News Releases

Devastating floods are less of a concern for dozens of property owners in the Adelaide/Churchill Park neighbourhood, thanks to a new project in the north end of Churchill Park. A dry storm pond, which serves as park and recreational space when dry, officially opened today.

The new dry storm pond is the second of nine flood mitigation projects to be completed under the Flood Control Strategy (FCS) by 2027. The FCS was approved by Saskatoon City Council in 2018. The first project, also a dry storm pond, opened in W.W. Ashley District Park in 2022 and construction is now underway on a dry storm pond in Weaver Park. The Government of Canada has contributed $21.6 million towards Saskatoon’s FCS through the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund.

“Due to climate change, extreme weather events are occurring more frequently all over the world,” said the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities. “This is why we are proud to celebrate the opening of the Churchill Dry Storm Pond in Saskatoon. This important infrastructure will protect neighbourhoods and businesses from future flooding events. We will continue investing in projects that enable communities to withstand natural disasters and thrive for generations to come.”

“Dry storm ponds provide tremendous value in preventing flooding in neighbourhoods that historically have been prone to floods,” said Saskatoon Mayor, Charlie Clark. “These ponds help to mitigate the damage from weather events and can provide peace of mind to residents. The Churchill Dry Storm Pond will provide this same reassurance to residents in the surrounding area. Thanks to continued funding partnerships, we’re able to build infrastructure that protects against more frequent extreme weather events.”

“We have a plan in place to ensure all of our flood mitigation projects are built and functioning before the end of 2027,” said Mitch McMann, Storm Water Utility Manager. “With more severe and less predictable rain events, these projects are important to our residents. During a heavy rain event on June 3 of this year, storm water that would have previously flooded nearby intersections and properties, drained into this dry storm pond instead. The new project functioned very well and as it was intended to.”

Dry storm ponds hold water that would otherwise cause nearby flooding during intense rainfalls. The water flows into storm drains, then through underground pipes into the dry storm pond, where it then flows toward and empties into the South Saskatchewan River.

The Churchill Park dry storm pond will help prevent flooding at more than 50 properties around Ruth Street and Cairns Avenue, Bute Street and Munroe Avenue, Ruth Street and York Avenue, and Bute Street and Albert Avenue. The project also included the establishment of new trees, a new pathway, multi-purpose sports fields, and spectator seating built into the slopes.

Once all FCS projects are completed, the City anticipates seeing a substantial decrease in the amount of neighbourhood flooding in the top 10 highest risk areas of Saskatoon.

For more information about the FCS, visit saskatoon.ca/floodplan.

A pair of civic surveys conducted for the City of Saskatoon earlier this year show most residents remain satisfied with life in their community and the municipal services they receive. The surveys also reveal trends in where respondents would like to see the City focus future efforts.

The 2023 Civic Satisfaction & Performance Survey and Civic Services Survey on Performance, Priorities and Preferences were conducted by Forum Research Inc. through their online panel in May and June 2023, respectively. Due to the random sampling for these online surveys, the sample is reflective of Saskatoon’s population and therefore the data is reliable and representative of the community.

“These two surveys are a very important measure of how residents feel about their city and the services their municipal government provides,” says Celene Anger, Chief Strategy & Transformation Officer. “Results of both surveys will be used to inform decisions related to strategic priorities, budgeting and service delivery, as well as to highlight opportunities for continues improvement.”

Survey Highlights

When asked as part of the Civic Satisfaction and Performance Survey, a large majority of respondents (86%) say they are satisfied with living in Saskatoon – this is consistent with the 2021 survey results. When asked about quality of services provided by the City, eight in ten people (81%) indicate satisfaction; and the large majority of respondents (83%) rate the value of services they receive from the City as very good or good value.  This is also consistent with 2021 survey results.

When asked what the single most important issue is facing the City, nearly one in five (19%) of respondents say it is homelessness, followed by crime/public safety/policing (15%) and roads and sidewalk maintenance (8%).

