Murray Wood: Who's hot... and who's not
Every Friday, Murray Wood takes a look at the week's news and decides who's hot... and who's not. This week's list inclu...
People heading to Broadway Avenue have yet to see construction resume on a 17-storey building approved in 2019.
It has been a long wait to see what will be happening to Highpoint, a new residential and retail building.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the project was halted in July of 2020. The developers were taking some time to revise their plans to make the project more affordable.
The building was originally set to be finished in the fall of 2022.
DeeAnn Mercier, the executive director of the Broadway Business Improvement District (BID), was eager to see the project completed.
“It was very exciting when I heard that Highpoint was coming to Broadway,” Mercier said. “That has been an underutilized section of Broadway for a long time.”
Broadway is known as a hub for culture, shopping and music within Saskatoon. Mercier hopes if the new building eventually makes its way to Broadway, it will help bring more locals to the area.
“I think the more people in the area will be more people patronizing the businesses and that will be good for the businesses to continue to thrive and prosper,” Mercier said.
Since the announcement of Highpoint, more construction projects have popped up on Broadway, including the Baydo Project and a new 15-storey building.
Some residents have expressed fears that these new projects may ruin the character of the Broadway area. Others think that bringing in new people can never be a bad thing.
With the Broadway BID being established back in 1986, some believe it might be time to consider expanding the area.
“(It’s important) to invest in Broadway and to say that Broadway is a neighbourhood that people want to live,” Mercier said. “I think it makes businesses feel assured that they can (see), as they transition out of this pandemic period, the neighbours will continue to support local and support local businesses.”
So far, 40 units have been pre-sold for the Highpoint building but there haven’t been any updates on the new construction plans.
