Saskatoon residents raise concerns over pedestrian tunnel
A tunnel connecting Saskatoon's Fairhaven community to the Meadowgreen neighbourhood is raising concerns.
The tunnel is in close proximity to Saskatoon Tribal Council Wellness Centre.
“I’m seeing a very large increase in people I don’t know in my space, and some other people have expressed that exact same experience,” said Meadowgreen resident Ryan Giesinger.
Giesinger specified by his area, he meant his yard.
On Thursday the Meadowgreen Community Association held a meeting to discuss possible solutions to the increase in foot traffic. The association says since the Wellness Center was brought to Fairhaven foot traffic has increased significantly.
“We want to see how we can take care of this group and where they are walking around and take care of the safety of the people living in the community,” said Meadowgreen Community Association Sultan Alisadhe. “We want to have a safe community for everyone.”
Alisadhe and the Association are calling on the city and province to do more to help the residents' situation. The main concern for Alisadhe is that people pass through the tunnel for school and work and to use public transportation.
“The safety of homelessness around the tunnel, people are just using injections and drugs, and people are sleeping in the tunnel, and some people just do not feel comfortable crossing the tunnel after certain hours,” he said.
On Thursday the association met to come up with solutions to the tunnel and the increased foot traffic coming in. People suggested closing the tunnel permanently or during certain hours, monitoring it over video.
“Right now there are random people, late night, wee hours of the morning, so that’s the main concern,” said Alisadhe. “Right now it brings lots of traffic that we don’t know who it is.”
A member from the Saskatoon Fire Department and Saskatoon Police Service were both in attendance at the meeting.
“What’s happening in this community is being replicated in other areas of the city, and the concerns regarding homelessness and poverty are something that needs to be addressed by our community,” said Saskatoon Police Service Inspector Tonya Gretsey with the community engagement division.
CTV News did reach out to the Saskatoon Tribal Council for a comment but was told Chief Mark Arcand is away during this time.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.