OKIB's new Cultural Arbor (photo courtesy of the Okanagan Indian Band)

By Liam Verster

Cultural Gathering Space

Okanagan Indian Band to reopen Cultural Arbor

May 27, 2022 | 5:00 AM

The Okanagan Indian Band will be reopening a brand-new Cultural Arbor gathering space.

The newly constructed Cultural Arbor will be officially unveiled and reopened for community use at Komasket Park at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 28.

Image courtesy of the Okanagan Indian Band

The band (OKIB) is welcoming all band members, Sylix Nation members and the general public to visit this important cultural space.

“The Cultural Arbor is the centre of our ceremonies and its an integral part of our community,” said OKIB Chief Byron Louis.

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“We use the arbor for all sort of events and celebrations, from gatherings to weddings to feasts and powwows. Many memories were made with the previous arbor and many great memories will be made here. It’s good to see the arbor rebuilt and in use.”

The Cultural Arbor is a circular open-air, roofed building constructed of huge logs and timbers. It features bleacher-style seating around the inside, allowing approximately 300 people to gather and celebrate together.

The inside of OKIB’s new Cultural Arbor (photo courtesy of the Okanagan Indian Band)

The band’s previous Cultural Arbor was commissioned in the late 1980s and reportedly was the largest and most grand facility within the Sylix Nation. It was decommissioned in 2018, and many of the logs and timber from the old Arbor were reclaimed and used in the construction of the new celebration gathering space.

Construction of the new Cultural Arbor was actually completed in 2020, but the OKIB waited until COVID-19 restrictions were eased before holding an official reopening.

The Cultural Arbor is located on an old Okanagan-Sylix, pre-contact village and fishing site that also features a traditional pit house built in 2009 to honour the history of the park and a memorial established in 2014 in recognition of the Truth and Reconciliation commission.