The Creston Valley Kootenay Lake region wayfinding system was designed to unify a range of discordant regional signage and reflect the character of diverse communities across the area. Rooted in community engagement and strategic planning, the system draws from the region’s natural landscape and Indigenous cultural presence, developed in consultation with representatives of the Lower Kootenay Band (Yaqan Nuʔkiy) for language and representative artwork.

Broadly inspired by the sturgeon canoe, valley, and surrounding topography, the signage system expresses Creston’s distinct sense of place through modular forms and natural tones. The selected palette aligns with the region’s environment by referencing wood, soil, and water, and is designed to weather gracefully in outdoor settings. Proposed materials included cedar, aluminum, coatings or vinyl, and concrete.

This direction was originally a top choice among stakeholders and moved into refinement. In the end, the client selected a simpler construction, though the proposed combination of concrete and wood was retained in the final implementation.