Nordic Spa development proposal opposed by area residents to go before Saskatoon city council

SASKATOON -

The Willows neighbourhood in Saskatoon is being targeted for development for a Nordic Spa, something many residents in the area say they don't want. 

Bonnie Hataley is one of those residents, from the balcony of her condo, there’s views of a pond, plenty of green space, and the clubhouse to the golf course.

“The view is beautiful,” Hataley told CTV News.

“It's surrounded by rolling hills and water features and trees and I mean, it's just gorgeous at sunset. You look out there and the whole sky turns red”

The serenity of the area is the biggest reason that Hataley and her husband moved into the community over a year ago.

It’s also the reason why the spot is being targeted for development for a Nordic Spa and other amenities that Hataley says the vast majority of the community doesn’t want.

Dream Developments in Saskatoon owns the land, and says Scandvik Hotels & Nordic Spa approached them about the space.

“Based on the tranquility provided by the natural areas, surrounded with the Willows, and because of that, they've identified that as a very, very high priority location for them,” said Dream Developments general manager Brad Zurevinski.

He says their plan is to reduce the Willows from a 27-hole course down to 18 holes, and transition the community to focus more on members and homeowners and less on tournament play.

Zurevinski says they’re looking to diversify the amenities around the course such as like sport courts and tennis-pickle ball and pools.

“That kind of amenity offering in the user groups that would be able to utilize the Willows,” he said.

Hataley says at least 80 per cent of people living in the community oppose the “substantial change” the development would create.

“This was created as a golf course community,” she said. “This was not created as a resort community with a commercial space in the center.”

The proposal was passed at the City of Saskatoon Municipal Planning Commission on Oct. 26, where several residents in the community voiced their opposition. The issue will go before Saskatoon city council on Monday.

“This would be setting a precedent for the whole city,” said Hataley, of the potential of city council giving the project the go-ahead.

Hataley says several residents in the community who oppose the development plan to speak at the meeting.

“Nobody's neighborhoods would be safe, anybody's neighborhood could be changed on the fly,” she said. “And when you have 80 per cent of the community that's living there against it, how is it the city councilors and the MPC can say that that's okay?”

OTHER POTENTIAL LOCATIONS

Zurevinski says there has been communication with community residents since the announcement of the development, even moving the location for the spa away from the original proposed location at the Willows’ Red Barn.

“We've looked at the previous location that was proposed and have suggested alternates that still provide that tranquility that the Nordic Spa is after, but also taken it away from where the existing previous location was, next to the existing residential, and moving it further over,” he said.

Zurevinski says the Willows golf course has had many “challenging years economically”, and the changes, which include bringing in a renowned golf course architect and renovating the clubhouse, would revitalize the course.

He says Dream Developments has worked with the city on several aspects including the location as it relates to green space and potential increased traffic in the area, and will begin making changes to the course as early as 2022 if the plans are passed.

“What we'd be looking at doing is making all those large investments and bringing all those great amenities to the table as soon as possible,” Zurevinski said.

CONCERN FOR TRAFFIC

Hataley says she’s concerned about what the development could mean for traffic to the area, where many seniors live.

“People going back and forth across the roadways, it's not safe,” she said.

“Our balcony is right over the road, it's less than 100 meters from the road. It's like right on top of the road. If you take that traffic and more than double it, now we live in the city. We don't live in the country anymore. That substantially changes your neighborhood.”

Zurevinsky says there’s a large amount of misinformation circling about the amount of traffic that would be created—he says the current roadway will be capable of handling it—and the different uses of land in the area.

“I think once there's more understanding for some of those aspects, I would suspect that that number [of people in opposition] would change,” he said.

Hataley says she isn’t against development—she just doesn’t want it in the middle of her community.

“The desires of one developer outweigh 80 per cent of the community residents—is that the way the city is going now?” she questioned.

“I would be very disappointed if that were the case.”