Saskatoon Construction

[vyllym]

Originally Posted by Kelly Patrick

That would be my ideal. That someone somewhere measured the true need of a new gallery in Saskatoon and made something spectacular, to size. Just like the original Mendel. This is what I know. We do not need a gallery three times larger than the Mackenzie as proposed. Saskatoon does not have an art community that great and if we spend 50 million now, how much do taxpayers want to spend each and every year thereafter to maintain the building and staffing levels. My biggest fear is that they build some huge ugly concrete slab that is empty most of the time because we can't afford exhibits. That would be an injustice. Secondly, it is so stupid and unfair to call it the Saskatchewan Art Gallery because both the (Fred) Mendel and the (Norm) Mackenize in Regina, were named after individuals who supported and created the art communities in both cities respectively. Regina has every right as well to be a part of the Saskatchewan art community and Saskatoon has no right to claim such a ridiculous moniker that other provinces have. Let's be really different. Probably too much to ask.

Most government bureaucrats in Saskatchewan don't even know what the Guggenheim on 5th Ave is. It was not government that pushed for art galleries in Saskatchewan in the fifties and sixties and there is no way that Conservative governments can stand true to their party convictions by stepping in, unnecessarily, demanding to put a socialist name on a building, just because they put ridiculous amounts of taxpayers dollars into something so a Mayor of a city can save his ass because all the hype was just that. As well, municipal pencil pushers don't know the arts. God, this city just allowed drinking in 8th street restaurants in the 70's.

Lastly, there is talk that LakePlacid is rethinking EVERYTHING and hence we have to fill the gap. The problem is, when politics and private sector development are mixed up with changing politicians, political parties and taxpayers dollars that must be spent in the fiscal year - usually before an election - things don't turn out the way one thought. I also heard that certain people in town, who are supposedly donating to the new gallery, wanted nothing to do with the existing Mendel and its proposed expansion. Donors want their good (?) names to be associated with something new and big. Give me a break. This is Saskatoon. The hot air is overwhelming.

So with that, I support a new gallery but within reason; a room dedicated to the Mendel family which exhibits the 13 pieces, including the Picasso, the Rodin, the Lindners, and the Group of Seven that were donated originally by the Mendel family; the atrium at the existing gallery stay put; and the young guy who runs the Mendel bistro and makes the best damn espresso in town is given first dibs at the new space.

See you all back here in five years and we can compare hysteria with reality.........In the meantime I will post photos of Getty from LA and from MOMA, the MET and Guggenheim when I get back from New York in two weeks.......... Thanks guys for the chat.

I really don't think you read that article that was just posted in its entirety. The plan for the Art Gallery of Saskatchewan was formulated by the Mendel Board, not the city of Saskatoon. And I truly can't get over how obnoxious it sounds to assume that the "municipal pencil pushers" have no taste in art.

You sound like you just don't like Saskatoon by saying that we don't deserve to have the "Art Gallery of Saskatchewan", and making some sort of argument about 35 year old liquor laws that I'm not quite sure how related to your point. Regina has more than its fair share of provincial institutions that bear the name Saskatchewan on them, and I don't see how it's a travesty for Saskatoon to be able to bear the provinces name on something here besides the University.

Talk to me in 5 years when the A.G. of S, Lake Placid, the Lighthouse, the Children's Hospital and nary a Sky Tower have become a reality. In the meantime I'll watch it unfold from home. Atch, despite his flaws, has done more for this city than any other mayor in quite some time and I'm quite happy to let his pencil pushers build me an Art Gallery.

It's our time to shine.

[Kelly Patrick]

I don't need to read the Star Phoenix to know what is going on. I have followed this for years being born in 65, lived part of the culture of liberals that appreciated art and creativity and I am currently a Member of the Mendel. The City of Saskatoon manages the Mendel with staffing and maintenance. The Board of Trustees is appointed by the City of Saskatoon with two members City Councilors. There is NO accountability to members and no decisions are made in public at an AGM, etc. The City did not renew the previous Art Directors contract as he was opposed to moving the Mendel anywhere. Atch has done nothing but pad his friends such as Henry Hamm with contracts for projects that have been over budgeted, overblown and limited in the value residents of Saskatoon receive overall. Alliance got the bridge lights which look ridiculous, unless you are on acid at a cost NO municipality can afford in a global economy that is on the downside. Saskatoon will only shine if it accepts its limited ability to be progressive when City Hall bureaucrats, who hire their family and friends, can't make a circle a circle!

[madsad]

Originally Posted by Kelly Patrick

Alliance got the bridge lights which look ridiculous, unless you are on acid at a cost NO municipality can afford in a global economy that is on the downside. Saskatoon will only shine if it accepts its limited ability to be progressive when City Hall bureaucrats, who hire their family and friends, can't make a circle a circle!