Similar issues are highlighted in responses to the Performance, Priorities and Preferences Survey as the top three service areas where they would like to see the City provide more service: affordable housing (60%), road maintenance (58%) and snow & ice management (55%).

To a much smaller degree, the top three areas where respondents indicate they would like to see the City provide less service were community grants (19%), planning and growth (17%) and recreation and culture programs (16%).

Meanwhile, overall satisfaction remains the same or higher for many of the 29 civic services asked about in the Performance, Priorities and Preferences Survey.

Ranking with the highest satisfaction among the services that survey respondents were asked about:

• Reliability of electrical services (8.7 out of 10)
• Quality of drinking water (8.3 out of 10)
• Fire protection (8.1 out of 10)
• Garbage collection (8.0 out of 10)
• Recycling collection (8.0 out of 10)
• Indoor leisure centres (7.9 out of 10)
• Outdoor sports fields (7.9 out of 10)
• Indoor ice rinks (7.9 out of 10)
• Recreation programs and services (7.9 out of 10)
• Maintenance of city parks (7.7 out of 10)
• Speed of water main break repairs (7.6 out of 10)
• Police services (7.6 out of 10)
• Landfill services (7.6 out of 10)

Both surveys and their respective results will be part of an information report at City Council’s Governance and Priorities Committee meeting on Wednesday, September 13.

Full summaries and the detailed results of both surveys are also available on the City website by visiting saskatoon.ca/civic-services-surveys.

Thanks to a generous donation from Golf Saskatchewan, Holiday Park Golf Course now has a SoloRider golf cart available for mobility-impaired players.

SoloRider golf carts are single-passenger carts that allow golfers to play from tee to green without leaving the cart.  The golf cart is equipped with a swiveling, elevated seat and ergonomic controls. 

“The cart can go almost anywhere on the course including the bunkers and greens and there is no fear of it damaging the grass”, says Brian Lee Executive Director / CEO of Golf Saskatchewan. 

“These unique features have helped both the City and Golf Saskatchewan strive to provide recreation for all who want to participate by increasing accessibility and encouraging opportunity within the sport,” says Roxane Melnyk, Recreation Services Manager for the City of Saskatoon. 

This is the second SoloRider golf cart that Golf Saskatchewan has made available in Saskatoon and it is free of charge to use.  The City of Saskatoon’s Silverwood golf course has been home to a SoloRider since 2014. The SoloRider carts can be booked by calling the pro shops at Holiday Park or Silverwood golf courses when making a tee time reservation.

Following another Special Budget Meeting today, City Council’s Governance and Priorities Committee (GPC) has further reduced the projected funding gap in the 2024/2025 Multi-Year Budget, with additional opportunities to shrink the gap still to come.

Through today’s decisions, the projected funding gap has been further reduced by a total of $3.15 million in 2024 and $554,000 in 2025. If left unmitigated, which is unlikely, the current funding gap would equate to a property tax increase of 7.47% in 2024 and 5.93% in 2025.

GPC completed its discussion on administration-recommended options within several business line reports at today’s meeting and recommended the following budget options be integrated into the 2024/2025 Preliminary 2024/2025 Multi-Year Business Plan and Budget: 

