Prince Albert city council will consider a new City Manager appointment and the next step in the Central Avenue rebuild during its Regular Meeting Monday at City Hall.
Council will be asked to appoint Craig Guidinger as City Manager, following a recruitment process that began after former City Manager Sherry Person resigned effective December 2025.
Guidinger, the City’s director of community development, has been serving as Acting City Manager for the past six months. A report from City Solicitor Mitchell Holash says 44 applications were received before Executive Committee recommended Guidinger for the permanent position.
The proposed appointment would set Guidinger’s starting salary at $224,000 annually. The report says the amount is within the salary range previously approved by council for the position.
Council will also consider hiring (AECOM) Canada ULC to complete detailed design work for the Central Avenue Streetscape project.
AECOM is an infrastructure consulting firm with previous work on Prince Albert projects, including West Hill Master Plan detailed design and waterwater treatment plant design work.
Administration is recommending AECOM receive the consulting engineering services and detailed design contract for $640,000, excluding applicable taxes. Council would also be asked to authorize the City Manager to spend up to $800,000 of the previously approved $1 million project budget to bring the design to a tender-ready stage.
The approval would not authorize construction. The staff report says the work before council Monday is for design and preparatory work only, with construction and site supervision to come back to council for separate approval.
The Central Avenue project has already been discussed at council and public meetings as part of the city’s broader downtown rebuild. Earlier direction included two-way traffic, parallel parking, improved sidewalks, street furniture, lighting, trees and a public plaza area between City Hall and the University of Saskatchewan campus.
The project also includes major underground work. The staff report says the water distribution system beneath Central Avenue was originally built in 1906 and needs to be upsized to meet current and future demand. Portions of the sanitary and storm systems have also exceeded their service life and need replacement or rehabilitation.
The report says the design work is needed to prepare tender-ready drawings, confirm utility and surface improvements, and support future budget decisions before construction begins.
Council will also consider a request from Legion Branch No. 2 to install decorative red and black artwork on two downtown crosswalks in honour of the Royal Canadian Legion’s 100th anniversary.
The city’s current crosswalk policy only allows white traffic paint. Administration is recommending approval of the request, along with a review of the crosswalk policy by March 31, 2027.
Two sewer and wastewater items are also on the agenda. Administration is recommending a $129,292.44 contract to KWI Sealed Path for concrete repairs at the wastewater treatment plant’s North Bio-Reactor drop gates. Council will also consider a $467,922.27 contract to Capital Sewer Services Inc. for gravity sanitary and storm sewer cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) rehabilitation.
Other items include a tax relief request for 1947 16th Avenue West, a $35,000 Destination Marketing Fund grant for Prince Albert Grand Council’s Gathering of Nations, and the sale of small residual city-owned land parcels to YWCA PA and the Indian Metis Friendship Centre for $1 each.
Council will also consider transferring $14,000 from the PADBID Operating Reserve to help cover the overlap between the outgoing and incoming executive directors.
Two councillor motions are also listed. Coun. Tony Head is asking for a review of the $2 paper utility billing fee to see whether it is encouraging customers to switch to paperless billing. Coun. Dawn Kilmer is asking for a report on the city’s Workers’ Compensation Board costs before 2027 budget deliberations.
The meeting begins at 5 p.m. in council chambers.
arjun.pillai@paherald.sk.ca
