SaskTel Centre defends holding first major concert in Sask. during pandemic

More than 13,000 people sang along with Eric Church at SaskTel Centre on Saturday and the venue’s executive director is singing the praises of his 800 staff members who had the challenge of hosting the first big concert in Saskatchewan in the COVID-19 era.

“We followed the public health order to a T,” Scott Ford said Monday.

“I’m extremely proud of our staff and our contractors involved in servicing this event. I’m actually proud of the customers who showed excellent patience in getting their proof of vaccination checks at the entrance doors. People get nervous feeling they are going to miss the concert. I felt the fans who attended were well-behaved.”

Ford admitted not everyone was well-behaved, with staff kicking out 10 people for refusing to wear a mask inside the building.

Photos circulating on social media also showed many more people without a mask on, but Ford attributed that to the massive food and drink sales which were double the amount of a normal concert.

“About 50 per cent of our customers at any given time are eating or drinking beverages. So you have a lot of people eating and drinking in the building,” said Ford.

“Like a restaurant, in your seats, you’re allowed to take your mask off to enjoy your food and beverage.”

The venue also faced criticism from the provincial NDP, which called for the show to be cancelled given the province’s struggles controlling the virus.

Some people claimed they were allowed into the building without being checked for proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test.

Ford said while it’s possible a few may have slipped by unchecked, he believes that number was very small and was balanced by the number of people caught at the doors who didn’t have the proper documentation.

“We turned people away that didn’t have proof of vaccination or a negative test, or didn’t have the photo ID to support the proof of vaccination or negative test,” said Ford, who was helping staff check people at the doors.

“(Staff) that knew what the policies were and knew what to look for, those staff were vigilant and doing those duties.”

Ford said there will be a review of the concert to see what procedures can be improved.

SaskTel Centre is set to host a Professional Bull Riding event this weekend. In past years, the event has attracted roughly 10,000 fans over two days.