nobel Prize-winning writer Kenzaburo Oe was among the speakers.

Palin is back  Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin spoke at two public events over the weekend. Her Tea Party Express showed up in New Jersey for Republican Senate candidate Steve Lonegan; she also appeared at the World War II and Lincoln Memorials alongside Republican senator Ted Cruz as the two of them bashed the Obama administration.

Banksy sells art in Central Park  Celebrated spray artist Banksy set up a stall in Central Park to sell paintings anonymously for $60. They were valued at more than $1 million, and he reported on his blog that only three people bought his art.