The north commuter parkway project proposed for Saskatoon has taken another small step forward.
On Monday, city council’s executive committee gave the nod to funding the project as a P-3, a public-private partnership.
The report recommends a model that would see the city engage a private contractor to design and build the bridge and then operate and maintain it once in use. It estimates that kind of system would save about $26.6 million. That number could fluctuate based on how the contracts are drawn up but it's meant to mitigate some of the longer-term financial risk to the city.
Councillors voted in favor of the proposal but there were some questions about ensuring the city would have appropriate control of the bridge with private sector involvement.
The capital cost of the project is about $250 million with the city seeking a contribution from the federal government of just over $61 million, meaning the city and province would have to pick up the rest of the tab.
The province says it will provide funding if Ottawa offers its financial support, but any provincial commitment would only for the commuter bridge and not for replacement of the Traffic Bridge. The city hopes to bundle replacement of the Traffic Bridge with construction of the parkway project.