I cannot and will not EVER accept a "limited ability" to be progressive. In many ways, the incestuous and insular nature of the movers and shakers here has actually resulted in many progressive projects being completed or started without being hijacked and squashed by penny-pinching downtown-killing conservative elites and their suburban backers: bike lanes, parks, etc, and the "ridiculous-looking" Vic bridge lights, which, I would like to register my support for. Anything that makes this tumble-weed ridden town look interesting, I'll take. The lights were worth every penny. I remember one evening, we were driving a rather gregarious friend from out of town over the Broadway bridge. She looked over at the Victoria, which happened to be displaying a beautiful warbling rainbow pattern, and remarked: "Ohmygod, ohmygod, its a gay bridge!!!" She loves that part of Stoon and we always hear about the gay bridge, in Saskatoon of all places! Take that San Francisco!

[vyllym]

Originally Posted by Kelly Patrick

I don't need to read the Star Phoenix to know what is going on. I have followed this for years being born in 65, lived part of the culture of liberals that appreciated art and creativity and I am currently a Member of the Mendel. The City of Saskatoon manages the Mendel with staffing and maintenance. The Board of Trustees is appointed by the City of Saskatoon with two members City Councilors. There is NO accountability to members and no decisions are made in public at an AGM, etc. The City did not renew the previous Art Directors contract as he was opposed to moving the Mendel anywhere. Atch has done nothing but pad his friends such as Henry Hamm with contracts for projects that have been over budgeted, overblown and limited in the value residents of Saskatoon receive overall. Alliance got the bridge lights which look ridiculous, unless you are on acid at a cost NO municipality can afford in a global economy that is on the downside. Saskatoon will only shine if it accepts its limited ability to be progressive when City Hall bureaucrats, who hire their family and friends, can't make a circle a circle!

And which Saskatoon is nicer to live in, the Saskatoon of 2003 (pre-Atch, global boom, Saskatoon left behind), or the Saskatoon of 2009 (Atch, global recession, Saskatoon pretty much the only place growing)?

It stuns me that you consider yourself part of the genteel liberal progressive elite but will only consider moving the Mendel an option when it has become a reactionary choice rather than a progressive one.

[OILERS]

A walk around Saskatoon today.

[A4Regina]

^^ wow. Saskatoon desperately needs some glass ASAP! how long till riverlanding village gets going??

[OILERS]

Originally Posted by A4Regina

^^ wow. Saskatoon desperately needs some glass ASAP! how long till riverlanding village gets going??

You are right Regina guy, Saskatoon does need some glass.
I don't think anyone really knows when riverlanding gets going.
If I had to guess, it will be next year.

[kgc087]

I thought as previously posted, Lake Placid confirmed they will be starting at the end of May?

[GTR200]

I wonder how many of the following projects will get done. I think they all should happen. Can't wait.

[circle33]

And just for fun, a little airport activity. Westwind Aviation has been keeping busy. A new passenger terminal:



and they're in the process of doubling their hangar space:



To the left of the off coloured panel is all new. Not as exciting as River Landing or 275, but all part of the big picture, I guess.

[prairieguy]

Now that spring is here (??), it is that annual seasonal occurence of horrible roads in Saskatoon. I have to believe that technology must exist that provides for a better road surfacing material then what the city currently uses. I understand we have a freeze and thaw climate that is very damaging to our roads. However, in this day of science and technology we must be able to do better! Even if it were to cost more initially, I would much rather see our tax dollars invested in a more favourable solution to road construction and repair then our current approach.

What use is all of our cultural and architectural development if the "journey" to get to them is so frustrating and uncomfortable due to potholes and payment heaving, that the users/patrons avoid making the trip. We recently had out of country visitors who were overall impressed with Saskatoon (even in our current "brown" season), but their ultimate impression and comments were on the "horrendous state of the roads here". How unfortunate that their memory of Saskatoon will be on bad roads rather then the other amenities we can boast.

[midnightrambler]

^^^^

Yeah our roadways are in pretty rough shape. I don't know if there is anything they can do to make them more adaptable to the weather. I've driven around in California, and the roads are all pristine because it never goes below zero, and they don't have to throw salt and sand on them for traction. And the roads there were likely built 40 years ago. Here your lucky if a road doesn't need repair after 10 years. I guess they could make them all out of concrete... Or with all the surplus of steel in China we could make them out of steel .. heh kidding.

Here it makes sense to drive SUV's. In California it doesn't...

[The_Bachelor]

Nearly all the roads downtown can only be described as shattered right now. All that should be done is repaving. Patching them is a huge waste of time and money.

In S'toon the roads don't last anywhere near as long as elsewhere but that doesn't mean they pave them anymore frequently than every 20 years.

Downtown, spadina, most places in the city are just a bad joke.

[kgc087]

A perfect solution to crumbling roads is don't drive and use public transit, you don't really notice anything on the bus, as well more demand will lead to an LRT where they don't even use roads! Maybe that's the way we should be looking at our road situation, rather then 80% in cars and 20% on transit it should flip, 80% on transit and 20% in cars, this would be a dream come true!

[midnightrambler]

Originally Posted by kgc087

A perfect solution to crumbling roads is don't drive and use public transit, you don't really notice anything on the bus, as well more demand will lead to an LRT where they don't even use roads! Maybe that's the way we should be looking at our road situation, rather then 80% in cars and 20% on transit it should flip, 80% on transit and 20% in cars, this would be a dream come true!

