Almost two years after it was destroyed by fire, the Okanagan Sun have their clubhouse back.

Early in the morning of September 30, 2006, two young teens set a fire in a storage shed under the steps leading to the Sun clubhouse in the Apple Bowl.

Fire and smoke damage destroyed the clubhouse. Team photos, trophies and a wall of signatures were also lost.

Sun President, Les Weiss, gave members of the media a tour of the nearly completed "Aguirre House" Thursday.

"It's been a long two years. I said coming back from Nanaimo after we lost in the B.C. Championships two seasons ago, the first thing we needed to do was regroup and get this facility back up and built," says Weiss.

"It too a while to happen but now it's done."

Weiss says the renovations, including rebuilding the clubhouse adding a new training room and other exterior improvements cost in the neighbourhood of $500,000.

Over the past season and a half, the Sun have had to make do with a crammed downstairs storage room for a dressing room.

"My hats off to the players. They never complained once. They just carried about their business. I was really impressed with how the players handled themselves last season under the circumstances."

The old clubhouse, which the Sun called home since 1981, was built with donated materials and, as Weiss terms it, "sweat equity."

The new facility is much more open and spacious, but Weiss says there are some things that will never be replaced.

"The one thing that is never replaceable is the players whose names were on the walls that are no longer with us. Over 28 years there are a lot of those guys that aren't here anymore. Pictures can be replaced, but the one thing that can't be is members of the organization that are gone."

The August 23rd game at the Apple Bowl against Victoria is the clubs homecoming game. Members of the 1988 National Championship team will be honoured that weekend, and Weiss says players will have a chance to re-sign the wall and ceiling at that point.

Former offensive lineman, Reed Alexander, got the jump on the rest of the players, leaving his signature on the ceiling above one of the lockers.

Veteran players selected their lockers Thursday night.

The Sun will kick off training camp Monday, July 7.

Weiss expects between 85 and 90 players to take part.

They open up the regular season against the Trojans in Vancouver July 26 before the home opener August 2 against Kamloops.