At a time when visitation numbers are higher than ever, the Dakota Dunes Casino Development Corporation has stepped up with a $200,000 donation to the Saskatoon Food Bank and Learning Centre.

Food Bank Director Laurie O’Connor says in August, the Food Bank saw over 26,000 visits, up from about 23,000 as recent as May of 2026. O’Connor says she’s hoping this is more of an outlier than a trend. 

“It was a bit of a surprise for us all to see us over that number,” she recalls. “We do not turn folks away, so we’re planning for four to six hundred hampers every day, ensuring we have enough food in the building. If donations aren’t meeting the demand, then we’re purchasing food.”

Helping announce the gift Mandaya morning, Saskatoon Tribal Council Tribal Chief Mark Arcand called on other community organizations to do the same. 

“People are having a choice of paying their rent, paying their energy, paying their power, or buying foods for their kids and their families. We should never be putting families in a situation to make that choice.”

The money will be going towards the establishment of the Food Bank’s new location, currently under construction in Pleasant Hill, but expected to open its doors by September 2027. 

O’Connor has said previously that not only will the new build be double the size of the current food bank on Avenue C, but over the next ten years, the amount of food brought through the warehouse will be able to double, as well. The three-acre lot will also provide enough space for a garden, the urban agriculture program, a commercial kitchen, and an expansion of the workplace training program.