News Releases

The City of Saskatoon is excited to launch City Stories, a new storytelling space where residents can explore stories, photos and content that highlight the work being done every day to make Saskatoon a great place to live.

City Stories is the City’s dedicated storytelling platform, designed to share timely, accessible and resident-focused information in an engaging, conversational style. It’s a place to learn more about the people, projects and ideas shaping our city beyond meetings and technical updates.

Every day, the City plans, builds and maintains infrastructure people rely on, including streets, sidewalks, bridges, parks, swimming pools, sewers, water and transit. At the same time, we’re working on things that may be less visible but are just as important such as accessibility, affordability, safety, sustainability and community building.

City Stories will showcase articles covering these topics and more, offering a distinctive glimpse into what it takes to run a city and how we plan for the years ahead. The story items focus on serving the people who live here today, while helping create a city that will welcome many more tomorrow.

Residents are encouraged to visit City Stories often, as new and interesting articles will be shared weekly.

To explore City Stories and read the latest articles, visit citystories.saskatoon.ca.
 

The City of Saskatoon’s 2025 Strategic Plan Progress Report marks the final year of the City’s 2022–2025 Strategic Plan and reflects a year of remarkable outcomes and important transitions as Saskatoon continues to grow.

“The 2025 results reflect both measurable progress and important investments behind the scenes,” says Richard Phillips, Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer. “This report demonstrates the City’s deliberate choices to support affordability, environmental responsibility and reliable services. While there is more work ahead, we are entering our new, 2026-2029 Strategic Plan cycle with strong momentum, building on the value and results delivered over the past four years for everyone who lives, works, learns and plays in Saskatoon.”

In 2025, the City of Saskatoon continued to work on 25 key strategic initiatives, with 7 fully completed. Ongoing work planned for 17 initiatives was completed as scheduled, with work continuing as planned in 2026. One initiative was flagged for caution due to its scale and complexity, with timelines adjusted to ensure long‑term success. This represents a 96 per cent delivery rate on our key strategic initiatives.

While celebrating these achievements, the City remains focused on areas that require continued attention. Progress is being made in strengthening emergency response times, transit performance, and residents’ perceptions of inclusion. These areas of focus, alongside ongoing improvements in workforce diversity, will continue to receive attention. Administration has already identified ways in which these areas can see progress in over the coming years.

“We recognize that there are areas for improvement but we have also taken actions in several areas that are important to residents,” says Phillips. More attainable housing was delivered than in previous years, supporting affordability. Waste diversion reached record levels and greenhouse gas emissions continued to decline as environmental initiatives moved into action.

The City also invested in transit, asset management, digital services, and data systems, strengthening long‑term service delivery and planning as the city continues to grow. Saskatoon also remained one of the most affordable cities, helping residents and local businesses.

Overall, 2025 represents a year of progress and transition, balancing today’s service needs while building a more inclusive, resilient and sustainable Saskatoon.

The full 2025 Strategic Plan Progress Report is available at Strategic Plan | City of Saskatoon

The City of Saskatoon has released its 2025 Service, Savings and Sustainability (SSS) Report, highlighting the progress made over the past year to improve civic services, strengthen long‑term sustainability and deliver strong value for taxpayers.

The report showcases how City teams continue to build on past successes by identifying efficiencies, introducing innovation and investing wisely to meet the needs of Saskatoon’s growing population. In 2025 alone, these efforts resulted in $4.13 million in savings, with $7.88 million in cumulative savings expected over the coming years through continued cost savings, cost avoidance and reductions.

“As Saskatoon grows, we remain focused on using public resources responsibly while delivering high‑quality services residents rely on,” says Jeff Jorgenson, City Manager. “The 2025 SSS Report reflects the dedication and creativity of City employees and the meaningful impact of their work.”

The report also highlights the City’s continued focus on livability, sustainability and inclusive growth, ensuring Saskatoon remains a vibrant and resilient community for current and future residents.

