Murray Wood: Who's hot... and who's not
Every Friday, Murray Wood takes a look back at the week's news and decides who's hot... and who's not. This week's list ...
Saskatoon’s Downtown Event and Entertainment District (DEED) has been the talk of the city for the past few months.
The DEED project continues to draw debate and discussion from residents as a petition circulates in support of a referendum on the plans.
Read more:
- Saskatoon DEED supporters push back on referendum claims
- Saskatoon downtown arena referendum could cost $1 million: Mayor
- Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block on DEED, University Bridge and CCMAs
- Former Saskatoon arena CEO calls for democratic voices in Downtown Event and Entertainment District plans
Keith Moen, executive director of the North Saskatoon Business Association, said the organization is in favour of the current plan put forward by the city, but the focus should be on a new convention centre.
“At this point we’re trusting their judgement and their estimations and what they’re supplying as data in terms of what they expect in the overall revenue that’s going to be generated and how they’re going to pay for it,” Moen said on The Evan Bray Show.
“We’re giving them the benefit of the doubt on that for the time being and we think that this is a great piece of infrastructure for Saskatoon, for the region, and for the province.”
Moen said he understands people have concerns but hopes the city administration’s updated report will help put many of them to rest.
“Certainly there will be an increase in pricing, but I don’t know if it’ll be quite as drastic as what some people are suggesting,” he said.
“We have to make sure that the facts are just that, so the number of $1.6 billion, no one is really sure where that came from. The overall number that was projected in 2024 was $1.2 billion. Certainly, that’ll be a higher number now, but if it would be that high, I don’t know,” said Moen.
While the proposed arena tends to be the focus of many of the discussions surrounding DEED, Moen said the biggest focus should be on a new convention centre.
“We really need an upgraded convention centre in the city of Saskatoon. No disrespect to TCU Place, but if you talk to anybody in that tourism or destination space, even TCU themselves, they’ll identify that they just don’t have what the public is looking for,” Moen said.
“The ones that we’re getting, we’re thankful that we are, but we’re certainly missing out on a larger portion of more grandiose ones.”
A new convention centre, Moen said, would not only help the city but also the local economy.
“Just get that convention centre space up to an A-level space, so that event planners, convention planners will come here. The hoteliers will be much happier. The restaurateurs will be much happier. Local retailers will be much happier, because we’re going to see many more people,” he said.
Amid the province growing its industries, such as agriculture, mining, oil and gas, and nuclear, Moen said Saskatoon and the province as a whole must adapt to the times.
“We’re going to need people. We’re going to need people to not just construct these mines, but to operate them as well. We don’t have the critical mass presently. So, what’s going to drive people to this province aside from these opportunities?
“There are opportunities in other provinces as well, and other provinces have other amenities that we maybe do not have here in Saskatoon or Saskatchewan, for that matter. And so we need to think like a big city,” Moen said.
“We need to have an event centre that’s going to be worthy of attracting people, saying that this is going to provide some level of quality of life for me that I’m looking for as a young professional, so that I’m going to move my family … to come to Saskatoon.”
Read more:
