Saskatoon Ex parade cancelled but it's not clear why
An iconic Saskatoon parade isn’t going ahead this year and there are conflicting reasons about the reason why.
The parade organizers say the cancellation is because downtown construction is interrupting its route.
Susan Kuzma, manager of signature events at Prairieland, says organizers “exhausted all options” to make the parade happen.
“There's extensive road construction along our regular route. We proposed a couple of other options as well and there just simply was not anything that was going to work,” Kuzma tells CTV News.
But the city of Saskatoon says that’s not true.
It says the reason the parade isn’t going ahead is because organizers missed the Jan. 1 application deadline.
Had the city known about the parade plans, it says it would adjust the downtown construction schedule.
“The city did not receive notice or a parade application from the Ex. This is required so construction and detours can be planned,” the city’s construction and design department wrote in a statement emailed to CTV News.
Kuzma said organizers began sending “some of our applications back in February.”
She said they never submitted a final application because they couldn’t get past the first step of finding a route.
“We never got past the route. We weren’t able to find a suitable route that was going to work,” Kuzma says.
The city says it only found out about the parade in April — through an advertisement on the Ex website.
Still, the city says it tried to work with the Ex to find a new route or host the parade on a different day.
“The city was awaiting a reply from the Ex parade organizers ... we had not heard anything from the Ex until we became aware of the parade cancellation in the news media,” according to the city statement.
Kuzma says the city’s proposed alternate routes weren’t ideal, and it’s looking ahead to next year.
“We’ll bring it back bigger and better next year. We'll start working with the city in January if we need to,” Kuzma says.
The city says it’s still willing to work with the Ex to make this year’s parade happen
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6972157.1721587842!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
BREAKING NEWS Joe Biden drops out of 2024 race, endorses Kamala Harris to be Democratic nominee
U.S. President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race for the White House on Sunday, ending his bid for re-election after a disastrous debate with Donald Trump that raised doubts about the incumbent's fitness for office with the election just four months away. It was a late-season campaign thunderstrike unlike any in American history.
Justin Trudeau reacts to Joe Biden announcing he won't run for re-election
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responded to the news that U.S. President Joe Biden won’t run for re-election Sunday, calling Biden a 'true friend.'
What happens next: Joe Biden wants to pass the baton to Kamala Harris. Here's how that might work
With U.S. President Joe Biden ending his re-election bid and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris, Democrats now must navigate a shift that is unprecedented this late in an election year.
Read Biden's full text announcing the end to his re-election campaign
U.S. President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign on Sunday after fellow Democrats lost faith in his mental acuity and ability to beat Donald Trump. He announced his decision in a letter posted on social media. Read the full text.
Harris, endorsed by Biden, could become first woman, second Black person to be U.S. president
Kamala Harris could become the first Black woman to head a major U.S. party presidential ticket after U.S. President Joe Biden abruptly ended his re-election bid and endorsed her.
The pilot who died in crash after releasing skydivers near Niagara Falls has been identified
NEW YORK (AP) — Officials on Sunday released the name of a pilot who died in a skydiving flight after her passengers jumped from the aircraft near the Niagara Falls.
LCBO workers ratify tentative agreement, strike ends Monday
The union representing 10,000 workers at the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) has ratified a tentative agreement, which will officially end its two-week strike at 12:01 a.m. Monday.
Joy in Newfoundland after 'Lucky 7' fishers survive harrowing days lost at sea
There was a powerful word being repeated in the joyful Newfoundland community of New-Wes-Valley on Sunday: 'Miracle.'
A Florida woman was killed 24 years ago. DNA evidence just helped police make an arrest in the cold case
A Florida woman’s brutal killing nearly 25 years ago may finally be solved after authorities arrested the suspect this week, according to the Sanford Police Department.