Saskatoon’s Governance and Priorities Committee unanimously approved the purchase of the downtown YMCA property for $8.5 million by the city for the development of the Downtown Event and Entertainment District and expansion of TCU Place.
The new downtown core project is to include a new arena, as well as shopping spaces, restaurants, convention facilities and nightlife.
The city plans to have the arena and surrounding district connect to the rest of Saskatoon through a bus network.
The YMCA space at 25th to 22nd Street East, between TCU Place and Midtown’s north parkade, is the only remaining property in the area not under city ownership.
“We impact more families than most charities in the city,” said Mike Mckague, part of YMCA leadership.
According to Mike Mckague, YMCAs in the city offer the largest form of childcare in the city, as well as after-school care sites, family resources, leadership programming, and employment opportunities for new Canadians.
However, Mckague said he still supports the purchase of the YMCA by the city.
“As far as the deal goes to approve the sale of our building, I want to encourage council to accept the deal,” Mckague said.
The city has already given the YMCA an $887,000 refundable deposit and will provide another $2 million in September 2024. The remainder of the purchase will happen when the property title is officially handed to the city.
The purchase also needs to be approved by city council and will be discussed at a future meeting.
Mckague said the city won’t be losing access to childcare downtown or throughout the rest of the city if the downtown the YMCA is taken over by the district.
“We are committed to downtown,” he said.
The YMCA is planning to open another childcare facility in the area after receiving the $2 million from the city. A location has not been considered yet.
The city also decided that the YMCA will operate the new East Side Leisure Centre in the Holmwood area in 2027, offering the same services and more to the community.
“It’s important to reiterate that we are not going anywhere anytime soon,” Mckague said. “There is a lot of planning to do with the (Downtown Event and Entertainment District).”
The YMCA has also expressed its interest in operating the Harry Bailey Aquatic Centre post-renovations.
“The sooner we can get this built, the better,” said SaskTel Centre’s chief executive officer John Howden, noting that the facility just celebrated its 36th birthday and is in need of an upgrade.
“We are out of space. The concourses are narrow, we need new kitchens, we need new elevators, and all of those things require blowing out the walls to the existing facility.”
He said the seats are also narrower than other stadiums, the facility can only accommodate a certain number of concert trucks, and it doesn’t have loading docks.
A renovation of the SaskTel Centre would cost around $300 million just for improvements, according to Howden.
“It wouldn’t even check all of the boxes that would get us another 30, 40 years.”
From a business model standpoint, Howden said building a new facility downtown would make the most of the city’s budget and allow district users to find closer hotel rooms, restaurants and bars.
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