Saskatchewan's Monthly Construction Update Highlights Progress on Key Projects

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The Saskatchewan Monthly Construction Update reveals significant advancements in various construction projects across the province, including schools and storage facilities.

REGINA – The newly released Saskatchewan Monthly Construction Update sheds light on numerous construction initiatives currently underway throughout the province. This month’s update highlights that several construction projects at Saskatchewan's provincial parks have reached significant milestones. Notably, work on the service centres located at Greenwater Lake Provincial Park's Cranberry Campground and Duck Mountain Provincial Park's Fern Campground has achieved substantial completion. Furthermore, construction is actively progressing at the misiwe-kisik | One Sky School in Saskatoon, along with an equipment storage facility project in Lumsden.
The new elementary school under construction aims to serve the Pleasant Hill, Riversdale, and King George neighbourhoods in Saskatoon. The Saskatoon City Centre School project is designed to consolidate the King George, Princess Alexandra, and Pleasant Hill school communities into a single facility, accommodating up to 400 students from pre-kindergarten to Grade 8, in addition to providing 74 child care spaces. This school will be situated on the former site of the Princess Alexandra School at 210 Avenue H South in Saskatoon. A distinctive aspect of this construction project is the use of reclaimed wood, which serves as a prominent architectural feature that connects the modern educational facility to its historical context. This reclaimed wood initiative was made feasible through a $1 million investment from the federal government via the Green Construction Through Wood program.
Timber salvaged from four historic grain elevators located in Kenaston, Milden, Simpson, and Domremy has been transformed into nail-laminated timber (NLT) panels that will be utilized throughout the building. Another notable feature of the project is the integration of precast concrete panels for the exterior wall assembly, which are manufactured off-site and delivered for installation. Quorex's operations manager Brent Mareschal commented on the project, stating that the company's extensive experience with conventional steel and precast systems allowed for a relatively seamless transition to mass timber construction. He emphasized that the primary difference lies in the meticulous precision required for layout and installation since mass timber construction has limited tolerance for adjustments.
Much of the materials used in the project arrived as finished products, which significantly minimizes the need for additional trades, materials, and rework later in the construction process. Mareschal noted that with proper planning and execution, mass timber offers an efficient construction method that can lead to savings in time, labor, and resources. The report also highlights that the use of premanufactured panel building components, including NLT, cross-laminated timber, and precast concrete panels, has accelerated the construction timeline.
The design of the new school includes several key enhancements, such as an expanded gymnasium that exceeds the typical size for elementary schools, an upgraded servery that will function as a full commercial kitchen, and the addition of a dedicated community cultural space.
In Lumsden, a new facility for storing heavy equipment and winter maintenance supplies, including road salt and sand, is currently under construction. This Lumsden Equipment Storage Building project, located northeast of the town at the top of the valley, aims to replace the existing storage facility. The design for this project follows a standardized model that has been employed across Saskatchewan. Ledcor Construction's senior vice-president for the Prairies, Brian Barber, expressed pride in being part of the Lumsden project, which will deliver a modern office and maintenance facility to support the operations of the Ministry of Highways.
With the steel structure already completed, the project is progressing smoothly, attributed to effective collaboration among the Ministry of Highways, the Ministry of SaskBuilds and Procurement, the consultant design team, and the Ledcor project team. Currently, the project is in the structural phase, with foundation work, site grading, and the assembly of the steel structure all having been completed. The next phase will focus on the building envelope, with plans to complete this stage by the end of summer 2026 and achieve substantial completion by winter 2027.

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