Not my dream.

[socialisthorde]

Originally Posted by kgc087

A perfect solution to crumbling roads is don't drive and use public transit, you don't really notice anything on the bus, as well more demand will lead to an LRT where they don't even use roads! Maybe that's the way we should be looking at our road situation, rather then 80% in cars and 20% on transit it should flip, 80% on transit and 20% in cars, this would be a dream come true!

+1

Frankly speaking, I do drive a fair bit (small car - not an SUV) and the condition of the roads doesssn't bother me a great deal. So I wouldn't support a huge outlay to improve the conditions.

[ninipanini]

Originally Posted by kgc087

A perfect solution to crumbling roads is don't drive... 80% on transit and 20% in cars, this would be a dream come true!

I couldn't agree more! I bike all winter and all of these seasonal complaints don't really apply to me; it doesn't really matter if they don't plow in the winter, and it wouldn't make a sniff of difference if they re-surfaced every inch of pavement in the summer.

I've never understood why the city doesn't aggressively market cycling (even just in the summer), think of the money they'd save on road maintenance? I wonder what the price differential is in the annual maintenance of a bike path vs. a 4 lane road? I realize that roads aren't going to just disappear but wouldn't a transit, cycle pedestrian model be better for everyone - including the taxpayer pocketbook? Let's have a little vision here people

[kgc087]

Originally Posted by ninipanini

I couldn't agree more! I bike all winter and all of these seasonal complaints don't really apply to me; it doesn't really matter if they don't plow in the winter, and it wouldn't make a sniff of difference if they re-surfaced every inch of pavement in the summer.

I've never understood why the city doesn't aggressively market cycling (even just in the summer), think of the money they'd save on road maintenance? I wonder what the price differential is in the annual maintenance of a bike path vs. a 4 lane road? I realize that roads aren't going to just disappear but wouldn't a transit, cycle pedestrian model be better for everyone - including the taxpayer pocketbook? Let's have a little vision here people

I agree completley, but doesnt Saskatoon already have one of the highest cycling rates in Canada, I think a positive approach which would be quite effective would to market it as your daily excercise so we could combat obesity and traffic at the same time! I am a HUGE public transit person and try to take it whenever I can, it really is the way to develop a strong urban community, cars destroy communities

[lbird]

Originally Posted by ninipanini

I couldn't agree more! I bike all winter and all of these seasonal complaints don't really apply to me; it doesn't really matter if they don't plow in the winter, and it wouldn't make a sniff of difference if they re-surfaced every inch of pavement in the summer.

I've never understood why the city doesn't aggressively market cycling (even just in the summer), think of the money they'd save on road maintenance? I wonder what the price differential is in the annual maintenance of a bike path vs. a 4 lane road? I realize that roads aren't going to just disappear but wouldn't a transit, cycle pedestrian model be better for everyone - including the taxpayer pocketbook? Let's have a little vision here people

The roads not being plowed don't affect you as a biker? Can you explain that a bit more? How do you bike through a six foot snow drift? This is one of the worst cities for walking/biking, it's too flipping cold and snowy. Cars are warm and convenient, and the city is small enough so it's easy to get everywhere in one. I'm speaking as someone who walks to work, but also uses my car(s) a fair bit. I would never give them up while living in this city or one with a similar climate.

Whats-her-name in the Star Phoenix had a great article - posted on this site - about people applying external development ideologies to this city without thinking how they fit in to the climate and culture. To me, the bike-everywhere, walk-everywhere mania doesn't make any sense in this climate. Warm indoor shopping malls and cars make sense in this city, no matter how many snarky articles you read in the New York Times about their existence.

[kgc087]

Originally Posted by lbird

The roads not being plowed don't affect you as a biker? Can you explain that a bit more? How do you bike through a six foot snow drift? This is one of the worst cities for walking/biking, it's too flipping cold and snowy. Cars are warm and convenient, and the city is small enough so it's easy to get everywhere in one. I'm speaking as someone who walks to work, but also uses my car(s) a fair bit. I would never give them up while living in this city or one with a similar climate.

Whats-her-name in the Star Phoenix had a great article - posted on this site - about people applying external development ideologies to this city without thinking how they fit in to the climate and culture. To me, the bike-everywhere, walk-everywhere mania doesn't make any sense in this climate. Warm indoor shopping malls and cars make sense in this city, no matter how many snarky articles you read in the New York Times about their existence.

I'm sorry Ibird but this just comes across as uninnovative and uninspired, look at cities like stockholm, helsinki, copenhagen etc. They have worse climates then us and still have very high bike usage, pedestrian traffic and public transit usage. What needs to be down is developing a system which is convenient and comfortable for people. Everyone really should watch Living City: A critical guide. Our cities very survival is dependent on the development of public transit and reinvesting into the public realm. Vehicles displace people from the city and from eachother and only widen social gaps, while transit, cycling and walking bring people together and help them rediscover eachother and their community. This is what is integral to a vibrant centre. Cars are never the answer. They just pollute, and demand wasteful infrastructure which only hampers development in the long run.