2025 Key Highlights

• Financial Responsibility:
  $4.13 million in savings were achieved in 2025, with $7.88 million in total projected savings over five years.
• Efficient Infrastructure Delivery:
  A new approach to curb stop replacements is expected to save taxpayers up to $425,000 annually, while reducing construction disruption and avoiding the need for drinking water advisories.
• Waste Reduction and Environmental Stewardship:
  City‑delivered services diverted 42,457 tonnes of waste from the landfill, an increase of 1,726 tonnes from 2024. Waste diversion through the Material Recovery Centre increased by 35 per cent year over year.
• Innovation in City Operations:
  The introduction of a GPS‑guided sport field line‑painting robot improves accuracy and efficiency, allowing staff to focus on other priority work while maintaining high‑quality recreational spaces.
• Community Engagement and Reconciliation:
  Residents were engaged on initiatives such as affordable housing, river access and new leisure amenities, while the City advanced Reconciliation through meaningful initiatives, relationship‑building and collaboration with Indigenous communities.

The 2025 Service, Savings and Sustainability Report and Video is available online here.

After considering an approval report on the First Avenue Link Corridor concept plan changes, City Council defeated the motion as presented. Council has now directed Administration to meet with the Saskatoon Accessibility Advisory Committee to review the accessibility plan. Council also directed the Administration to report back with broader operational considerations, including emergency response planning, emergency access and snow removal plans.

Once this information is received, Council will determine the next steps and will then direct Administration on how to proceed with the Link design on First Avenue.

In the meantime, work continues on the Link project elsewhere in the city, with the College Drive Link corridor and numerous station platforms throughout the city currently under construction. So far, 41station platforms are already built.

Meeting minutes and associated reports are available on the City of Saskatoon website. For more information on the Link rapid transit project, visit saskatoon.ca/link.

A Sport Utility Vehicle and a Saskatoon Transit bus collided around 8 a.m. on April 24, 2026 on the Taylor Street overpass at Circle Drive. Emergency responders attended and assessed one individual at the scene for minor injuries.

Weather and road conditions are believed to have been a factor. Saskatoon Transit will provide on-board video footage to the Saskatoon Police Service for its investigation. A separate internal investigation will be conducted to determine if there are measures needed to help prevent any future incidents.

A cost estimate of the damage to the bus is not immediately available.

Saskatoon Transit has a Critical Incident Response process with post incident support for the staff involved, including follow-up wellness checks.

The City of Saskatoon and kakisiwew-ochapowace nation have entered into a one‑year Letter of Agreement to enhance access to City-operated recreation facilities for kakisiwew-ochapowace nation members living in Saskatoon.

This agreement is about removing barriers and creating more opportunities for people to come together in spaces that support health, wellness and connection,” said Mayor Cynthia Block. “We value our relationship with kakisiwew-ochapowace nation and this partnership reflects our shared commitment to reconciliation, collaboration and ensuring recreational opportunities are accessible to everyone who calls Saskatoon home.”

Through this agreement, kakisiwew-ochapowace nation is allowing members to participate in drop‑in programs at the City Leisure Centres, Outdoor Pools and Indoor Rinks. This initiative strengthens community wellness, supports inclusive access and reflects the City’s commitment to meaningful relationships with First Nations and to advancing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action. 

“This partnership is about making sure our families have access to healthy living - spaces where they can be active, spend time together, and live miyo-pimâtisiwin, a good life. kakisiwew-ochapowace nation is excited about this partnership, and we are grateful to the City of Saskatoon for working with us in a good way to support the well-being of our citizens,” says Tyler George, Headperson for kakisiwew-ochapowace nation.

kakisiwew-ochapowace nation members will have access to drop‑in programming at the following City‑operated facilities:

• Leisure Centres: Lakewood, Lawson, Shaw, Cosmo, Saskatoon Field House and Harry Bailey Aquatic Centre (once renovations are complete)
• Outdoor Pools: Lathey, Riversdale, Mayfair and George Ward
• Indoor Rinks: ACT, Archibald, Cosmo and Lions Arenas (public skating only)

The partnership provides discounted bulk admission rates for Leisure Centres and Outdoor Pools and standard admissions rates for Indoor Rinks. All admissions have been pre-purchased by kakisiwew-ochapowace nation to ensure their members can access drop-in programming without cost at the point of entry. Initiated through kakisiwew-ochapowace nation’s proactive outreach, this collaboration reinforces a shared commitment to accessible, community‑focused recreation, and the City welcomes conversations with other First Nations interested in exploring similar opportunities.