News Releases

The City’s Technical Advisor on the Downtown Event and Entertainment District has outlined a growing trend of centrally located event and activity zones in many North American city-core areas. A community information session was held at the Roxy Theatre Tuesday, February 28.

“From ancient times to roughly the mid-twentieth century, the colosseum, theatre, arena and similar gathering places were in the centre of the city or town,” says Simon O’Byrne, Stantec Senior Vice President, Community Development. “We saw a suburban arena development trend in the last half of the twentieth century that did not support the area in a larger way. That has reversed with downtowns again benefiting from more animation, amenities and both population and business growth.”

Stantec has partnered with the international expertise of HOK and LMN, who have a wealth of experience in entertainment district design projects, including Rogers Place and Edmonton’s ICE District, the Seattle Convention Centre and the Calgary BMO Centre Expansion in Calgary.

“We’re confident the expertise we have retained will keep us moving toward a successful project,” says Dan Willems, Director of Technical Services. “Developments like the one we’re planning will help rejuvenate downtown and other traditional business areas, creating jobs and opportunities.”

The meeting heard the concept of a district goes far beyond anchors like an event or convention centre.

“The District will broaden the perspective of Downtown development,” says Councillor Cynthia Block, who represents the area and is Council’s Strategic Lead on Downtown Development and co-chair of the Advisory Group. “It will be a destination for our city, our province and beyond. It is also a strategic plan to drive density to the core and help Saskatoon become a more efficient city.”

Planning continues toward a more detailed design, construction procurement model and project scope scheduled for discussion in the late summer and fall. The City is seeking a private partner and other funding tools for a financially sound project that does not impact property tax.

For more information visit the Downtown Event & Entertainment District website.

The City of Saskatoon is launching a pilot program for gardening on centre medians to provide additional access for residents to garden in public spaces. Centre medians are paved, planted, or landscaped strips in the centre of a road that separate lanes of traffic.

Engagement surveys have indicated that there is a demand for this kind of public space gardening from many who live in multi-unit buildings like apartments, where a yard is not available.

“Adding these kinds of small, community-supported green spaces helps to create more habitat for pollinators like bees, assist in managing storm water, and can create community as neighbours or friends collaborate on creating and maintaining these gardens” says Director of Sustainability Jeanna South. “We have worked across several departments including parks, transportation, and bylaw compliance to ensure safety for gardeners and drivers, with guidelines specifying plant height and other important details.”

With this pilot, Saskatoon joins Vancouver in providing gardening opportunities in unique places for residents with green thumbs.

"It will be exciting to see what types of median garden plans our community members are inspired to create. We hope to see a number of applications, and people can get started as soon as spring weather permits,” says South. “We have created a native plant guide to help identify plants that fit within the height restrictions and have low maintenance water requirements.”

Details about the Boulevard Gardening Program and Centre Median Pilot, including guidelines and application forms, are available on the City’s website at Saskatoon.ca/BoulevardGardens.

Additional resources for gardening can be found at Saskatoon.ca/HealthyYards.

As part of a one-year pilot project, the City of Saskatoon is making public (free) WiFi available in an area that includes parts of the Pleasant Hill and Meadowgreen neighbourhoods. The network, named “YXEPublicWiFi”, was activated on February 16, 2023. Anyone inside the pilot area, which includes approximately 1,500 residents, may now connect using a WiFi-enabled device such as a laptop, tablet, or phone.

On Feb. 2, 2022 the City announced its intention to explore free public WiFi through a pilot project. The intent is to assess how the provision of public (free) WiFi can improve the quality of life for residents previously unable or significantly constrained in their ability to access the Internet due to barriers such as cost.

“There is a growing recognition in countries around the world that the ability to access basic services and programs and participate in today’s digital world requires access to the internet,” says Drew Bell, the City’s Interim IT Director. “This pilot project will help us discover how the provision of free internet impacts people’s lives and help us decide if this initiative is worthy of further consideration, including expansion.”

The isolation imposed by COVID highlighted how the internet can sometimes be the only means of communicating or accessing things such as: legal and medical services, housing information, important safety information and public health orders, day-to-day transactions, and work and study opportunities.

The free WiFi is intended to cover the area between 19th St W and 21st St W and between Witney Ave S and Ave U S. This area was selected based on population data (including high percentage of youth, seniors, newcomers, Indigenous persons), the needs of area students, consultation with external organizations, and the proximity to City-owned infrastructure where the necessary equipment could be installed.

While the network has been tested extensively, the City notes that the WiFi’s performance – much like any WiFi network – won’t perform the same on all devices and in all locations. For example, the network signal will be stronger closer to the access points installed on the light poles in the pilot area. The age and performance of the personal device might also impact the WiFi’s performance. As well, there are some unknowns about how the network will perform during the changing seasons – like how heavy foliage might impact the signal strength.

“While there are many jurisdictions across Canada, the U.S., and Europe that have implemented or are undertaking similar projects, this is actually a relatively new area of exploration for Saskatoon,” notes the City’s Interim IT Director. “We’re expecting to learn a lot through this pilot. We’re optimistic that we’ll see some great uptake and that we’ll be impacting residents’ lives in a very tangible and positive way.”

At the end of the one-year pilot, its success will be measured by assessing usage, quality of service, adoption, and feedback from residents. More information is available at saskatoon.ca/PublicWiFi.

Construction is starting a little earlier than usual this year. On Tuesday, February 28, a nine-month-long rehabilitation will begin on the 40-year-old Circle Drive North Bridge. The project will start with a full closure of the westbound lanes with two-way traffic being accommodated in the eastbound lanes.

“When construction wraps up on the westbound side of the bridge in approximately four months from now, it will then reopen to accommodate two-way traffic while work happens on the eastbound side,” says Todd Grabowski, Engineering Manager, Asset Preservation. “It is unusual to start construction so early in the year, but because this is a major, months-long project on one of Saskatoon’s busiest roadways, we need to start early so we can finish during one construction season rather than extending the work over two.”

Grabowski says the City’s preservation plan, with the results of the Deck Testing Program, identified the need for the rehabilitation of the Circle Drive North Bridge to optimize the service life and diminish the overall capital lifecycle costs.

“Certain elements of the bridge are nearing the end of their typical lifecycle, so this is a proactive construction project to ensure it lasts for years to come. Work will include replacing asphalt and barriers, improvements to drainage and concrete, and repairs to the piers and abutments.”

The pedestrian bridge underneath the Circle Drive North Bridge will not be impacted during the rehabilitation project. A section of Spadina Crescent underneath the bridge will close at some points during construction to accommodate scaffolding.

“We know this construction project is going to be a pain in the asphalt because moving through this area of Circle Drive will be much slower than usual. We will continually monitor traffic and adjust signals throughout the city as necessary to minimize delays and disruptions as much as possible,” says Grabowski.

The 275-metre-long bridge opened in 1983 at a cost of $11.8 million. In 2005, additional lanes were added on each side of the bridge and in 2007, the pedestrian bridge opened.

For more information about the Circle Drive North Rehabilitation project, please visit saskatoon.ca/construction.