News Releases

Crews continue working around the clock to get everyone moving again, following a severe blizzard that brought high amounts of snowfall and strong winds, creating drifting on roads and sidewalks.

“Great gains are being made on restoring mobility in residential streets and we continue to bring on additional contractors for this work”, says Terry Schmidt, General Manager of Transportation and Construction. “Crews continue to work simultaneously throughout the entire City. We are focused on beginning with the streets worst affected and clearing residential streets in all neighborhoods. This will be done in a sequence where the streets carrying the most traffic, or strategically located streets are addressed first.”

As of Friday morning, the City reports residential street snow clearing is now complete in Kensington, Stonebridge, Eastview, Holiday Park and Brighton. Snow clearing is underway in an additional six neighbourhoods, including Dundonald, Rosewood, Hampton Village, Lakeridge, Arbor Creek and Evergreen. Today, work is scheduled to start in Wildwood, Buena Vista, Mayfair, Silverwood Heights, Erindale and Montgomery.

“With nearly 300 crew members clearing snow, and counting, this schedule may change, so we encourage you to keep checking online for updates,” says Schmidt. “As much as we can, we’re coordinating the clearing schedule with waste and recycling collections; however, there will be some instances they overlap. In those cases, crews will move bins onto driveways, then move them back onto the street.”

Schmidt also encourages children to stay away from playing in the snow piles. The huge accumulations of snow present a dangerous situation if climbing on the snow piles or building tunnels through them.

“Once again, thank you for helping your neighbours, remaining patient during the city-wide snow clean-up, and for staying safe around the snow removal equipment on our streets,” Schmidt adds. “Please remember that road conditions are still considered hazardous due to snow accumulation and the layer of ice underneath the snow. Our crews are sanding and salting to treat ice as snow is being cleared from roads.”

There may be piles of snow left by the graders (windrows); crews will come back afterwards to remove those that are impacting residents.

Please do not push snow out onto the street when clearing snow from sidewalks and driveways, as this can clog up streets with even more snow and continue to create accessibility issues.

More information on our process for snow clearing can be found at saskatoon.ca/snow

The election office has announced another eastside polling location at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Silverspring. This brings the total number of locations to seven for voters to cast their ballot on the postponed election day, Friday, November 13.

Revised: Voters can attend ANY of the SEVEN polling locations tomorrow until 8:00 p.m.: Cosmo Civic Centre, Lawson Civic Centre, Lakewood Civic Centre, Shaw Centre, City Hall, Prairieland Park and Ebenezer Baptist Church. Voter Assistance Terminal (VAT) is available at City Hall and support persons and service animals are welcome at all locations. Election workers will assist voters with mobility issues when requested. 

Voters should anticipate wait times similar to advance polls, due to physical distancing measures, hand sanitizing, one-way/dedicated entrances and exits and additional cleaning protocols. Polls are expected to be busy; election workers will be dedicated to keeping lineups moving along with all safety protocols in place.

Mail-in ballots will be received by election officials until 8:00 p.m. on Friday, November 13 at City Hall or the Election Office (226 Cardinal Crescent). Mail-in ballots can also be dropped off at any polling location on Election Day. Visit saskatoon.ca/mailballot for more information.

Election Day Reminders:

• attend any polling location between 9:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.
• print and fill out a voter registration form to save time at the polling location
• bring your own pen to mark your ballot
• wear a mask and practice physical distancing

For more information on the 2020 Civic Election, including locations and ID requirements, visit saskatoon.ca/vote2020.

Following the postponement of November 9 election day, due to a severe winter storm that blanketed the city with 30 to 40 cm of snow and ice, the election office has announced an additional polling location at Prairieland Park and continues to pursue other options.

“Our goal through the election planning process is to provide citizens with access to a ballot – that they have a way to vote,” says Returning Officer Scott Bastian. “Access to the ability to vote in this election has been solidly supported through additional advance poll locations, a heavily used mail-in ballot program, and 65 polling locations on election day which despite the inclement weather were surprisingly steady.” 

The decision to postpone the election was granted to the Returning Officer alone by the Minister of Government Relations. As a result, the election office was working with the province all afternoon on Monday, November 9 to make sure the Returning Officer’s decision was in line with the Minister’s specific order.

