Students put skills to work to develop Agur Lake Camp

Okanagan College Media Release

The first cabin for Agur Lake Camp is taking shape thanks to students in Okanagan College’s Residential Construction program and a new partnership between Agur Lake Camp Society, Okanagan College, School District 67 Okanagan Skaha and C.M. Edwards Construction.

The students are building the cabin on the grounds of the Penticton campus – it will be moved to Agur Lake for final assembly later this summer. The cabin will be built by assembling two modules to the lock-up stage and then trucking them to Agur Lake Camp where they will be joined together as they are placed on the cabin’s foundation. Support pillars are positioned so the cabin floor can be built on top of them. This allows space for a truck to back in under the floor when it is time to move the building.

The Agur Lake Camp Society has long range plans for five cabins to be built on the site and hopes that this first cabin will be ready for use in the summer of 2012.

Chris Allen of Allen + Maurer Architects Ltd has been employed to do the site planning for the Camp. TimBr Mart in Summerland is generously donating all the lumber needed for this project. Chuck Edwards of C.M. Edwards Construction is contributing to this project by offering his services to supervise the construction.

“Building the first cabin has been made possible by the partnership of Agur Lake Camp Society, Okanagan College, School District 67 and Chuck Edwards of C.M Edwards Construction” said Barb Hatton, President of Agur Lake Camp Society. “It’s an exciting time for all of us. With one cabin under construction and many more on the horizon we welcome continued in-kind donations of materials and financial support from our generous community partners.”

The Residential Construction program is one of the College's most hands-on programs, providing an opportunity for students to build a home from the ground up. Students who complete the program not only have professional work experience on their resume – they can also receive technical training credit for Level One Carpentry and may become certified as a Residential Construction Framing Technician.

A dual credit Agreement between School District 67 and Okanagan College gives high school students the opportunity to combine the Residential Construction program with high school graduation. Dual credit students receive both high school and college credits in addition to the apprenticeship level one credit. Through contributing their time to the building of the first cabin, all students advance their own education and provide valuable service in the building of Agur Lake Camp.

When completed Agur Lake Camp will provide a wilderness camp experience for special needs people and their families. In addition to cabins there will be a network of trails, a dock for fishing and boating, and a pavilion. All facilities will be totally accessible for people with disabilities.

The Camp is located on 54 acres of land 20 kilometres west of Summerland. For more information about the Camp or Society, go online: www.agurlakecamp.ca.