Perhaps unsurprisingly, sustained funding for infrastructure tops the list of issues Saskatoon city councillors want discussed during the long federal election campaign.
Some councillors differ, however, on what form the funding should take.
Coun. Troy Davies said he likes the public-private partnership (P3) approach to receive federal funding, but Coun. Ann Iwanchuk said the P3 mandate places too much restriction on municipalities.
“I’m concerned that we are being told the way we have to finance projects if we want to receive money from higher levels of government,” Iwanchuk said. “(P3 projects) tend to be more costly in the long run.”
The City of Saskatoon is engaged in two P3 projects: The $160-million civic operations centre and the $252.6-million project to build two new bridges.
Davies said the city has a lot of projects to tackle in the next 10 to 15 years.
“I just hope that door’s still open and not closed after this election,” Davies said of P3 funding.
Coun. Pat Lorje pointed out that most people in Canada now live in cities, which have the “least robust” sources for funding. She said infrastructure funding has become a constant issue that needs to be resolved.
“I’d like to see them come up with more money for infrastructure without putting our country into deficit,” Coun. Eric Olauson said. “I don’t want to see our country go broke building that.”
Iwanchuk added transit and affordable housing as issues she would like to see debated at the federal level and Coun. Mairin Loewen also mentioned infrastructure, affordable housing and transit. “Our (infrastructure deficit in Saskatoon) perhaps feels a little more acute, but this is an issue that faces every municipality across the country,” Loewen said.
Both Loewen and Coun. Zach Jeffries said they look forward to more details from the political parties as the campaign progresses. “I do expect to hear more,” Jeffries said.
Lorje noted the parties so far have been “conspicuously quiet” on the issues of health care and seniors services.
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