The plan to bring a grocery store to downtown Saskatoon took a step forward on Monday.
The Standing Policy Committee on Transportation unanimously supported a development plan from Vancouver-based Arbutus Properties to build a Pitchfork Market + Kitchen store in the Midtown Plaza
It would be located in the space intended for Mountain Equipment Co-op before those plans changed following the sale of the co-op to an American investment firm last year.
The committee approved a recommendation from the city administration to identify how much of the store must be built before the city will make significant improvements at the Idylwyld Drive and Auditorium Drive intersection for the added traffic Arbutus expects.
Construction costs for the proposed intersection improvements are estimated at $220,000.
Arbutus requested a tax abatement from the city for the space in Midtown Plaza, but dropped that request Monday after realizing tax abatement was already approved for the downtown mall.
Council still needs to approve the administration recommendation at a future meeting before any construction or lease agreements can be formalized.