“An election in a city of our size is complex. There are many moving parts, with over 600 municipal election workers hired and 65 polling locations established,” Bastian says. “Frustrating as it was for everyone, my decision was delayed to late Monday because I needed to make sure that the plan for Friday to condense polls complied with the Minister’s Order and that all the pieces were organized. In order to comply with Ministerial Order polls had to close early. Had polls closed at 8:00 pm on November 9, the election would have concluded that night.”

Voters who have not yet had the chance will have an opportunity to cast their ballot on Friday, November 13 from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. 

There will be a number of locations across the city, much like advanced polls, at Cosmo Civic Centre, Lawson Civic Centre, Lakewood Civic Centre, Shaw Centre, and City Hall – with Prairieland Park as an added location. Voters can visit the polling station most convenient for them to cast their ballot.

Mail-in ballots will be received by the election officials until 8:00 p.m. on Friday, November 13 at City Hall or the Election Office. Ballots can also be dropped off at any polling station on Election Day. Visit saskatoon.ca/mailballot for more information.

Reminders for voters:

• attend any poll location
• print and fill out a voter registration form to save time at the polling station
• bring your own pen to mark your ballot
• wear a mask and practice physical distancing

For more information on the 2020 Civic Election, including locations and ID requirements, visit saskatoon.ca/vote2020.

City snow crews continue to clean up the streets after a severe winter storm that brought high amounts of snowfall and strong winds, creating drifting on roads and sidewalks. Freezing rain has also created a layer of ice underneath the snow. As of today (Nov. 10), crews have been able to open at least one traffic lane on all major and secondary roads. 

While efforts continue to be focused on the highest traffic streets – first making them all passable, then returning to plow curb-to-curb, sand, salt and de-ice – the City recognizes that residential roads continue to be a challenge.

“The City’s snow clearing service does not extend to residential neighbourhoods, but we recognize that this is an unusually large amount of snowfall, all at once, for our city,” says Terry Schmidt, General Manager of Transportation & Construction. “For this reason, we’ve decided to proceed with a plan to restore mobility on all roads, including residential streets.”

“We recognize the challenges people are facing, and we want to help fix the problem,” continues Schmidt. “We’re going to throw everything we have at this effort to clear away the snow and get people moving around again.”

The residential snow clearing will begin after the higher traffic streets are complete. Crews will work through residential streets, beginning with the most impacted. If Saskatoon experiences more snowfall, as is forecast for tomorrow (Nov. 11), crews will need to prioritize higher traffic streets as usual. 

The City wants to thank residents for staying safe around snow equipment, helping out neighbours, and remaining patient during the city clean-up. Drivers are reminded that road conditions are still considered dangerous due to snow accumulation, drifting, and hidden ice. 

As the City continues to respond to the effects of this severe winter storm, civic facilities and services have been affected as follows: 

School Zone Snow Removal 

Crews are planning to remove piles of snow left by graders (windrows) from all school zones next week. This will provide space for vehicles parking or dropping off and picking up children.  

City Hall 

Where possible, residents are asked to use available online services at saskatoon.ca. For property taxes, assessment, and utility related matters, they can contact the City by e-mail at revenue@saskatoon.ca or phone at 306-975-2400. 

Residents that need to attend City Hall should be advised that the roads are plowed but there is minimal street parking due to the windrows. Windrows will be cleared away at a later date. 

Election 

Due to the snow, an additional day to vote in the municipal election has been added this Friday (Nov. 13). Residents who plan to vote are urged to make a plan for travel. Consider Saskatoon Transit which is resuming normal operations as the snow is cleared. 

Curbside Garbage and Recycling Collection 

Collection calendars have been updated to reflect the following changes: 

• Monday, November 9 collections rescheduled to Saturday, November 14. 
• Tuesday, November 10 collections rescheduled to Sunday, November 15. 
• Please check saskatoon.ca/collectioncalendar or download the Saskatoon Recycle & Waste app to confirm and sign-up for reminders so you don’t miss pick-up day. 

