Akamina Gifts Limited received a major facelift and full aesthetic renovation throughout the winter. The construction will soon give way to the store’s new look, both inside and out.
Several area businesses have undergone major renovations through Waterton’s quiet season, creating a fresh new look about the Waterton townsite.
The store’s new fittings were poured in Oct. 2008, and crews from nearby Cardston began to rip and tear the roof by February. Construction is expected to continue through the summer months, though the facility opened over the May Long Weekend.
Akamina received a full interior/exterior makeover which expanded the store’s book nook by adding an extra door from the location’s sidewalk. New staff accommodations and living quarters have been added on the second level while a new shipping/receiving and storage area have been added to the store’s rear.
Aesthetic renovations included new jib-rock and lighting, a whole new colour scheme as well as windows and doors.
Owners and proprietors Cathy and Barry Wood have operated Akamina Gifts for the past 15 years, and have been in Waterton for many additional years. The pair had previously owned stores in Cardston and Lethbridge. The current site of the Akamina is in fact the Wood’s fifth location in the national park.
The husband-and-wife team had the renovation plans in the back of their minds for the previous four years, but decided to act on their plans at the close of the 2008 busy season. They have striven to redecorate the shop with an “outdoorsy, Waterton feel.”
Publisher: Kathy Taylor Proprietor and published by Sun Media Corporation - A Quebecor Media Company at 714 Main Street, PO Box 1000, Pincher Creek, Alberta, Canada T0K 1W0
