Ward 8 Newsletter - July 2023

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I hope you have been enjoying your summer. 

This month's newsletter focuses predominantly on the upcoming Special Budget Meeting as well as what to expect on the City Council agenda. Other features in the newsletter include a few things happening in or nearby our ward. 

I hope that you enjoy the beautiful weather and upcoming city events. 

Sincerely,

Sarina

Ward 8 Updates

Special Budget Meeting 

As mentioned in last month's newsletter, City Council has established Special Budget Meetings to address the funding gap for the 2024 and 2025 budgets. I would like to reiterate that this funding gap does not impact the 2023 budget. 

The approach Council is taking to reviewing the budget includes both the expertise of Administration and Council and allows us to look through each business line. As many of the options will impact services, I want to ensure neighbours are aware of what is being discussed. 

Any recommendation that is made at the Special Budget Meeting will inform the budget book that is debated on November 28-30, 2023. While this is when final decisions will be made it is still important that neighbours are aware of what recommendations are being debated and considered.

I have put together a comprehensive post on my website to highlight what options are going to be considered at the July 25 Special Budget Meeting. The post can be found at: wardeight.ca/july_special_budget_meeting. The business lines that are being discussed include:

  • 2024/2025 Budget Inflationary & Phase-in Decisions
  • Transportation
  • Community Support
  • Saskatoon Fire
  • Environmental Health
  • Taxation and General Revenues
  • Land Development
  • Arts, Culture and Events Venues

Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any feedback on these options. These options are just the start as we will consider other business lines in August as well. 

Staying cool in the summer

Have you checked out the spray parks, paddling pools or outdoor pools yet this summer?

  • The City’s 45 Summer Play Program Sites will open for the season on Tuesday, July 4, 2023 and will operate until Wednesday, August 23, 2023.
    Designed for children 2 to 12 years of age, these free drop-in programs include water play, sports, games and crafts. The summer play program operates at 30 paddling pool and 15 spray pad locations throughout the city. A list of locations is available at saskatoon.ca/play.
  • Check out one of our four outdoor pools, Riversdale, Lathey, Mayfair and George Ward. We are pleased to announce new waterslides have been installed at Lathey and Riversdale pools in time for the 2023 season. Visit saskatoon.ca/leisureonline for drop-in schedules.
  • FREE Dog Day of Summer event at Mayfair Outdoor Pool is on Tuesday, August 22! Attendance is by online pre-registration only at saskatoon.ca/dogdayofsummer and a limit of 60 dogs per session. 

Rezoning - Brighton Gate South 

An application from Dream Asset Management Corp. was submitted to rezone land near the southern end of Brighton Gate in the Brighton Neighbourhood. The subject area is currently zoned FUD - Future Urban Development District and FUD(H) - Future Urban Development District, subject to the Holding Symbol, and is proposed to be rezoned to R1B - Small-Lot One-Unit Residential District, to allow for the subdivision
and development of the subject area.

This application will be considered at the Public Hearing ​​​​​​​​Meeting on July 26, 2023. The agenda can be found here for further information. 

Small Dog Parks 

The new Small Dog Parks are now open! The Charlottetown Dog Park is located off Bennet Place near Cosmo Civic Centre, while Hyde Dog Park is located at the corner of Slimmon Road and Boychuk Drive in Rosewood.

For furry friends to join the off-leash fun, dogs must be under 40cm (16”) at the shoulder and less than 9 kg (20lbs).

Discover more about these fantastic spots at saskatoon.ca/dogparks

City Council Meetings

Multi Unit Residential Recycling Contract Renewal  

The City of Saskatoon entered into a contract with Cosmopolitan Industries (Cosmo) to provide various services for the Multi-Unit Residential Recycling (MURR) Program from November 1, 2014, until December 31, 2023. The contract included an option to renew for another six years. 

The new contract would be for another period of 6 years, commencing January 1, 2024. There would be no change in the materials accepted (i.e. this is the same as the residential curbside program), with service remaining weekly. 

Full details about the proposed contract renewal can be found here

Corridor Planning Program  

Due to time constraints at its Public Hearing meeting on June 28, 2023, City Council deferred the matter to the July 26, 2023 Public Hearing meeting.

To implement the Corridor land use designations in the Official Community Plan and in order to meet the vision laid out in the Corridor Transformation Plan, new zoning districts will need to be added to the Zoning Bylaw.

This part of the Corridor Planning Program is technical in nature and only intended to create the tools needed to implement the land use policies that have previously been consulted on, discussed, and approved. This will not affect any land use decisions that have already been made, and no properties will be rezoned as part of this stage.

Four new zoning districts for the Corridor Growth Area are proposed to provide regulations and uses which align with objectives of the corridor land use designations as well as goals of the Corridor Transformation Plan. The process for developing the new districts began with internal partners and stakeholders, followed by in-depth technical consultation with industry experts and a high-level review by other stakeholder groups. A combination of existing zoning standards and best practices have been applied in drafting the proposed districts.

Read more about the proposed districts here.

Additional reports of interest 

The full agendas can be found here: regular business and public hearing


 

What's happening in Ward 8!

Here are some other great things happening in Ward 8 soon or put on by members of our community.


Sarina Gersher
- Ward 8 Councillor
www.wardeight.ca