After city council declined to lift a hold on one of its other projects, Arbutus Properties decided to delay the Midtown Plaza grocery store they had planned for Saskatoon indefinitely.
The Holding Symbol was changed in 2014, and properties must now meet specific requirements before they can continue with development. This entails offering sufficient sewage, water, and servicing capacity.
Additionally, it forces the developer and the City of Saskatoon to come to an agreement regarding payments and development fees.
The City of Saskatoon denied a formal application made by Arbutus requesting the removal of the Holding Symbol for the development of a new apartment tower in the Rosewood area.
According to Jeffery Drexel, president of Pitchfork and Arbutus, “what we basically asked them was to let us go ahead because there is existing capacity in the existing sanitary system to accommodate this project in the worst-case scenario. But as they denied that, it basically caused us some hiccups in terms of our cashflow because there is cash invested there that we can’t draw out.
“At this time, Arbutus has not satisfied the requirements needed to remove the Holding Symbol, including supplying sufficient sewer capacity and making up unpaid offsite fees.
This hold and disruption of finances has delayed one of Arbutus’s other Saskatoon projects, the construction of Pitchfork Market grocery that was to be located in Midtown Plaza in downtown Saskatoon.
We don’t keep $6 million in cash on hand, so when there is a delay like that, it affects the schedule of other initiatives.
Arbutus stated that they are unable to predict the length of the delay and that the city is now requesting extra compliances in order to complete the infrastructure.
Seven other council members and the mayor all voted against the motion.
According to a municipal council report, doing so would shield the city from incurring fees for any unfinished projects and from the dangers of constructing on unserviced land.
According to Drexel, doing business with the City of Saskatoon has never been easy.
“There have been serious issues. The City of Saskatoon stops us every time we turn around. For the past 12 years, we have been building in the city.
We constructed 220 flats, a few hundred residences, and the second Costco. We think we have a lot to add.
“We plan to complete our projects and stop working with the City of Saskatoon. We will deal with Corman Park and will build in other cities,” Drexel said, “We will stay away from the City of Saskatoon as long as the current council is composed as it is.
Drexel confirmed that they would finish the Midtown Pitchfork grocery store and the affordable homes they have been working on if they could get permissions.
According to Randy Pshebylo, executive director of the Riversdale Business Improvement District, it can be challenging to locate larger-scale supermarkets in urban areas.
“This is not a solitary, self-contained grocery store in the middle of the city.
The Pitchfork chance was going to be about providing another form of food service for the neighbourhood since we need to give services for everyone.
Although the postponement of the Pitchfork Market appears to be a squandered opportunity for the neighbourhood, Pshebylo claimed that the 14 nearby smaller market stores presently meet the needs of the community.
The citizens of the entire city will continue to be served by any small commercial enterprises that we have in Riversdale, at the end of the day.
Due to a municipal council decision, a planned grocery shop in downtown Saskatoon has been delayed.
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