RORY MACLEAN
News Editor

With construction slated to begin on Station 20 West by May, the group is in a desperate bid to raise the final $1.25 million required for the project.

The city of Saskatoon has a new requirement for construction projects stating that all the money must be raised before council will issue a building permit.

“We were a bit surprised but the city told us we weren’t being singled out,” said Paul Wilkinson, project manager for Station 20.

“If we’re going to build in May we’re going to have to start tendering by the 1st of March, probably.”

The group currently has about $1.75 million raised, mostly through donations, and they are eligible for a $2.2 million mortgage. This leaves only four months to raise the rest of the money for the approximately $5 million project.

This is no small task, considering it took the organization over a year to raise $1.75 million after the newly elected Saskatchewan Party government reneged on an $8 million commitment that had been made by the NDP while in power.

Station 20, a partnership between the Child Hunger and Education Program and Quint Development Corporation, is envisioned as a community enterprise centre, holding a community grocery store, employment resources and affordable housing all in a centralized location in Riversdale, a neighbourhood affected by income inequality and an array of community health issues.

The funding for the project was removed because the Sask Party said they would not endorse a publically funded grocery store. The grocery store, which CHEP has offered to run, would be the only one in the Riversdale community.

“We thought that working together”¦ we could make a more serious attempt to reduce poverty in this area. Revitalizing this area, really, is what we’re about,” said Wilkinson.

Station 20 purchased the land, located on 20th Street and Avenue L, from the city for only $1 with the understanding that if construction did not begin by a certain point, the city would reclaim it.

The group recently received an extension on that deadline, promising the city to have foundations in the ground by September, says Wilkinson. The organization’s construction manager, however, has advised them that prices will be much lower if they can start in May.

With the provincial government unwilling to offer even a reduced amount of capital assistance, the burden falls onto private or corporate donations for the project to continue.

“It’s a tall order. Can we do it? We’re certainly going to give it our best shot, but there’s no guarantee,” said Wilkinson. “There are people we have been talking to and we’re hoping they’re going to come through with some big donations.”

Wilkinson hopes they will not have to go back to the city for another extension.

“It’s a pretty serious time. We certainly don’t want to delay another year.”

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photo: Robby Davis