City of Saskatoon unveils renderings of potential Downtown Event and Entertainment District

Saskatoon residents who are curious about what the proposed Downtown Event and Entertainment District will look like are now able to explore it with several artistic renderings revealed by the City.

At a celebratory unveiling held today, the design concepts depicted the district as a place for residents to gather, shop, eat, and view entertainment during all four seasons, with a new arena, parks, walking paths, and an outdoor terrace.

City Councilor Cynthia Block says these renderings are not an indicator that the project is moving quickly, rather a method of giving the plan visual representation.

“This has been, in many people’s minds, a bit abstract. It seems like a bit of a shock. (People ask) ‘what does this mean?’, ‘how will that work?’, ‘what about parking?’, and “where are we going to find the money?” but understanding what it’s going to feel like is pretty special.”

According to Block, Saskatoon is beginning to be overlooked by potential concerts and events due to the inadequacy of its current arenas and convention centres due to their dimensions.

Although SaskTel Centre has the ability to seat 15,190 people, the new arena will have the capacity for 15,900. City Councilor Troy Davies cites the height of the building as one of the obstacles.

“I’ll give you an example. Our roof at SaskTel Centre is 52 feet. We’ve been told by all major concerts that a 90-foot ceiling height is what’s needed for moving forward in the future for major concerts.”

He reiterates that this is not a project that the City wants to fund off the back of taxpayers and will require numerous partnerships and investments from those inside and outside the community. Mayor Charlie Clark echoed those comments.

“This is not a project that will be built by the city. It will be built with the community. There’s no way this project gets done without tremendous community support, partnerships, and even investments. (It will require) partnerships with the hotel industry to find a way to use things like accommodation taxes,” Clark stated.

Member of the DEED Advisory Group, Stephen Yee, cites several recent studies that suggest Saskatoon is an ideal location for a district such as this one.

“Saskatoon has gained more than 36,000 new employed people since December 2026, and that’s over six times more than the rest of the province combined. We also have the highest employment rate and labour force participation rate in the country,” Yee acknowledges. “A study by the Greater Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Saskatoon projects $1.1 billion in gross economic impact during the construction of this district. Early projections show that the district would create over 2000 jobs in the province and well over $100 million in new labour income across the province.”

As part of the plan to create the DEED, the City is also considering acquiring the YMCA building and its associated land. This acquisition of the YMCA would secure a bordering area of land with increased redevelopment potential. Future plans for the land would include an expansion of the convention centre and a new parking structure in the area of Idylwyld and 22nd Street.