Saskatoon company set to revamp bus barns into cultural hub with affordable housing
The former site of the city’s bus barns is getting a facelift.
A Saskatoon company has agreed to purchase the south-Caswell Hill facility for $2 million for a mixed-use development, according to a report before the city’s finance committee on Wednesday.
The developer says the project, dubbed Caswell Bus Barns, is intended to “create a mixed-use building that supports local arts and culture, provides green space, and offers affordable housing for students, seniors and artists.”
The terms of the agreement with the city outline a two-phase construction, divided into two adjacent sites.
An overhead view of the proposed developments. (Courtesy: City of Saskatoon)
The first site, with a price tag of $1.1 million due March 2024, includes a refurbishment of the existing warehouse facility.
Separate residential and commercial buildings are scheduled to be built on site B several years later, with a $900,000 payment due in May 2026.
A $200,000 down payment on the first site is due when the sale is finalized but that won’t take effect until city council rezones the property, according to the report from the city’s land development administrators.
“The final agreement for sale may include minor adjustments to address as-yet-unknown factors, such as those that may arise through the land use amendment process,” Brad Murray, land development project manager writes.
Murray says the city plans on reinvesting revenue from the sale into the broader redevelopment of the south Caswell Hill area.
The developer plans to develop separate residential and commercial units next to the bus barns in a second phase of construction, the city says. (Courtesy: City of Saskatoon)
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress currently leases space in the warehouse to distribute furniture and household items for displaced Ukrainians, and Saskatoon Light and Power is storing some of its equipment there but has been told to vacate by July 31.
The Ukrainian organization will be notified before the developer intends to begin construction, the city says.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
First court appearance for boy and girl charged in death of Halifax 16-year-old
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.