SASKATOON — The Government of Saskatchewan and Ahtahkakoop Cree Developments (ACD) took the next step toward a new Urgent Care Centre (UCC) in Saskatoon on Wednesday with the signing of the final development agreement. Under this agreement, construction is expected to start soon.
Foundation work for the healthcare centre, similar to the existing Regina UCC, is anticipated to begin this fall, with substantial completion of construction targeted for spring 2026. The facility will help ease the pressure on the city’s emergency rooms and will also provide treatment for residents struggling with mental health and addictions.
The Saskatoon UCC is a joint project by the Government of Saskatchewan, led by Premier Scott Moe, Minister of Health Everett Hindley, and Minister of SaskBuilds and Procurement Terry Jensen, and Ahtahkakoop Cree Developments under the Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation.
Ray Ahenakew, former chief executive officer of the Meadow Lake Tribal Council and one of the project's driving forces, attended the groundbreaking ceremony on Sept. 18, along with Ahtahkakoop Elders Council leaders.
The Saskatoon UCC is the second facility in the province to be part of the government's $7.5 billion capital plan. The Regina UCC opened on July 2. Over the first two months, the UCC received an average of 110 patients per day, and nearly 7,000 patients in total during the same period.
The new facility will be built on the former Pleasant Hill School site at 215 Avenue S South, near St. Paul's Hospital, to help mitigate some of the capacity pressures in the emergency department. A pharmacy, imaging and x-ray services, and mental health and addictions counsellors are among the services the UCC will provide. The centre will have the capacity to manage non-life-threatening cases such as illnesses, injuries, as well as mental health and addictions needs.
Once complete, the UCC will be operated by the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) under a long-term lease with ACD. The UCC will be built by Graham Construction.
ACD will retain the former Pleasant Hill School building and will incorporate the well-known community landmark into their future development plans.
The services in the UCC and the adjacent facility will be available to everyone.
Hindley said the Saskatoon UCC will help meet the demands of the growing population as well as the province’s healthcare system. The Pleasant Hill community and nearby areas will benefit the most from an alternative for their urgent health needs, he noted.
“We’ve seen early data around the Regina Urgent Care Centre and its impact on our healthcare system. We are trying to ensure the patients are in front of the right healthcare provider at the right time,” said Hindley. “We are seeing it in Regina, where there are instances where people need medical care. Depending on the time of day, the emergency department might be available. It [ER] is not necessarily the place for those patients to be.”
The Saskatoon UCC will have trained counsellors from the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies who will assist individuals struggling with mental health and addictions, Hindley noted.
“Some of the realignments of harm reduction services province-wide were announced by [Mental Health and Addiction Minister Tim McLeod] several months ago. We are focused on increasing access to treatment. You will see more treatment spaces in the province,” said Hindley.
“We have an additional 500 spaces to address those concerns specifically. Minister McLeod and his team are working hard to create more treatment spaces across the province. We launched complex needs centres and emergency shelters.”
