Group prepares push for referendum on proposed downtown arena in Saskatoon

Saskatoon residents are likely to have a say on a proposed $1.2 billion downtown arena project, which could be the largest in the city's history. Ken Wood, a retired arena manager, announced his plans to organize an effort to force a referendum on the project on Aug. 21 and launched voteondeed.ca to collect signatures for the petition.

Nearly 100 volunteers have offered to canvass, with a goal of collecting 26,615 valid signatures within 90 days. If the group gathers the required signatures, a referendum would need to be held within nine months. Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block believes the real question facing the community is about investing in infrastructure for future events, rather than a binary choice of proceeding with the project or not.

Wood argues that renovations at SaskTel Centre could be done much cheaper than projected, while Block emphasizes the need for a venue with a higher roof to attract major events. The provincial government has pledged to match federal funding up to a third of the project costs, but no funding commitment has been made from the federal government yet.