Collections for Wednesday, November 11:

• Garbage collection will be attempted in City Park, Hudson Bay Park, North Park and Richmond Heights. All other areas scheduled for November 11 are currently inaccessible for collections and are asked to roll-out carts on Monday, November 16 and crews will collect your garbage as soon as possible.
• Recycling collection will be attempted in all areas scheduled for November 11.​

City and Loraas collection crews will do their best to access carts, although accessibility will be a determining factor on some streets and back lanes. Please roll out carts by 7:00 a.m. and ensure that carts are placed in front of or 4 feet to the side of all snowbanks, not on top of or behind. This is to ensure that collection truck arms can access carts for effective collection. 

Saskatoon Transit 

Transit has resumed modified service on most routes. Fixed route service will continue to expand as streets are cleared. Access Transit continues to provide essential trips only. 

Transit users should consult the real-time app Transit or Google Maps Transit on desktop or SaskatoonTransit.ca for real time route information and service alerts. 

Leisure Services 

City indoor arenas reopened for scheduled rentals at 4:00 p.m. today (Nov. 10). Parking is limited at Cosmo Arena. 

Leisure Centres remain closed on Tuesday, November 10, and will reopen to the public on Wednesday, November 11, at 12:00 p.m. (excluding Cosmo Civic Centre and Terry Fox Track which are closed on statutory holidays). 

The Saskatoon Forestry Farm Park & Zoo remains closed on Tuesday, November 10.

Winter weather is on the horizon and snow crews are ready to keep everyone moving around city streets and sidewalks. Our fingers are crossed it will be a typical Saskatoon winter when it comes to snow grading and removal.

No one in Saskatoon will soon forget last November’s 30-40 cm snow fall that kept people at home for days. That was the first year in decades that snow was graded and removed from all residential streets.

Now that we’re back to “snow”rmal, please remember that snow grading and removal on all residential streets is not in the budget for normal Saskatoon winters.

When it snows more than 5 cm, a Snow Event is declared and contractor graders join the City fleet to grade all priority streets within 72 hours.

There are three types of priority streets that determine the order of snow grading.

• Priority 1 streets get plowed first. That’s vital stuff like freeways, major arterials and bridges.
• Priority 2 streets get graded second. These are the arterial roads with double-lanes and bus routes, like Clarence Ave.
• Priority 3 streets are completed last. These streets take you through your neighbourhood like Louise Ave, Howell Ave and Main St.

Following every significant snowfall, City-facility sidewalks, Meewasin Trail, park pathways with street lighting, pathways along freeways and arterials, and bridge walkways are graded within 48 hours.

Visit saskatoon.ca/snow to learn about snow grading after a snow event and search your address on our priority street snow grading map using the magnifying glass.

After much discussion with the provincial government, the Election Office will take advantage of the Ministerial Order, signed by Government Relations Minister Lori Carr, allowing the local Returning Officer to postpone the 2020 Civic Election.

We are closing all polls at 6:30 p.m. today.  Voters who have not yet had the chance will have an opportunity to cast their ballot on Friday, November 13 from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.  There will be a condensed number of locations, much like advanced polls, at Cosmo Civic Centre, Lawson Civic Centre, Lakewood Civic Centre, Shaw Centre, and City Hall (Committee Room E).

The delay in making this announcement was related to election staff having ongoing discussions throughout the day with Minister Carr’s Office to explore this opportunity for the City of Saskatoon: one that would allow 600-plus municipal election workers to remain at polls today, operating like an advanced poll until 6:30 p.m.

“This is certainly unconventional, and we appreciate the frustration many of our citizens have felt about not knowing what options they had to vote,” says Scott Bastian, Returning Officer.  “This is why we continued to encourage those who could, to go to the polls. All except one were open by midday.”

We wanted to seek out the best solution possible for our citizens in order to choose their community leaders.  We needed to be sure we were in compliance with the Minister’s Order in order to work through this difficult situation.”

Again, we want to thank all our poll workers who persevered and the hundreds of City and contract employees who continue to work hard to open up our city and get it moving again.

Mail-in ballots will be received by the election office until 8:00 pm on Friday, November 13.

Visit saskatoon.ca/vote2020 for all election-related information.