West Summerland KVR station nearing completion

A new rest stop on the Kettle Valley Railway is taking shape near Summerland.

The Rotary West Summerland station project is a community effort combining Rotary funding and labour with substantial donations of materials and services by local business, Trail of the Okanagan’s Don Gemmell said recently in an email.

The original West Summerland station buildings are long gone, but not from the memories of locals, Gemmell says, adding many have stopped to chat as construction progresses, about their memories of the original station or working on the Kettle Valley Railway.

The new building sits on the site of the former West Summerland station. It will serve as a stop for cyclists and hikers using the Trans Canada trail through Summerland.

Gemmell says the park will be furnished with picnic tables, a bike rack, trail maps for Trans Canada Trail travellers, and KVR historical information.

He says the new station will also be one of the best places to take photos of the Summerland steam train in operation.

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