News Releases

For Immediate Release: June 13, 2014
                                           

Due to the forecast of rain this evening, paving on Circle Drive westbound curb (outside) and centre lane from Attridge Drive on ramp to Circle Drive North Bridge has been postponed. The lanes were scheduled to be closed overnight from 6:45 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. All lanes will now be open to traffic and a new Public Service Announcement will be issued when the work resumes.

Slow down, pay attention and respect work zones. Watch for pedestrians and work crews, and for everyone’s safety, please obey all detours, signs and barriers.

Know before you go! Find traffic detour information on our website at www.saskatoon.ca/go/traffic. You can also follow us on Twitter @cityofsaskatoon and with #betterroadsYXE and like Saskatoon City News on Facebook.

 

 

Everyone is invited to the 40^th Annual Civic Pancake Breakfast on Thursday, June 19, 2014 between 7:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. in Civic Square (23^rd Street between 3^rd and 4^th Avenues). The cost is $5.00 per plate (includes pancakes, sausage, coffee or juice) with proceeds going to the United Way.

The Civic Pancake Breakfast is a zero waste event with compostable, recyclable or reusable supplies. This is the sixth year in a row that the breakfast will be a zero waste event.

Local celebrities will be serving breakfast. This year we are excited to once again have the Obstacle Water Relay race! Free live entertainment will be provided throughout the morning.

Save the date! Come out next Thursday morning and enjoy this fun annual event!

For more information on the 40^th Annual Civic Pancake Breakfast, visit www.saskatoon.ca and click on “P” for Pancake Breakfast. 

For more City of Saskatoon Public Service Announcements, News Releases, Traffic Detours and Service Alerts, visit www.saskatoon.ca or connect with the City of Saskatoon on Twitter and Facebook.

 

For Immediate Release: June13, 2014
 

Spring cleaning, yard work and renovation season is upon us and Saskatoon residents can bring their waste to the Saskatoon Landfill.  For the safety of drivers, and to prevent litter along the road, the Waste Bylaw requires that all truck boxes and trailer loads are covered, or properly secured to prevent loose debris from blowing out.  Tarps, nets, rope and bungee cords are all acceptable ways of securing material, provided they are attached correctly. 

Beginning Saturday, June 14, officials will be inspecting all loads at the entrance to the Landfill, looking for properly secured covers and educating customers about acceptable materials.  Warnings will be issued until mid-July, when fines may be applicable for uncovered loads.

The Landfill is open 7 days a week from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.  For rates and a full list of acceptable and non-acceptable materials, please visit Saskatoon.ca and click on “L” for Landfill.

For more City of Saskatoon Public Service Announcements, News Releases, Traffic Detours and Service Alerts, visit www.saskatoon.ca or connect with the City of Saskatoon on Twitter and Facebook.

Road construction and repairs are underway on various streets across the city, with new projects starting up every day. This summer, 178 lane kilometres of road will undergo a form of construction, rehabilation or maintenance. In comparison, that’s the distance from Saskatoon to Kindersley.

This year, projects on high-traffic streets will be done in the evening only or on 24-hour cycles, where economical and feasible. “Evening work will reduce the impact to drivers and surrounding business and 24-hour cycles will allow the work to be completed quickly and efficiently, reducing the overall impact from associated road closures and detours,” says Chris Hallam, Director of Construction and Design.

This week, repaving work has been happening 24 hours a day on College Drive from McKercher Drive to Circle Drive. This work is now complete. Scheduled to begin this evening, Circle Drive northbound from College Drive to the Circle Drive North Bridge will be paved at night only.  Scheduled for Sunday is the rehabilitation of 51st Street between Faithfull Avenue and Wanuskewin Drive over three weeks in the evening only.

“By combining large projects into our road reconstruction contracts this year, our industry partners are able to provide workers for overnight shifts for projects on high-traffic streets, like Circle Drive and 51st Street,” says Hallam. “At times the work zones may not appear active or the work may look complete, but barriers will stay in place where there are roadside hazards or where fresh pavement or concrete needs to set to ensure the safety of drivers.”

To avoid delays plan your route around road work by subscribing to our Traffic Detour Service Alerts or check saskatoon.ca and click on Building Better Roads. Alerts are also posted to our social media sites; you can follow us on Twitter @cityofsaskatoon and like Saskatoon City News on Facebook.

 “The safety of our crews, and everyone approaching or passing work zones, remains our top priority,” says Hallam. “Obeying signs and respecting work zones will allow the crews to focus on the task and complete the work safely and efficiently.”

A list of the city’s 2014 construction projects is available at Saskatoon.ca by clicking “Building Better Roads”.

Know before you go! Find traffic detour information on our website at www.saskatoon.ca/go/traffic. You can also follow us on Twitter @cityofsaskatoon and with #betterroadsYXE and like Saskatoon City News on Facebook.

For Release: Thursday, June 12, 2014
 

In a report to the June 17 meeting of Planning and Operations Committee (P&O), City Administration is recommending the development and implementation of an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system for Saskatoon Light & Power (SL&P) and Saskatoon Water. The recommendation comes after a study, which began last fall, was conducted to determine the feasibility and cost of an AMI system in Saskatoon.

An AMI system uses “smart” electricity and water meters that measure and record actual power and water usage by time intervals throughout the day. The information is then transmitted wirelessly over a secure network to a central database, which allows for remote meter reading.

"Our investigation has confirmed an AMI system offers many benefits for our customers and the City,” says Trevor Bell, Director of Saskatoon Light & Power. “Customers would receive monthly bills based on the actual amount of electricity and water they use.  This would eliminate reliance on estimated usage between meter readings, and help residents manage their electricity and water use and detect unusual consumption patterns which could impact their bill.”

An AMI system means the City will benefit from more precise metering and reduced revenue losses caused by meter failure. Greenhouse gas emissions and labour costs tied to manual meter reading would also be reduced. It is estimated that 35 tonnes of CO₂e tied to vehicle use would be reduced each year, and reductions from decreased water use are estimated at 3,300 tonnes CO₂e - the equivalent of removing over 685 vehicles from Saskatoon roads each year.

A Business Case has been prepared to measure the project costs and savings over a 20-year period. Total capital costs are estimated at $24.31 million and system operation costs are estimated at $22.1 million. Over a 20-year period, the total projected savings are estimated to be $76.1 million. The project is expected to pay for itself within 11.43 years with an internal rate of return of 11 per cent.

If the recommendations are approved, customers who have already received their new smart meters will have their meters read electronically and will begin receiving monthly bills based on actual, not estimate, usage by the end of 2015. As the deployment of smart meters continues, the balance of customers will be converted to the AMI system.

SaskPower and SaskEnergy have already begun the process of replacing over 500,000 electricity meters and the upgrading of 370,000 natural gas meters in Saskatchewan with new metering technology as part of a Joint AMI program.