Right around the time in December when crews were putting the finishing touches on the main part of the revitalization of the 100 block of Main Street, another set of contractors began tearing into one of its most iconic buildings.
But the timing of the $1.3-million facelift of the 69-year-old Penticton courthouse is just a happy coincidence, according to the B.C. Justice Ministry.
The ministry said in a statement the first phase of work underway now is a $311,000 maintenance program for windows and skylights. The job, which required two sides of the building to be completely enclosed with scaffolding and tarps, is scheduled to wrap up by the end of March.
The next phase will include improvements to the courthouse’s roof and exterior finishing. A date for the start of that work has not yet been set, although the ministry expects the tab to ring in at around $1 million.
Tamitik Builders out of Lake Country, which submitted the lowest bid of $635,000, has the contract for the work, according to the website of Brookfield Global Integrated Solutions, which manages most provincial government properties.
Penticton-based Wildstone Construction and Engineering was the second-lowest bidder at $721,000, followed by Bronag Contracting of Kelowna at $846,000.
The courthouse is listed on the Canadian Register of Historic Places.
It was built in 1948 and reflected “the growth of Penticton as a regional business and government centre” following the Second World War, according to the register’s website.
“This building is important architecturally as an example of the transition between Art Deco design of the 1930s and 1940s and the Streamline Moderne motifs of the 1950s, especially evident in the northwest entrance and entrance hall.”
From the Penticton Herald