The City of West Kelowna has chosen who will design its first city hall and library building.
Johnston Davidson Architecture will be designing the $18 million building. The announcement also kicks off the beginning of the project’s design phase, which will include stakeholder and p public consultation in the spring.
Located in Westbank Centre at 3731 Old Okanagan Highway, this will be West Kelowna’s first purpose-built city hall. The city’s administration has been done out of temporary facilities for more than 13 years.
“Now that construction of the Rose Valley Water Treatment Plant is well underway, along with our expanded road and sidewalk programs in the city, Council can proceed with other priority projects, including our first City Hall/Library building with the Okanagan Regional Library Board,” Mayor Gord Milsom said.
“This is an exciting equity partnership that benefits our community.”
The partnership between the West Kelowna and the Okanagan Regional Library (ORL) for the project was inspired by the city’s desire to offer efficient and centralized services in its downtown core, combined with the ORL’s vision to offer expanded services for the community.
Chair of the library board Karla Kozakevich said they are excited about the project.
“The new location is a fantastic opportunity for Okanagan Regional Library to expand the library service and show the people across the Greater Westside that the library continues to be at the heart of the community,” she said.
City staff are also exploring other collaborations in the building, including possibly having constituency offices inside as well as incorporating Indigenous art and culture in the interior design. With the start of the preliminary design stage of the project, the City of West Kelowna will work with Westbank First Nation to find ways to celebrate heritage and culture within the building.
“As a community partner in this project, Westbank First Nation’s involvement reflects a strong relationship with the City of West Kelowna, and acknowledgement of the importance of reconciliation,” Westbank First Nation’s Chief Christopher Derickson said.
For more information on the project’s background, visit the city’s website.
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