Council to vote on $1.6 million tax break for building at former site of Extra Foods on Broadway

WATCH: Saskatoon's city council will decide if a developer can skip the taxes to encourage the construction of a Broadway Avenue high rise.

Saskatoon city councillors will decide whether to give a high-rise development a tax break during its regular business meeting on Wednesday.

The building, currently under construction at the former site of a grocery store at 906 Broadway Avenue, applied to the city for a five-year tax abatement. The break would save the developer an estimated $1.6 million in taxes, if approved by council.

The 14-storey building will be a mix of commercial space on the ground floor, followed by three floors of parkade, with 124 residential rental units above that, split between one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom spaces.

The site was previously occupied by Extra Foods, which last closed its doors on April 23, 2022, after its parent company Loblaws decided to shutter the building because the location was unprofitable.

Residents in the area not only miss having a grocery store on Broadway, but they also wish the new building will use its retail space to open a new one.

“This is what they would call a food desert now,” Claire Jones said.

“I actually live not too far away, and I miss it a lot,” Alyssa Black said. “There’s no grocery stores by Broadway anymore.”

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The city’s vacant land and adaptive reuse incentive program is meant to encourage infill development for the city’s vacant lots. Applicants have an incentive choice of a five-year tax abatement or a cash grant.

According to a report before councillors, an evaluation system awards points for features of the project which meet policy objectives. The application at 906 Broadway Avenue scored 100, which makes it eligible for the full incentive.

The city estimates the abatement will include $1,064,825 in municipal and library property taxes and $540,300 in education property taxes, based on the 2025 tax year.

Lawrence Bader figures the cost of construction alone would have the developer looking beyond a grocery store for more profitable businesses.

“It would be nice, but I don’t think that sort of building would be warranted here. The building itself sounds too expensive, and the groceries would be expensive,” Bader said.

Construction of the building is expected to finish in 2027. If approved, the abatement will begin Jan. 1, 2029, or the next taxation year following the project’s completion.