Something Big is on the Horizon

Something Big is on the Horizon…If we are BOLD enough to dream big. 

For the last 9 years a few brave souls have been touting the need for a new downtown arena and an updated convention centre. Fast forward a few years, and the beginning stages of the Downtown Entertainment and Event District (DEED) project are underway. But it’s not a done deal. We need to work together to bring this to life for Saskatoon. 

So why do we need a new convention centre? 

TCU Place contributes $27M to Saskatoon and $36M to our provincial economy annually. We attract regional, national and local events, but now our building is aging, and clients are wanting different things than what was originally built in 1968. Even our new renovation from 2006 is aging. Our beloved building is one of the last to be rebuilt in our market size. We have missed out on winning events to Saskatoon because of our building size, flow, and break out rooms. 

The perfect size convention for TCU Place is between 600-800 delegates, so we are missing out on the opportunity for conferences that are 1000+, or the ability to hold multiple events at one time. There is business that is going to other cities and other provinces because we cannot accommodate their growth or their event. Our downtown and our city are missing out on the benefits of hosting these larger events. 

If we don’t act now, we will fall further behind. We will lose more events to our city. We will miss out on the opportunity to contribute more to the Saskatoon economy….and to our city businesses that benefit when conferences come to Saskatoon. 

Clients booking large events want memorable, interesting, flexible spaces that allow for learning to happen not only in the conference rooms but in the space outside of the conference rooms. They want to see and feel the outside even when inside, so it doesn’t feel like they are stuck in a box. That comes from natural daylight and green spaces. They want environmentally friendly features and options. They want a taste of local – something that is recognizably Saskatoon, and convenience to local hotels, restaurants, and retail. The team at TCU Place does an amazing job of bringing clients’ events to life, but we can’t build in features that are not in our building. And so, we are at risk of losing some of the key events that contribute to the economy of Saskatoon. The main reason they keep coming back now is that our team has incredible commitment and heart. They just find a way to make it work. And it takes a tremendous amount of effort and time to make it work. 

When conferences come to Saskatoon, the benefit is felt city wide.

Delegates don’t just come to the convention centre – they eat in our restaurants, they shop at local stores, they go for a drink, buy gas, and sleep at a hotel. Business travelers spend four times as much as leisure travelers, and typically spend as much as $240 per day when they are here. Those dollars go directly to our city. Even a small conference of 500 people for 3 days generates about $1.2M Economic Impact for Saskatoon, so if we lose even one event of this size, we feel it. What we have today is “FINE”, but FINE won’t cut it for long. FINE runs the risk of losing some of the events that we have at TCU Place today. FINE doesn’t help build greater strength in our city. 

A newer, renovated convention centre, particularly when paired with a new downtown arena, will draw people to downtown like a magnet. It sets the stage for additional residential and additional development downtown. It means that there is more employment and more successful business development. When businesses do better, there are more jobs for our young people, and more NEW businesses starting up. This is all good for Saskatoon. 

This is not a project for today. I’m 55 years old. This is not a project for me or my generation. This is a project for the next 50 years, that will draw more people to Saskatoon, keep more of our people here, and help to grow our city with a thriving, contagious energy. 

Several of our competitors have realized successes by updating their facilities. Ottawa grew from $30M Economic Impact per year to $250M. Winnipeg realized 45% growth in their business following their renovation. Halifax has just about the same amount of rentable space as TCU place – but can host multi day conferences for 2300 people – far surpassing what can be hosted at TCU Place – because the space is more efficient. We can be the next success story. And we need our community to step up and step out to support the project. We can’t wait for someone else to get it done. Those opposed will be vocal. Our supporters need to be equally vocal.

If you want to help our city to thrive, to grow, to attract and hold onto businesses, and to bring the events to our city that generations to come will enjoy….then have your say. The City of Saskatoon is welcoming YOUR voice in these very beginning stages. Have your say before May 18th. https://www.saskatoon.ca/engage/downtown-event-entertainment-district

Here’s an offer just for you whether you are a supporter or a doubter. Our team is happy to offer tours for any community members that would like to see behind the curtain – to see how our building services events. Reach out to info@tcuplace.com with questions or to request a tour. Let’s have the same level of vision that our community had when they first built TCU Place more than 50 years ago.