'We're going to need to work together': Clark focuses on reconciliation in State of the City address

Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark pointedly stayed away from current hot-button issues like firepit bans and marijuana legalization in this year's State of the City address.

Instead, he focused on bigger-picture topics like the province's high youth incarceration rate.

"For all the gains we're making in Saskatchewan, we also have the most young people in jail rather than graduating from high school," he said, speaking to the Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce Tuesday. "Right now, graduation rates for indigenous youth from high school are about half of those who are non-indigenous."

Clark went on to state that the current state of society is costing the government millions of dollars, while at the same time robbing society of potential leaders.

He said a recent visit to inmates at the Saskatoon Correctional Centre with Saskatoon Tribal Council Chief Mark Arcand was eye-opening.

"The more we talked about it, the more clear it was how their circumstances were formed early in life," he said. "And once the cycle began, it was very hard to get out."

Clark said there were no easy answers to solving these issues, but he believes Saskatoon can pull through.

"We have the right conditions to turn this around," he said. "Because of our culture of innovation, of problem-solving and collaboration, our community is becoming a recognized leader in the journey of reconciliation."

He credited more than 70 local organizations that have signed up for Reconciliation Saskatoon, as well as the local Rotary Club bringing in Kevin Lamoureux from the National Centre for Reconciliation to speak at the city's Badge, Shield and Star event.

"We have a chance to make progress in this area, but we're going to need to work together," he said. "We need to figure out the barriers to employment for people and create a successful pathway to get there."

Downtown arena

Clark also focused on the possibility of a new arena and convention centre being built in the city's downtown.

He said the arena, which could cost anywhere between $325 to $375 million, is a worthy project, but will only succeed once other issues, like transit, are worked out.

"A bus rapid transit system will be critical," he said. "It also won't be successful if it's not part of a downtown district that has activity 365 days a year through all seasons."

He also said the project's cost needs to be addressed.

"We need to figure out how arena and convention facilities will be paid for that doesn't put an undue burden on our property taxes," he said. "And it's a challenge I put out to our whole community."

Clark also talked about the need to foster innovation in the city's tech and research sector