Students concerned for fate of historic Stone Barn

By Halyna Mihalik

The future of the University of Saskatchewan’s Stone Barn has not yet been decided.

The barn has been a landmark at the College of Agriculture since 1912. It has been a home for many farm animals, including cattle, horses and sheep, though it has not housed animals since its closure back in 2010.

“It was built at a time when agriculture was very important in the province; sort of the reason the province exists,” said fourth-year agribusiness student Erik Carey. “It symbolizes what the university used to be geared towards.”

The future of the Stone Barn is up in the air as the university decides how the building and grounds could be repurposed. Several students from the College of Agriculture are worried about the possibility of the Stone Barn being torn down, and want it to be preserved.

“I think it should be restored,” Carey said. “It should be maintained as a part of the College of Agriculture.”

The college has created a survey for people to voice their opinions on what should be done with the building, and a public meeting was held last Wednesday to give people a chance to pitch ideas related to repurposing the barn.

Carey believes the barn should not be torn down. He said there are many different possibilities for how the space could be utilized.

“The College of Agriculture doesn’t have its own library – that could be a really great use of it,” said Carey. “It could become a trade hall. You could have career fairs there, seminars, lectures. It could be offices.”

Thursday is the last day to fill out the survey to voice an opinion on what comes next for the Stone Barn.

The University of Saskatchewan’s administration was not available to comment.