John Pushor (Image Credit: Contributed)

By Regan Bartel

No Waste: Built to serve the community

Kelowna Modular company scores with Memorial Cup dressing rooms

Feb 24, 2026 | 6:01 AM

A Kelowna-based company with deep community ties is helping build a key piece of one of the biggest hockey events ever held in the city.

Chaparral Industries, a modular manufacturer based in Kelowna, was chosen to build three portable dressing rooms for the visiting teams at the Memorial Cup after the Kelowna Rockets issued a request for proposals in March 2025.

“I think we were asked to bid because we’re a modular manufacturer, we’ve been around for almost 50 years, and we’re based right here in Kelowna. Local representation was important,” said John Pushor, director of Chaparral Industries and a longtime Kelowna resident.

Chaparral specializes in volumetric modular construction, which means the buildings are built indoors in a manufacturing facility before being delivered to the site.

“We build all of our structures inside our 40,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Kelowna,” Pushor said. “Our goal is to complete as much of the building as possible in the plant, so when it gets delivered to site, it’s almost finished.”

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Each of the three dressing room buildings consists of two modular units, for a total of six modules. Each room will be 1,440 square feet, wood-framed with engineered wood floors, wood walls, and a wood roof.

“In this case, the Rockets had a fairly specific design in mind,” Pushor said. “It had to have a certain number of showers, a certain number of toilets and a certain number of custom cubbies for the players to change and hang their equipment.”

After winning the bid, Chaparral worked closely with the Rockets and the City of Kelowna to refine the design.

“When we got into the finer details of the cubbies and the millwork, we worked with Gavin [Hamilton] from the Rockets to mirror what they already have,” he said. “The size, the shape, the hooks and the shelves will all look very similar. Once you’re inside, it will feel like a normal arena dressing room.”

The buildings will be located just outside Prospera Place, near arena entrances. From the outside, they will look like portable buildings with stairs and ramps leading into them. Inside, they will feel like brand new dressing rooms that players are used to seeing in modern arenas.

“When the buildings land at Prospera Place, all of the showers are finished, the taps are in, and all the toilets and sinks are installed,” Pushor said. “The plumbers and electricians connect the buildings to the city services underneath, test everything, and then they’re ready to use.”

The full manufacturing process takes about three months.

“There’s a hard deadline with this event,” Pushor said. “We’ve been working closely with the Rockets to make sure the buildings arrive in time for the teams to practice before the Memorial Cup begins.”

The project is new territory for the company.

“The nature of this project is new for us,” he said. “We’ve never built dressing rooms for a hockey tournament before, so it’s been really exciting for our team.”

Interest in the project has been strong inside the company.

“We’re a Kelowna business, and there are a lot of Rockets fans here,” he said. “When this was rolled out to our staff, there was a lot of excitement.”

During construction, members of the Memorial Cup organizing committee and Rockets staff will visit Chaparral’s manufacturing facility. Weekly photo updates will also be shared so organizers can follow the progress.

Once the tournament ends, the buildings will be repurposed by the City of Kelowna at community sports parks and recreation facilities across the city.

“It’s really good vision by the city and by the Rockets,” Pushor said. “These buildings aren’t going to be thrown away. They’ll keep serving the community long after the tournament.”

Each building includes a barrier-free washroom. Some are expected to become permanent installations, while others may be moved to different parks as needs change.

“It’s a really special project for me, for my family and for Chaparral,” Pushor said. “I was born and raised in Kelowna. My dad has been here since the early 1970s, and our sense of community is really strong. We’re a very sports-oriented family, and we’ve been going to the Kelowna Rockets for a long time.

“So to be part of bringing the Memorial Cup to this city and to help build something the teams will actually use, that’s something we’re genuinely proud of.”