After a month of construction, the Xatsull Heritage Village lookout has been completed and opened to the public.
“It’s extremely beautiful, nice, and solid and ready for our guests and community members to look over the beautiful Xatsull Heritage Village and Fraser River down below,” said Cheryl Champman, the economic development and employment coordinator with the Soda Creek Indian Band.
The total project cost was about $15,000. Of that, $5,000 came from the Cariboo Regional District, with the rest coming from the Soda Creek Indian Band.
Community member Darren Russell, who originally built the deck, and his crews did work, which featured replacing the deck, railings, and some of the support beams.
Champman said that the beams weren’t apart of the original replacement plans.
“We had anticipated that we would only need to replace the deck and the railings, and fix up our welcome sign because wood does deteriorate,” she said. “Once we got the deck and the railings off, it was obvious that the top log that held up the deck was seeing some water damage, so we decided that we would replace those.
Champman added that they will have to book ahead of time for those wanting to check out the Heritage Village due to COVID-19.