WATERVILLE — In an unusual partnership, the city of Waterville, Beth Israel Congregation and the arts organization Waterville Creates are working together to organize and invite the community to share in a weeklong Jewish holiday known as Sukkot.

Sukkot, a joyous harvest holiday, commemorates the time the Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years after escaping slavery in Egypt, according to the Hebrew Bible.

As part of the festivities, set to begin Wednesday and continue to Oct. 24, the city plans to build a sukkah, or hut, on Tuesday at Castonguay Square, next to City Hall. Once the sukkah is built, members of the public are invited to visit it and spend time there.

A sukkah represents the type of hut the Israelites built while wandering in the desert; it also is similar to temporary dwellings Jewish farmers built in the fields during autumn harvest time to sleep and eat their meals in, as it was too much to work and travel back and forth from home to the fields.

“As far as I know, there is nowhere else in America where a Jewish community, a local arts organization and a municipality have come together to provide a sukkah to the community,” Melanie Weiss, the executive director of Beth Israel Congregation, said Monday. “We’re incredibly proud and incredibly grateful.”

The old huts were typically made of wood and strong enough to withstand wind. The roofs were made of branches or greenery that allowed those having meals and sleeping inside to see the stars. Weiss said the city will build the 20-by-20-foot sukkah Tuesday from a kit made possible with support from the Bill and Joan Alfond Family Foundation and Colby College’s Center for Small Town Jewish Life.

The walls are made of plastic piping and canvas, and the roof will be bamboo matting, a religiously acceptable material, according to Weiss.

The sukkah is scheduled to close at 10 p.m. each day, but otherwise is open for the public to use, except at times Wednesday, Friday and Sunday evenings, when it will be reserved for events. A sign outside the sukkah will explain that, Weiss said. Tables and chairs on loan from Waterville Creates will be set up inside the sukkah.

“It’s a really sweet place to have your lunch,” Weiss said.

Weiss, who also is assistant director of Colby’s Center for Small Town Jewish Life, said Sukkot is a holiday that emphasizes the values of hospitality and welcoming people. Those values represent Waterville’s Jewish community, but are also Waterville’s values.

Jews just celebrated Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, and now are entering the weeklong Sukkot, with Weiss describing the three as a part of a big holiday arc.

Events for Sukkot, listed on Beth Israel’s website, are set to kick off at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Waterville Municipal Sukkah at Castonguay Square at 93 Main St. The public is invited to bring vegetarian potluck items for a meal to be shared inside.

At 10 a.m. Thursday, Sukkot services are planned with Rabbi Rachel Isaacs at Beth Israel Synagogue at 291 Main St.

At 5 p.m. Friday, Shabbat services are scheduled at the Waterville Municipal Sukkah at Castonguay Square.

Weiss said people from all backgrounds were invited to work together on a weeklong art project as part of Sukkot called “Welcoming Our Ancestors,” organized by Waterville Creates. Participants created a laminated paper quilt with 80 to 100 squares portraying their families, ancestors and histories.

“They will be up as decorations in the sukkah,” she said.

A celebration of the project is planned for 6 p.m. Sunday at the sukkah, with the event open to the public, but priority will be given to those who took part in the project to ensure their place inside, according to Weiss.

She said the idea of partnering for Sukkot with the city and Waterville Creates came about in discussions about having a public menorah and public lighting of the menorah as a way to be inclusive during the holiday season where Kringleville is held annually.

Some city councilors, Waterville City Manager Bryan Kaenrath and Waterville Creates Executive Director Shannon Haines thought the partnership a great idea, Weiss said.

“It’s incredible,” Weiss said. “I can’t express enough how amazing it is, and how unusual. It’s more amazing to work with so many community partners on this art project. I think now more people in Waterville know about Sukkot than anywhere else I’ve lived in the U.S.”

Editor’s note: This story was updated to correct the name of the foundation that helped support the construction of the sukkah.