Councillor Hill looking for explanation, apology, promise from CP Rail on clear-cut land

A Saskatoon city councillor is looking for answers from CP Rail after an area of vegetation was clear-cut within City Park and North Park in March.

Ward 1 councillor Darren Hill stood next to part of the clear-cut area Sunday, explaining the situation that unfolded through the COVID-19 pandemic with the rail line.

“Early March, I started to receive communication from residents in North Park and City Park expressing concerns about the tree cutting that was happening on the embankment,” Hill explained.

“I didn’t know anything about it. I checked with the city, they didn’t know anything about it. So, then I checked with CP Rail.”

An area of CP Rail-owned land was clear-cut in March due to what CP Rail calls “federal regulations.”(Keenan Sorokan/650 CKOM)

Hill says CP Rail originally told him the clear-cutting was due to federal regulations.

The stretch of vegetation that was cut included Manitoba Maples, which Hill says were hand-planted around 50 years ago in the area.

He said there wasn’t any additional communication as the COVID-19 pandemic began, but CP Rail has since communicated that they will update Hill early this week.

Hill has asked for an apology from CP for the “poor communication,” along with an explanation and a promise to work with groups to look at replanting some of the areas.

“This provided a noise buffer from the train to all these homes in this area,” he said. “There were over 2,000 trees that were taken down.”

Hill says CP cut areas from Warman Road down to Spadina Crescent.

At Saskatoon City Council Monday, city administration confirmed that the areas were the private property of CP Rail and that the city didn’t receive, and wasn’t required to receive, formal notice of the clear-cutting.

— With files from 650 CKOM’s Keenan Sorokan