• Closure of the East Compost Depot
• Reduce operating hours by one (1) hour at the end of the day at the Landfill and Material Recovery Centre
• Eliminate skunk inspection, trapping and relocation services for private residential properties
• Modify the Mosquito Control Treatment Area buffer zone to be one to two kilometres outside of city limits instead of five to ten kilometres outside of city limits
• Defer the Remai Modern Civic Buildings & Comprehensive Maintenance Reserve phase-in contribution for 2024
• Phase out of the $100,000 Interest Stabilization Support over two years 
• A $5 fee increase for Manual Tax Certificate/Tax Searches and a $10 fee increase for Online Tax Certificate/Tax Searches
• A 0.5% increase in the City’s Current and Arrears monthly Property Tax Penalty Rate in 2024
• An increase in the reduced penalty rate for parking offences from $30 to $35
• An increase in the late payment penalty rate for parking offences from $50 to $60
• An increase to the City’s Land Lease Revenue Budget to account for signed but potentially temporary lease revenue
• A 20% reduction in the program, research and design budget for Recreation and Culture
• No new FTE’s for playground & youth centre staff training
• No new FTE’s for an Outdoor Special Events Organizer
• Redirect a portion of savings ($250,000) experienced from the temporary closure of the Harry Bailey Aquatic Centre in 2024 and 2025
• Reduction to the Corridor Planning Program’s Special Services operating budget
• Reduce the payroll cost (CPP, EI, Benefits, WCB, etc.) estimate by $200,000 in 2024
• Reduce the operating phase-in of the City’s SAP program by $250,000 in 2024 and 2025
• Exemption of City properties from the City storm charge for 2024 and 2025
• Reduction of  50% of the inflationary pressures to the Information Technology Reserve
• Reduce snowpile removal from parking lots at civic facilities

An additional Special Budget Meeting has been scheduled for September 20, at which time additional options that were not recommended by Administration are expected to be discussed, as well as the Utilities Business Line report. Council is also awaiting draft budget submissions from the Saskatoon Board of Police Commissioners and the Saskatoon Library Board.

Administration will continue to refine and adjust numbers for the budget book which will be presented at the 2024/2025 Business Plan and Budget meeting in late November.

For more facts and reliable information on the 2024/2025 Multi-Year Business Plan and Budget, please visit Saskatoon.ca/budget. 

An information report to be presented to City Council’s Standing Policy Committee on Transportation on September 5 details how the City successfully navigated an extraordinary emergency snow event in December 2022 with an equally extraordinary response. 

The City’s Roadways Emergency Response Plan for Extreme or Unusual Snow Events was activated for the very first time on December 28, 2022, after back-to-back snow events between December 25 and 28. The snowfall resulted in over 30 centimetres of snow accumulation and severely impacted mobility on streets and sidewalks. This was in addition to four previous snow events earlier in the winter season.  

Once the response plan was activated, snow grading along all streets in Saskatoon was completed within eight days of the end of snowfall, faster than the targeted timeline of 10 days, while snow removal along Priority 2 and 3 streets was completed within 5 weeks– the fastest this work has ever been completed. All snow removal work was completed within approximately 9 weeks. 

“Our response to the late 2022 snowfall showcased our commitment to the safety and the well-being of our residents,” says Goran Saric, Director of Roadways, Fleet and Support. “The City of Saskatoon remains steadfast in its dedication to providing efficient services while adapting and improving to better serve its citizens.” 

Highlights from 2022/23 ERP activation include: 

• 102,000 truckloads of snow removed from Saskatoon streets.. 

• 1.4 million cubic metres of snow stored at the three snow management facilities at the Civic Operations Centre, along Wanuskewin Drive and Central Avenue. This is approximately four times the amount of snow stored at the snow management facilities in years leading up to 2020. 

• 500 crew days of effort to remove snow piles on local streets. 

• A typical day during snow removal included 150 haul trucks, 32 graders, 18 loaders, 4 snow blowers, 12 skid steers, 10 pilot trucks, seven dozers, 11 tow trucks and much more light equipment.  

• 27 contracting companies provided additional resources including haul trucks, loaders, snow blowers, dozers and graders. Nearly all contractors that submitted interest and pricing for local street snow removal were hired.    

“The successful handling of the significant snow events stands as a testament to the City’s commitment to meeting challenges head-on, learning from experiences and continuously improving its emergency response capabilities,” says Saric. 

The total cost of the 2022/23 emergency snow response was $18 million dollars, more than the annual operating budget for Snow and Ice Management. Nearly 90% of the cost was for the city-wide snow removal phase.  

For more information on the Roadways Emergency Response Plan for Extreme or Unusual Snow Events, visit saskatoon.ca/emergency-response-plan.