Saskatoon city councillors to mull five-year farmers’ market lease
A year after first entering negotiations to find a permanent tenant for the Farmers’ Market Building in Riversdale, city council is set to enter a lease agreement with a local business service company.
Last August, Ideas Inc., the anchor tenant for half of the property along Avenue B South, was revealed as the company selected to operate a public market.
"Our vision for this space draws inspiration from national and international facilities that have become landmarks for their respective cities," Ideas Inc. executive director Depesh Parmar said in a release at the time.
“We are inspired by their ability to create a vibrant, animated space for local communities, and a dynamic and diverse destination where patrons can enjoy everything local from produce and artisan goods to locally produced food and beverage."
Administration is recommending the standing policy committee on planning, development and community services enter a five-year lease with Ideas Inc. to operate the property 414 Avenue B South.
The building has undergone a lengthy process to find a tenant willing to meet the city’s requirement of keeping the area animated for six days a week.
City administration and council began voicing those concerns in 2018 when the farmers' market operated three days a week. The Saskatoon Farmers’ Market Co-operative Ltd. managed the site for 12 years before relocating to a building near the airport in 2020 once its lease expired.
The city issued a request for proposals in 2018 to find a permanent tenant, then cited much-needed repairs to the aging former electrical garage roof as the reason for withdrawing the request for proposals.
Repairs were slated to begin in January 2020, expected to take at least three months to complete. After COVID-19 uncertainty stalled any progress, demolition and construction work began in June 2020.
More than two years later, the city is set to formally begin a new era for the historic property.
The next steps include completing detailed design drawings and issuing a construction tender and awarding and undertaking renovation work.
The approval report before the committee says the lease will begin when the interior building renovations have been completed by the city.
A five-year tax exemption estimated at $53,162 is included in the agreement. Administration is also recommending the city contribute $150,000, to purchase furnishings for the common areas, with 50 per cent coming from the reserve budget for capital expenditures and 50 per cent from Ideas Inc.
Ideas Inc. currently manages the outdoor street stalls on Saturdays outside the building and a seasonal outdoor farmers’ market.
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.
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.
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.
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.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
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.
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.
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.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.