Saskatoon administration favours Midtown parking lot for new arena

Saskatoon city administration has recommended the Midtown Shopping Centre north parking lot as the location of the future events centre and arena.

Two sites were being considered for the location of the arena, including the Midtown parking lot and the city yards in north downtown.

“The site recommendation is based, in part, on an evaluation of the sites against extensive technical criteria. Based on this evaluation, the Midtown Shopping Centre North Parking Lot site emerged with the highest score, ranking favourably in nearly every category,” a city news release said.

Administration said survey results also showed respondents had a preference for the Midtown parking lot location. Several survey methods were used and over 8,000 participants offered their feedback to city administration.

However, there were some challenges identified with the Midtown location, including parking and traffic congestion.

“The Administration believes the parking challenge can be mitigated at the proposed site by clearly identifying the current inventory of existing off-street paid parking, private stalls that could be converted, and off-street paid parking stalls within walking distance. More specifically, as part of the project, Administration intends to replace the 526 stalls currently in the north parking lot and may be augmented with construction of additional parking following a parking needs assessment,” the news release said.

The Downtown Event and Entertainment District Advisory Group was consulted by the city and supports the decision, according to administration.

City council will review the recommendation at a special meeting on Nov. 16 before a final decision is made.