Posted on: August 1, 2017
Boucherie Road Interchange Project - Update to Members
Background
The Boucherie Road Interchange Project is the last of four projectswhich form the April 18, 2005 agreement, approved by theWFN Membership on July 28 2005, between Westbank FirstNation and the Province of British Columbia (the “Agreement”).
The Agreement provides the framework for negotiations betweenthe two governments for the provision of highway improvementsand access at four locations on WFN reservelands: Campbell Road, Westside Road, Sneena Road/Splandand Boucherie Road (see attached drawing West Approach toOkanagan Lake Bridge Phases drawing from the Agreement,attached).
VIEW MAPS/PDF (Maps include Schedule G from the April 18, 2005 Agreement and latest concept design of the interchange. The ultimate design of the interchange, including the WFN land requirements, will not be known until the Preliminary Design is completed by MoTI in 2018).
In 2014, following the successful completion of the SneenaRoad Overpass, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure(“MoTI”) began planning for improvements at BoucherieRoad and met extensively with technical representatives fromboth the Westbank First Nation and the City of West Kelowna todetermine each communities infrastructure and access needs.Open houses were held by MoTI in each community in March of2016 to provide information to the public and to WFN Membersand to get feedback into the design and process. Informationwas provided about the rationale for the interchange, the processfor determining the design, and the level of involvement ofboth Westbank First Nation and the City of West Kelowna in theproject. The display boards used in the process and the reportfrom the public information sessions can be found here: http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/transportation/transportationinfrastructure/projects/okanagan-valley-corridor/okanaganvalley-current/boucherie-westlake
Current Status
MoTI has committed funding to develop the preliminary designof the Boucherie Road interchange and in the process of selectingan engineering firm for this purpose.The preliminary design will take about a year to develop. Duringthis phase, the amount of reserve land required for the interchangeas well as any land that may be required during theconstruction phase will be identified.
Design Concept
The concept for Boucherie Road involves removing the lightsand intersection at Boucherie Road at Highway 97 and replacingthat with a grade separated interchange. Horizon Road andBoucherie traffic would flow beneath the highway to roundaboutsand off ramps on either side. The concept design (seeinsert photo) is subject to revision as the preliminary designprocess proceeds.
Membership Involvement
As reserve lands are required for the current Boucherie Interchangedesign, there are requirements for Membership approvalsunder our Constitution. A final agreement with the Provinceto proceed with Boucherie Road will be dependent on thatMembership approval being provided.
Next Steps
Westbank First Nation continues to be involved in discussionswith MoTI about the Boucherie project. In addition to havinginput into the overall design of the interchange, WFN is havingearly discussions with MoTI about WFN’s ongoing involvementand role in the project and about other benefits for our communitysuch as the provision of employment and contracting opportunities.Negotiations, however, are unlikely to substantiallyadvance until the amount of WFN land required for the interchangeis known next year.
A detailed update, including a backgrounder of the BoucherieProject will be provided to the Membership at the next GeneralBand Meeting in September.
Contact
For more information about the project, please contact eitherRaf DeGuevara at (250) 769-4999 or rdeguevara@wfn.ca orEvelyn Lube at (250) 864-7395 or elube@shaw.ca.