A few years prior to the pandemic, organizers of the Saskatoon Fringe Festival decided to make the event smaller to be more financially stable, and now there is a request before City Council for the permit-only parking during the festival to also be pared down. Executive Director of the Broadway Improvement District told Council today (Wed) that instead of having plays across a large geographical area in the Broadway neighbourhood, the Fringe now is only on 11th Street to the East of Broadway Avenue and on Dufferin Avenue. Broadway Avenue no longer closes down during the festival.

The BID has mapped out 145 spots which aren’t in front of homes where parking could be made available for businesses and festival goers. She gives the example of a block on 8th Street which has no parking for those without permits during the festival but it only has businesses in front of it, not homes. As well, on Dufferin, there is nose-in parking that wouldn’t affect residential spots. The BID would also like the parking enforcement time to be cut, because right now it’s from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., which affects local businesses that are open in the evening.

A motion was approved that Administration will work with the BID to adjust the time when the Fringe parking permit is enforced, and then possibly next year a pilot project could introduce a smaller parking enforcement area. City Administration is in the middle of working on traffic bylaw amendments for the Fringe and the Exhibition area, but there hasn’t been public engagement yet.