Evraz Place set for Sunday parking rush

Remembrance service, RIDER game, craft sale happening on same Day

Evraz Place is bracing for the perfect storm of parking demand on Sunday, with three major events set to draw tens of thousands of visitors in a single day.

Mosaic Stadium will play host to the CFL West semifinal between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Sunday, with kickoff at 3:30 p.m. That overlaps with the Our Best To You Art & Craft Sale, which runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and follows just hours after Remembrance Day ceremonies in the Brandt Centre.

Shalyn Kivela, spokeswoman for Evraz Place operator Regina Exhibition Association Limited, said a full house is expected at Mosaic Stadium. Remembrance Day typically draws 3,000, while the craft sale usually brings in 15,000 over three days. Needless to say, all 3,500 parking spaces at the facility will be highly sought after.

“We couldn’t have predicted that the Riders were going to be in the playoffs,” she said.

“We couldn’t have predicted that this will be the date, but of course it’s great news for us,” she added.

“I think the key is having people informed before they come that there’s going to be other events going on, so they can expect the spots available to be in high demand.”

Kivela said REAL already had a parking plan ready to roll out. Parking teams initiated it as soon as they heard that the West semifinal was scheduled for Sunday.

Free craft sale parking will take up lots to the south of the International Trade Centre on the west side of the complex.

Free Remembrance Day parking will be first-come, first-served in lots located on the south and southeast sides of the main Evraz Place facility.

The plan calls for those latter vehicles to be “directed off the property” shortly after Remembrance Day ceremonies wrap up at 11:45 a.m. Kivela believes that should leave more than enough time to turn those same spaces over to Riders fans, along with additional lots to the north of Mosaic Stadium.

If all goes according to plan, fans shouldn’t notice much difference from any other game day. “The impact to Riders season ticket holders and Riders game-day ticket holders is really going to be minimal, like nothing at all,” she said.

Parking attendants will validate entry to prevent game-day drivers from parking in areas held for other Evraz Place guests.

Kivela said staff are well prepared, but she advised attendees to arrive early that day and plan for delays. She said people can save themselves a headache — and help relieve congestion — by considering other travel options.

“We do encourage people, if at all possible, to carpool as much as they can or get dropped off,” she said. “Traffic will be heavy.”

She said the shuttles provided by Regina Transit to the Riders game will be running as normal.

Sunday’s semifinal has also forced Evraz Place to resolve a conflict with the provincial championships for high school football, which were scheduled for Saturday in Mosaic Stadium. Kivela said the time would have overlapped with walk-throughs related to game day on Sunday.

She said an offer was made to move the high school game to 4:30 p.m., but organizers opted to hold it at Leibel Field instead.

Kivela said Sunday won’t be the first time the facility has faced a parking crunch, and it’s unlikely to be the last. “I think this is going to be the new normal for us, to have multiple major events happening at the same time,” she said.

Despite the rush for parking, Kivela views the loaded schedule as an occasion to spend a whole day at Evraz Place.

“If anything, it gives something for people to do all day long,” she said.