Council mulls caps on vehicles

Saskatoon city council watchers can expect a long day starting today at 1 p.m. Here’s some of the key items on the agenda.

CABBIES SEEK CAP

Saskatoon’s taxi industry appears to have shifted from trying to stop ride-sharing companies to limiting their numbers.

A report to be considered by council explains that consultations continue with the city’s taxi industry on a joint proposal for more flexible rules.

The proposal is contingent on placing a cap on the number of vehicles allowed to operate through app-based ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft, a city report says. The City of Saskatoon hired an external facilitator to conduct talks between taxi companies and the union that represents drivers.

Taxi companies and the union presented different proposals to allow for more flexible service as the city prepares to allow ridesharing companies to operate sometime this year. City council asked for a joint proposal.

The city has endorsed rules that will allow ride sharing in Saskatoon as soon as provincial legislation comes into force.

A joint proposal had not been received by Sept. 10, the report says.

Ride-sharing companies generally operate using part-time drivers without a cap on drivers or vehicles.

Council will also vote on a proposed levy of seven cents per ride-sharing trip to help pay for refurbishment of taxis so they can provide accessible service. This rate is similar to what is charged in other cities, a city report says.

NEED FOR SPEED

The speed limit for the new Chief Mistawasis Bridge will be decided, barely a week before the span opens to traffic on Oct. 2.

Council voted on city hall administration’s recommendation for the speed limit on a stretch of roadway connecting to the new north bridge last month, but a rare tied vote complicated matters.

City administration had proposed a 60-kilometre-per-hour speed limit for the new extension of Mcormond Drive from the new intersection with Central Avenue, across the new bridge and to Wanuskewin Road on the west side of the South Saskatchewan River.

The tied vote on the 60 km/h speed limit meant that speed is defeated and cannot be revived for another try before the roadways and the bridge open. Coun. Troy Davies was absent from the August city council meeting, which left only 10 votes and a 5-5 split.

Coun. Zach Jeffries proposed a speed limit of 70 km/h along that stretch, but got support for postponing the vote until today. Jeffries expressed concern that the 60 km/h limit is too slow and could create the perception of a speed trap.

Had council voted on 70 km/h last month and another tied vote had resulted, the speed limit would have likely reverted to 50 km/h, the default speed for Saskatoon roads.

TOWNHOUSE TILT

A proposed new development in the Willowgrove neighbourhood that many oppose returns to city council’s public meeting tonight.

Innovative Residential, a Saskatoon-based company known for building low-cost housing, is hoping to have land where a church was supposed to be built rezoned to accommodate a townhouse project.

Many in the neighbourhood oppose the project and showed up for a public hearing in June. City council seemed ready to reject the rezoning request before deciding to postpone a vote until today.

The postponement was intended to give the developer and residents time to work out a compromise. It’s not clear if the extra time has produced any sort of solution.

Residents raised increased traffic as a major concern, although the stigma around affordable housing was also raised.

Several councillors suggested the city, which sold the lots to homeowners through its land development branch, failed to provide enough information about the potential for developments like the one proposed by Innovative Residential.