Description of Historic Place

The West Kootenay Power & Light (WKP&L) Substation is a one-storey Romanesque Revival style brick building with a gable roof located in a residential neighbourhood in the Upper Rossland neighbourhood, in Rossland, B.C. The building sits at the western edge of Planer Crescent.

Heritage Value

The West Kootenay Power & Light Substation has historic, social, and aesthetic heritage values for representing West Kootenay Power & Light's electrical system which was a major catalyst to the early boom period in the West Kootenay.

Constructed in 1897, the heritage site is significant as a key element of the electrical system developed by the West Kootenay Power & Light Company (inc. 1897) to provide an abundant and reliable source of power for the many working mines on Red Mountain. The company was the first hydro-electric utility company in the province, and at that time, had the most powerful electrical distribution system in the province and the longest high-voltage transmission line in the world. Electrical power developed through hydro generation, was an innovation at this time and West Kootenay Power & Light was at the leading edge of its development in North America, particularly in its ability to service both industry and community settlements.

The electrical service was not only significant to cost reductions in local mining operations, but the Rossland Substation being an early, reliable and consistent source of deliverable/usable electricity also serviced the City of Rossland, the smelter in Trail, the Nelson tramway, and residents and businesses in other nearby communities.

The fact that the West Kootenay Power & Light Co. established its headquarters and substation in Rossland, is a reminder of the important administrative, economic, and executive position that Rossland held in the region at the end of the nineteenth century.

The Substation has aesthetic value for its industrial romanesque revival style design features, including bilateral symmetry, arched window and door openings.

Character-Defining Elements

The elements that define the character of the West Kootenay Power & Light Substation include its:
- Original elevated location above and away from Rossland's historic downtown
- Industrial use until 1930, commercial use until 1990s, residential detail use since 1990s
- Industrial Romanesque Revival Style design features, including bilateral symmetry, arched window and door openings
- Gable roof and the gable ends which are punctuated by former openings for electrical cables
- Stone foundation
- Evidence of original design elements, including locations of original chimneys
- Evidence of its use as an electrical substation, including surviving porcelain tubes and glazed terra cotta pipes visible on the exterior walls, and four triangular wooden hoods that protected them (only one survives on the west facade)