Saskatoon mayor says revitalized downtown, dealing with COVID-19 remain priorities for 2022

There's a lot to look forward to this year, despite a number of setbacks in 2021, Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark said.

In an interview with Saskatoon Morning host Leisha Grebinski, Clark acknowledged that continued waves of COVID-19 have made governing the city a challenge. However, the mayor said there are still a number of positive signs ahead for 2022.

Here's part of their discussion.

Leisha Grebinski: How would you describe this past year for the city? 

Mayor Charlie Clark: Well, it's been a roller-coaster. Once we had news of the vaccine, there was a hope that that vaccinations would allow us to start to function more normally and the wave of people getting vaccinated was quite remarkable. Once we got to the summer, there was a feeling like: 'Hey, maybe the fall will be able to be more normal.' And then, as we all saw and experienced, the fall was not that at all. It was a very, very challenging fourth wave. So, there was a sense of hopefulness and then we had to face the reality that COVID doesn't care about whether we're ready to be done with it. It has its own plans. 

LG: The pandemic has affected so many different aspects of our lives, and it's had an impact on cities, particularly downtown areas. When you look at our downtown right now, what impact has COVID had on it? 

CC: People normally working in offices play a fundamental role in supporting restaurants or supporting flower shops or suit stores — the mom and pop businesses that are the core of the downtown, and right now, those people aren't doing that. It makes it very hard for those businesses to survive, and it also feels more empty in the downtown. This is something we're seeing in our city and across the country. And we have sadly seen some increased vacancies along 2nd Avenue and in some different parts of the downtown where businesses just haven't been able to survive. So that's been a real issue. 

LG: What are some of the ideas to deal with this situation?

CC: Well, I've gone downtown in the evenings to go to a restaurant and even with all of the protective measures in place, it's been hard sometimes to find parking. There is a resilience in our downtown and we have seen that people are able to continue to support businesses. So, we have to get through this. But what we're also looking toward is — how do we plan and build for a downtown over time? This pandemic won't be with us forever. We have to plan for the future. And so we're going to be talking this year about the downtown entertainment district and about the work to create that vibrant centre of activity in the downtown that can also attract more investment. 

We have a downtown community group of business leaders all talking about expanding residential areas there. That is something that's underway with, for example, the 25th and 5th Tower, the largest residential project in Saskatchewan's history, which is being built in our downtown. And there are other developers continuing to look to the future. We're seeing these places that bring vibrancy into the area. So, I don't think it's hopeless. There's a lot to be said for the resilience of the businesses that have continued to adapt. We just have to keep working together and building toward the future. 

LG: When you talk about a downtown entertainment district, does that include an arena? 

CC: Yes, city council has made the decision that the next time there's going to be a major investment in the arena, it won't be to retrofit or try and fix it. That wouldn't be a good investment. We should plan for a facility in the downtown — not an arena that's surrounded by parking, but an arena that's integrated into an expanded or improved convention facility and surrounded by the kind of restaurants and other activities and amenities that create a real, vibrant experience. These models are the ones that have been the most successful in North America in the last decade. 

LG: What happens if one of the lasting impacts of the pandemic is that people continue working from home? Are you considering that we may be facing a whole different work model once this pandemic ends? 

CC: I think we all have to follow and track the trends and be able to adapt to whatever is happening. You know, I was talking to the developers of River Landing and they are now 70 per cent full. So people and companies are still investing and developing in these office spaces. They're reconfiguring them. They're making them look different. We also have some growing tech companies in our community, like Vendasta and 7shifts. And there are major investments we're seeing, for example, with the Jansen potash mine just outside of the city. Those bring engineering, finance and office jobs. And our goal is to direct as much of that activity into the downtown. 

LG: What about Omicron? Will you approach the fifth wave differently than the fourth? 

CC: We've really worked hard as a city to create a framework for addressing COVID-19 and we have a systematic way of implementing measures within the city and also for engaging the province when we have concerns about measures outside of our jurisdiction. We're working very hard to communicate with residents proactively and to help support the vaccination roll out and to get people the information they need about how to stay safe.

And we're going to continue to do the same things in terms of our city operations. We're monitoring the situation very closely. And if we get the advice from our public health officers that we need to shut down leisure centres or take other steps, we will absolutely be able to do that. And if we need to delay the return to work for some of our staff, we will be able to do that as well. We've learned that we can adapt very quickly and we'll continue to stay engaged with the provincial governments on areas of concern within our city. 

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.