New community centre in Big Island Lake Cree Nation a place for youth to feel 'sense of belonging'

It was a sunny day in northern Saskatchewan as the ribbon was cut to celebrate Big Island Cree Nation's new building.

Tim Biggins, vice principal at the local elementary school, said there were eagles and pelicans flying overhead as the community celebrated the official opening of Two Feathers Lodge, a multipurpose community centre.

The building will act as a hub for elder meetings, land-based teachings and other community events.

"It's a statement of resiliency, a statement of teamwork, of having a common goal," said Biggins.

"The community is very proud of its existence and it's going to be putting that building to really effective use."

The First Nation never had an official space for elders to gather. Biggins said it was important to include the elders in the plan for the building, down to the spot where it was built. 

The building was designed with the entire community, including future generations, in mind.

"It creates an environment of sharing stories, sharing ideas," said Biggins. "It's a really great place for our youth to feel that sense of belonging both to their community, to nature, and of course to the elders and the community in general."

Robert Assie, an architectural stone mason and sculptor who worked on the design for the building, said the community wanted something strong.

Assie said they used a structural steel frame, with steel cladding for the structure of the building inside and out. For the windows they used a polycarbonate, which is similar to plexiglass but has more resistance to UV ultraviolet and is impact resistant.

"The use of structural steel as the frame and the skeleton of the building will easily quadruple the life of the building," he said. "So instead of, you know, having a projected lifespan of 100 years, you're really talking centuries, many centuries."

Assie also used materials that were both mould and fire resistant. 

The building was made with an open floor plan so the community could change the layout inside to fit all future needs.

"If you're looking at it from a bird's eye view, it has a curved floor plan," Assie said. "The two longest walls are curved and then the roof has an elliptical roof line. And a lot of that is for energy efficiency, water management, and low maintenance."

Assie said the design allows lots of natural light into the building.

"It's right on the shores of the river. It's in a beautiful space."