Recreating the cottage society
Okanagan Lake’s Boucherie Beach offers old-style layout
Developer Rob Chetner has a favourite saying that he abides by these days.
“Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted,” he said. “I use it all the time because it seems to sum up so many things in life.”
Buyers of Chetner’s newest Okanagan Lake development in West Kelowna — Boucherie Beach Cottages — will definitely benefit from his experience gained a few years ago in building The Waterfront, an ultra-luxurious multilevel lakeside development right next door on the beach. It came on the market just as Okanagan real estate prices tanked.
“The homes we did in The Waterfront were truly homes. They were second homes for everybody, but quite honestly they were nicer than many people’s first homes. We realized that it was probably too much: too much space, too much over the top, too much for a second home.”
Boucherie Beach, which Chetner hopes to begin building this summer, will instead be much more cottage-like.
“They are not as big, but they still have your solid countertops and air conditioning and dishwashers. They are definitely not sparse by any means. They are still over the top, but on a much smaller scale. That’s what we feel is going to make this work.”
The design and siting of the cottages is inspired by Chetner’s memories of the summers in the 1970s and 1980s when, as a teenager, he and his family would make the seven-hour drive from Calgary to spend two or three glorious weeks at Boucherie Beach under the Okanagan sun.
The 15 built-in-the-’60s cottages were basic and a modest 600 square feet each. They were arranged in a semicircle facing the water and had an open grassy area in front shared by all the families who would arrive at the cottages year after year. Just steps in front of the grassy area is 350 feet of flat lakefront.
Architect Patrick McCusker says one of Boucherie’s prime features is the site plan.
“We have tried to preserve the original horseshoe site plan design. All the patios face the green space.”
McCusker followed a very traditional style, noting “the whole look of the place speaks of old cottages.”
“We put on clapboard siding, shutters, and have a bit of wood detailing including lattices and timbers.”
In the centre of the U — and in everyone’s eyeshot — is a modern-day version of the old Sears swing set playground, a swimming pool and hot tub, with some of the old trees retained. On the beach is a firepit and, a few feet into the lake, a water trampoline for the kids, and a dock for boats and other water toys.
As with another Okanagan vacation development that McCusker studied — Veranda Beach at Lake Osoyoos — cars are kept at bay in parking spots around the perimeter. To the west, away from the lake, the property will be buffered from traffic by an organic vineyard, which will occupy the remainder of the Boucherie property.
Four floor plans are offered. The smallest cottage — the Lake House 1 — features 574 square feet on the main level with living room, kitchen and bathroom and outdoor veranda. A master bedroom, ensuite, two other bedrooms and a deck make up the 592-square-foot second level.
The Light House, the largest cabin at 2,030 square feet, features four levels, including a rooftop space with screenedin and open spaces.
Chetner says the old cottages didn’t have modern conveniences such as dishwashers, garburators or air conditioning, which was part of their charm. But it has also proved to be a deterrent for some as families grew. “People say it’s charming, but I can’t sleep there because it’s too hot or there is not enough space.’”
The new cottages will have premium appliances and other conveniences, but not the “over-the-top” features such as the Sub Zero fridges built into The Waterfront homes.
Vanessa Fleishman of Calgary has been bringing her three children to Boucherie for the last four years and now plans to purchase a cottage along with another family.
“What appealed to us about Boucherie Beach is the openness and the green space and the fact that the kids could run free. You can see where they are, yet they have that freedom to be kids.”
Over the past four years, the original four families she would connect with at Boucherie have grown to 10 families with 16 kids under the age of 10.
“It’s about families looking after families — the kids having lots of kids to play with and parents visiting with parents,” she said, noting that mealsharing duties mean no one family has to prepare more than a handful of meals during their stay.
“We were thrilled to find out Rob was developing this. We had assumed that someone would buy the property, tear everything down and rebuild a multi-family condo complex. We feel this is a place where we can lay down our roots.”
Owners will also have the option of renting their vacation homes through a rental pool managed by another company. The only requirement for that feature is that owners must purchase a standardized furniture package so that the company can present a consistent rental product.