The City of Saskatoon hasn’t ruled out that the location for a new arena could be where the farmers’ market building is in Riversdale.

In a news release regarding an update on the building, City officials say they haven’t ruled out the location for the new arena given that the City owns two parcels of land nearby that are currently parking lots.

One thing is certain about the vacant farmers’ market building downtown, Market Square, the free space surrounding the building will be home to an outdoor market this summer.

It’s expected that the market will run on Saturdays from May through September.

The City has also just recently closed its RFP process to find a contractor to repair the roof of the building. The City hopes to have the contractor in place within the next few weeks.

Depending on the weather and the contractor’s schedule, the work is expected to take place between May and June, although the work won’t affect the the outdoor market this summer.

In February of 2019, it was discovered that significant repairs to roof needed to be done.

The City hasn’t chosen a new tenant for the building, although the City is in talks with the highest proponent of the RFP that was issued to find a new tenant.

The results will be made public once the contract is awarded and until that time, the City won’t be renting out the site.