Saskatoon Wildlife Federation aims to turn former police firing range into interpretive centre

The former Saskatoon police firing range. (Nicole Di Donato/CTV Saskatoon)

SASKATOON — The City of Saskatoon’s finance committee will be hearing about the sale of the former Saskatoon Police Service outdoor firing range on Monday.

The City is being asked to sell the firing range building for $1 to the Saskatoon Wildlife Federation so that they can move it to their adjacent site and repurpose it, according to an approval report.

The report states that the Saskatoon Wildlife Federation had previously been given the opportunity to be gifted the building for relocation to their new outdoor range site in 2015, but were unable to do so at the time for various reasons.

The idea back then was to have the Saskatoon Wildlife Federation share the facility with the police for training, the report said.

Now, the Saskatoon Wildlife Federation has a new proposal that would see the former firing range be moved and developed to become home to a multi-cultural interpretive centre focusing on the historical and future importance of areas like the Northeast Swale, the report said.

The Saskatoon Wildlife Federation said its goal is to promote the location as a “must see” attraction for the city to visitors from all over. It also said the location would be ideal for larger groups such as educational institutions.

According to the report, all costs associated with moving the building would be paid by the Saskatoon Wildlife Federation, not by the City.

It also said this sale could help save the City money in the long run, as it wouldn’t have to demolish the building one day, which could cost about $30,000 to $40,000.